Lessons in Taxidermy: A Compendium of Safety and Danger

by Bee Lavender

Book Overview

" One of] the reigning mother superiors of the crowd is] Bee Lavender." --Time Magazine

Diagnosed with cancer at age twelve and perilously pregnant at eighteen, surviving surgeries and violent accidents: sometimes you can't believe Bee Lavender is still alive; sometimes you think nothing could kill her. Lessons in Taxidermy is Lavender's fierce and expressive search for truth and an elusive sense of safety. This autobiographical tale is...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1888451793
• ISBN13: 9781888451795
• Release Date: April 2005
• Publisher: Akashic Books, Ltd.
• Length: 225 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.3" x 7.6"

Customer Reviews

You'll laugh 'til you cry!!

A rollicking romp through the sidesplitting shenanigans of this goofy gal with a quenchless thirst for thrills! Your funnybone won't know what hit it!

Hurray.

Will make you sad and hate yourself for making light the small things, good ending. A wicked read, also check out the other Punk Planet books... I've read many and they are also good reads.

Fantastic story about the strength to survive

I had been wanting to read this book for a while, and when I finally received it, I read it in 2 days. Bee has had a lifelime of numerous debilitating illnesses and her story of one's strength and courage through it all moved me to tears. On so many occasions, Bee was ready to just lie down and let the diseases consume her but through some hidden strength, she has been able to survive. Several times I had to put the book down to wipe my eyes. The story is told in a frank and honest manner, a story that her mother encouraged her to write to tell a story of survival. As if Bee's illnesses weren't enough of a cross to bear, she and several of her friends are involved in a horrific car accident that when told, left me sobbing. What I appreciated the most about Bee's story is that she never seemed to be looking for sympathy or pity. She told it like it happened and the story is all the more powerful because of her candor, I highly recommend this book.

Sex-Kitten.net Review

While some of the great work in Bee's life, such as her work as an activist & mentor, is not given the credit or attention it perhaps ought to, what the reader receives is the sense of soul about the author, the woman. In a world of biographies which read like resumes or entries in a name-dropping contest, Bee's book has substance. Best of all, this is not some cheesy Little Engine That Could story; Her life hasn't been simple, and neither is her writing. The book is charming in an uncanny way, with lush words for empty moments, providing real depth for pits of despair. There are eccentric elements which endear... then again, that only makes the echos of the pits stronger... There are moments so bereft of detail as to leave you as lingering as she... Other moments are so full of details as to be sharp & pointy things. Certainly the freakish haunts. But her writing draws readers close, with taunt yet tender moments so intimate, it dares you to recoil at the horrific events. Her words, as well as her life, enchant. (Condensed Review)

Poignant book about anguish

I am stunned by this book and I suggest that everyone should read it. It's a tough and frightening book, but somehow quite uplifting. I feel disoriented and almost drunk after reading it. I somehow feel more vunurable to the possibilities that bad things like this could happen to me too, but also calm. She goes very low and deep into hell, but as the book goes along, she then seems to transcend it all and enjoy her strange life. At the end of the book I almost wanted to be her, and to have her perspective on life. This is a somewhat strange outcome of the book when you consider all the savage events that happen it it. I couldn't put it down. I read it in one long sitting while all of the things I was supposed to do yesterday went undone. On the back of the book it says that it's "apocryphal, troubling, cathartic, and important". I agree with this 100%