Description
'I thought my family was complicated until I read Chrysta Bilton's wonderful memoir about the unique collection of irresistible characters in her life. Bilton has a big heart, gentle wisdom, keen eye and lovely wit. She's a gifted writer with an astonishing story to tell.' -David Sheff, author of Beautiful Boy
'By turns hilarious, wrenching, and achingly tender... Bilton writes beautifully, with sharp insight and a light touch, about her harrowing, astonishing journey into understanding her parents, her (very) extended family, and herself.' - Susan Orlean, New York Times bestselling author of On Animals and Rin Tin Tin
For most of her life, Chrysta Bilton was one member of a small, if dysfunctional, family of four. There was her sister, Kaitlyn, her hedonistic, glamorous, gay mum Debra, and Jeffrey, who Debra hand-picked, in an LA hairdressers, to be the father of her children. During Chrysta's unstable childhood, Debra struggled to keep the family afloat and Jeffrey wandered in and out of their lives.
Then, in her twenties, Chrysta discovered that her father had secretly donated his sperm over 500 times - and that she had at least 35 other siblings.A Normal Family is a captivating coming-of-age memoir about Chrysta's reckoning with the secrets both parents had carefully kept from her. Heartfelt, warm and funny, it's a story of embracing the family we have, in all the forms we find it.
A Normal Family is a captivating coming-of-age memoir about Chrysta's reckoning with the secrets both parents had carefully kept from her. Heartfelt, warm and funny, it's a story of embracing the family we have, in all the forms we find it.
Blog Tour Review
Review for 'A Normal Family' by Chrysta Bilton.
Read and reviewed for Random Things Tours, Chrysta Bilton and Monogram Publishing.
Publication date 14th July 2022.
This is the Chrysta Bilton's debut book.
I was originally drawn to this book by its eye catching cover and intriguing sounding synopsis and title. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Monogram Publishing. I have yet to read a book published by Monogram that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).
This novel consists of a prologue and 32 chapters set over 5 parts. The chapters are short to medium in length so possible to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is based in the USA 🇺🇸
This book is written in first person perspective and the main protagonist is the author Chrysta Bilton. The benefits of books written in first person perspective are as long as they are well written it makes you feel that you are being spoken to by the protagonist and it can create more of a bond between yourselves and them.
This book is very well written and completely absorbs you into Chrysta's life with her fantastic descriptions ensuring you feel right next to her while she tells you her life story.
The first thing I must say is that for a non-fiction it is definitely stranger than fiction!! In this book you will find a bit of everything I can think of including sperm donors, drugs, politicians, lesbian mums, addiction, poverty, wealth, celebrities mental illness, redemption, surprised family members and so so much more!!! My heart went out to Chrysta throughout the book as she lived in absolute havoc never knowing who was who, including where her father kept disappearing too. It broke my heart reading her asking where her Daddy was on several occasion. She had to deal with mentally unstable parents who wreaked havoc on her life, substance abuse, eating disorders, a mum who had to pay her Dad into become a sperm donor to herself and her sister along with any visits he made which absolutely disgusted me.
Chrysta's 35 siblings from the sperm donating "father" only come into the story during the last few chapters. The main bulk of the bulk is Chrysta taking us on a journey from her complex childhood to traumatic adulthood. Chrysta's mother is definitely one of the most unique, intriguing and most complex person I have ever "met". Some of the things that she did, asked for or considered doing absolutely blew my mind from pyramid schemes to hunting down a sperm donor which included asking Warren Beatty to becoming an alcoholic and getting addicted to drugs and much more, she seems to have seen and done it all!!! She had many hurdles to jump and lived as a lesbian in a time when it was barely acceptable, sadly. Debra is a character I most certainly won't forget anytime soon!!
Chrysta's father was a very busy man and went from becoming a stripogram to donating sperm hundreds of times to getting paid to spend time with his children. Personally, although I couldn't stand the man I do have to be fair and see both times and Chrysta's mum did originally make out he wouldn't have to have anything to do with the child. I did also think she had no right to dictate to him that he wasn't allowed to donate any more sperm!! That obviously didn't work!! Jeffrey is a man I will be warning my children never to turn out like!!
This book is a beautifully written memoir written by someone who lived through a chaotic, toxic and unconventional childhood and come through stronger than ever. It was an emotional rollercoaster and I found myself angry, laughing, shocked, annoyed and upset at times. However I was definitely smiling when it came to the end when Chrysta found her family that she never knew existed. It is extremely moving and Chrysta has done an absolutely amazing job of captivating her readers with her complex and chaotic life story.
Overall a gripping, heartwarming and heartbreaking, page turning story of a life lived in chaos!!
Genres covered in this book include Biographies & Memoirs of scientists,Coming-Of-Age, Autobiography, Contraception & Family Planning Biography and Biographies & Memoirs of women amongst others.
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of Malibu Rising, Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine, memoirs and to anyone who has lived in chaos or had to parent their parent!!!
336 pages.
This book is £8.99 to purchase on kindle via Amazon.
Rated 4 /5 (I enjoyed it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.
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About The Author
Raised in Los Angeles by an eccentric mother and a father who struggled with mental illness, Chrysta Bilton was in her mid-20s when she found out that her family was much more complicated than she ever could have imagined. She graduated from Barnard College in New York, studied classical drawing and painting at the Florence Academy of Art and currently runs her own public relations firm. Chrysta lives in Los Angeles with her husband, the writer Nick Bilton, their two children, Emerson and Somerset, two dogs and one cat, Pixel, Pine Cone, and Piano. A Normal Family is her first book.
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