I love life stories--and memoirs that lead me into another person's world and experiences. This weekend, I read memoirs from author Chaz Holesworth and wanted to share my thoughts on these books today!
Philadelphia in the 1980s was no place for the soft-hearted. For Chaz Holesworth, childhood meant dodging gangs, addiction, and silence after slammed doors. His father’s world ran on heroin, his mother’s on holy fear.
Caught between two extremes, sin and salvation, Chaz learned early on how to disappear: keep your head down, don’t ask questions, and pray someone notices you anyway.
But everything changed the day he discovered music. In R.E.M., Tori Amos, and The Replacements, he hears something no sermon ever offered: truth, raw and imperfect. As his home life spiraled and his faith fractured, those lyrics became lifelines, every note pulling him closer to the one thing he never had: his own identity.
What happens when the noise outside becomes louder than the voice inside?
Or when loyalty to broken people starts to break you too?
Unflinching and darkly funny, Life and How to Live It: Volume One is more than a coming-of-age memoir: It’s a portrait of grit, grief, poverty, and the fragile beauty of hope born from chaos. Chaz Holesworth’s story captures the pulse of Philadelphia’s rough-edged streets and the soundtrack that kept him alive as he battled lost faith, family dysfunction, and his father’s addiction.
For anyone who’s ever grown up in the wreckage of someone else’s choices, Chaz’s story is proof that you can still build something beautiful from the debris.
Memories and Reflections Aren't Always Neatly Packaged. The memoir is not the smoothest read at times. There are repetitive passages where the ideas repeat a bit and times when the structure feels a little scattered, but honestly, that didn’t bother me much. It adds to that feeling of someone working through their thoughts in real time. If you enjoy real-life reflections that feel raw and personal, there’s a lot here to appreciate.
In this haunting and deeply human continuation of his memoir, Chaz Holesworth leaves the wreckage of his Philadelphia childhood behind only to face a new kind of war: unraveling the aftermath of a world where faith meant fear, and obedience meant survival.
As a teenager, he’s told that emotions are weakness and questions are sin. But when first love cracks open the cage, it ignites a longing that no sermon can silence.
Amid passion, heartbreak, and the lingering echoes of trauma, Chaz is thrust into freefall. Movement becomes his only escape. Music becomes his only prayer. And with every mile, every lyric, he begins piecing together a voice he thought was lost forever.
For years, he followed every rule. Years later, heartbreak taught him what obedience never could: how to feel alive.
A raw, lyrical journey through faith, fear, and first love, Life and How to Live It: Volume 2 is a powerful coming-of-age memoir about reclaiming identity, breaking indoctrination, and finding truth in the echoes of your own voice. With unfettered honesty and poetic insight, Chaz Holesworth explores the daunting process of unlearning shame, questioning belief, and learning to live authentically after years of enforced silence. A heart-rending tale of resilience and a time capsule for pop culture in the mid-90s, this memoir is a reminder that the path to freedom begins when we stop simply surviving and start choosing to live.
The focus on generational trauma, faith, and honest emotional experiences makes these novels relatable in a way that only real-life memoirs can. I enjoy life stories--and these memoirs bring the author's life to the life on the pages. I would recommend them to readers who value real stories and don’t mind a bit of roughness in the writing if the heart of the story is there.
Book Title: Life and How to Live It: Begin the Begin by Chaz Holesworth
Category: Adult Non-Fiction (18+), 296 pages
Genre: Memoir
Publisher: Chaz Holesworth
Release date: May 2024
Content Rating: PG-13 + M: My book involves trauma, mental health issues and suicidal thoughts and cursing
Category: Adult Non-Fiction (18+), 296 pages
Genre: Memoir
Publisher: Chaz Holesworth
Release date: May 2024
Content Rating: PG-13 + M: My book involves trauma, mental health issues and suicidal thoughts and cursing
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about the book
Philadelphia in the 1980s was no place for the soft-hearted. For Chaz Holesworth, childhood meant dodging gangs, addiction, and silence after slammed doors. His father’s world ran on heroin, his mother’s on holy fear.
Caught between two extremes, sin and salvation, Chaz learned early on how to disappear: keep your head down, don’t ask questions, and pray someone notices you anyway.
But everything changed the day he discovered music. In R.E.M., Tori Amos, and The Replacements, he hears something no sermon ever offered: truth, raw and imperfect. As his home life spiraled and his faith fractured, those lyrics became lifelines, every note pulling him closer to the one thing he never had: his own identity.
What happens when the noise outside becomes louder than the voice inside?
Or when loyalty to broken people starts to break you too?
Unflinching and darkly funny, Life and How to Live It: Volume One is more than a coming-of-age memoir: It’s a portrait of grit, grief, poverty, and the fragile beauty of hope born from chaos. Chaz Holesworth’s story captures the pulse of Philadelphia’s rough-edged streets and the soundtrack that kept him alive as he battled lost faith, family dysfunction, and his father’s addiction.
For anyone who’s ever grown up in the wreckage of someone else’s choices, Chaz’s story is proof that you can still build something beautiful from the debris.
my review
Readers Can Expect a Conversational, Honest Story. Begin the Begin reads like you are sitting down with someone who’s just ready to tell the truth about their life—no filters, no trying to make it sound perfect. A lot of it centers on generational trauma and how family history can stick with you in ways you don’t always notice at first. The author shares personal experiences in a very straightforward way, which makes it easy to connect with, especially if you like memoirs that feel honest rather than overly polished.
Memories and Reflections Aren't Always Neatly Packaged. The memoir is not the smoothest read at times. There are repetitive passages where the ideas repeat a bit and times when the structure feels a little scattered, but honestly, that didn’t bother me much. It adds to that feeling of someone working through their thoughts in real time. If you enjoy real-life reflections that feel raw and personal, there’s a lot here to appreciate.
Book Title: Life and How to Live it: Near Wild Heaven by Chaz Holesworth
Category: Adult Non-Fiction (18+), 219 pages
Genre: Memoir
Publisher: Chaz Holesworth
Release date: January 2026
Formats Available for Review: print (print - softback / USA), ebook (GIFTED KINDLE, EPUB, PDF)
Tour dates: April 20 to May 8, 2026
Content Rating: PG-13 + M: My book has traumatic experiences with suicidal thoughts and cursing in it.
Category: Adult Non-Fiction (18+), 219 pages
Genre: Memoir
Publisher: Chaz Holesworth
Release date: January 2026
Formats Available for Review: print (print - softback / USA), ebook (GIFTED KINDLE, EPUB, PDF)
Tour dates: April 20 to May 8, 2026
Content Rating: PG-13 + M: My book has traumatic experiences with suicidal thoughts and cursing in it.
about the book
In this haunting and deeply human continuation of his memoir, Chaz Holesworth leaves the wreckage of his Philadelphia childhood behind only to face a new kind of war: unraveling the aftermath of a world where faith meant fear, and obedience meant survival.
As a teenager, he’s told that emotions are weakness and questions are sin. But when first love cracks open the cage, it ignites a longing that no sermon can silence.
Amid passion, heartbreak, and the lingering echoes of trauma, Chaz is thrust into freefall. Movement becomes his only escape. Music becomes his only prayer. And with every mile, every lyric, he begins piecing together a voice he thought was lost forever.
For years, he followed every rule. Years later, heartbreak taught him what obedience never could: how to feel alive.
A raw, lyrical journey through faith, fear, and first love, Life and How to Live It: Volume 2 is a powerful coming-of-age memoir about reclaiming identity, breaking indoctrination, and finding truth in the echoes of your own voice. With unfettered honesty and poetic insight, Chaz Holesworth explores the daunting process of unlearning shame, questioning belief, and learning to live authentically after years of enforced silence. A heart-rending tale of resilience and a time capsule for pop culture in the mid-90s, this memoir is a reminder that the path to freedom begins when we stop simply surviving and start choosing to live.
my review
Near Wild Heaven Continues the Author's Story. This second book feels like the author picking up where they left off, but with a little more perspective. The focus is still on generational trauma, but it leans more into what healing looks like day-to-day and how those past experiences continue to shape your mindset and choices.
What I liked most is that the honesty is still there. The author doesn’t suddenly switch to sounding polished or distant—it still feels very personal and real. That said, some of the same issues show up again, like pacing that can feel uneven or ideas that could’ve been tightened up. But if you’re here for the emotional truth of someone’s lived experience, those things are easy to overlook.
What I liked most is that the honesty is still there. The author doesn’t suddenly switch to sounding polished or distant—it still feels very personal and real. That said, some of the same issues show up again, like pacing that can feel uneven or ideas that could’ve been tightened up. But if you’re here for the emotional truth of someone’s lived experience, those things are easy to overlook.
would I recommend this series?
If you like memoirs that are personal, reflective, and pretty unfiltered, I’d say these are worth checking out. They’re not perfectly written, but they don’t try to be—and that’s kind of the point. That's what brings the author's voice and story to life in these two books.The focus on generational trauma, faith, and honest emotional experiences makes these novels relatable in a way that only real-life memoirs can. I enjoy life stories--and these memoirs bring the author's life to the life on the pages. I would recommend them to readers who value real stories and don’t mind a bit of roughness in the writing if the heart of the story is there.
