7 Tattoos: A Memoir in the Flesh

Rating:
Summary: Read the Book
Review: 7 Tattoos is a good read for anyone who has spent sometime on the wild side and can relate to what Trachtenberg is saying, and what an amazing trip he has had becoming what we assume is a responsible adult. A little reminiscent of Jack Kerouac's 'On the Road', but not as ugly and Trachtenberg at least expressed a concience about most of his trangressions. I did an immediate re-read as I was intigued and wanted a deeper understanding. On the second pass I found myself wondering where he got the money to travel so much and was he sponging off his hard working second generation Holocost parents? The second pass also gave focus to the self indulgence present in his inner child ramblings, but what are memoirs for? It feels honest and alleviates one's own paranoia about self loathing and guilt - we all got some.

Rating:
Summary: A Surprisingly Enjoyable Auto-bio
Review: 7 tattoos is a true rarity in the world of literature: An enjoyable and fascinating autobiography about someone most of us have never heard of. Trachtenberg uses the 7 tattoos on his body, the universal symbol of dysfunction, as a road-map into his consciousness and experiences. What emerges is not a self-indulgent man without redeeming qualities as someone else asserted, but a portrait of humanity as a whole, its ugliness and selfishness explored to the fullest. To call Trachtenberg unlikable is to call humanity unlikable. What he does so successfully is shine the light on his own life, which in turn shines it on our own. And if for no other reason than that, this is one of the most brilliant self-exporations to come along in years.

Rating:
Summary: Naked.
Review: I bought this book because I had read about its premise in a magazine, I forget which. I thought ,"Hey, cool, a memoir centered around the acquisition of tattoos." Since I acquired my tattoos at very specific times in my life, I was curious about someone else's tattoo reasoning.

This book was so much more than I expected. I felt as if the author were lying naked for everyone to see--not only his tattoos, but his soul. His words were honest, sad, funny, and touching. After reading this book, I no longer felt alone in the world; I felt as if someone finally admitted to the same feelings I felt guilty about for so long.

This book really is one man's journey to find a self he can live with, a self that emerges triumphant, with 7 beautiful scars to boot.