Patti Smith's Just Kids

[Kylie Lang]

I really enjoyed reading about Patti Smith’s life and her progression through the art industry.  I found myself really shocked by the series of events that happened in her life.  It was all really unbelievable and amazing how she found all of these connections that seemed to be fate.  Starting with her her interaction with Robert and the way she happened to run into him when she needed to escape from an unwanted situation, the telling of the next stage of her life was almost fairytale-like.

Something that I found interesting was the large impact that location played in the creation of connections.  The chapter on the Chelsea Hotel was much longer than the others and we were introduced to a number of new characters, some of which we recognize the names of.  I think that the poetry readings and the short presentations on important people was really helpful in preparing us for the reading of Just Kids. Now that we know who people such as Gregory Corso, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin are, it seems really impressive and impactful in the story whereas they would have been just random names to me prior to the things we learned in class.

Something that struck me in the story was the atmosphere of New York City during this time. Patti Smith’s interactions with everyone, even though strangers, were very accepting, inviting and kind. There seemed to be a sort of care-free attitude, for instance when Patti was looking for her friend’s building and found out he moved, the new tenant befriended her and helped her out. This contrasts with the way New Yorkers instinctively avoid eye contact and seem guarded, which comes off as rude to those outside of New York.

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