High School: A Memoir
The New York Times Bestseller and now a major TV series
-
- $13.99
-
- $13.99
Publisher Description
THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
NOW STREAMING ON AMAZON FREEVEE
From iconic musicians Tegan and Sara comes a nostalgic memoir about high school, detailing their first loves and first songs in a compelling look back at their origin story.
'Genius' Augusten Burroughs, author of Running with Scissors
'A gift' Elliot Page, actor
'Utterly charming' Carmen Maria Machado, author of Her Body and Other Parties
Before they became international musicians and LGBTQ+ icons, twin sisters Sara and Tegan Quin came of age in 90s Canada. They argued relentlessly, skipped school, dropped acid and fell in and out of love - sometimes with their best friends.
One day they found their stepdad's guitar and their lives changed course forever.
High School is a revelatory joint memoir. It captures two sisters wrestling with their sexual and artistic identities and those breathtaking years when the future seems wondrously possible.
'Captured a time and place so perfectly, I can't exactly be sure that I wasn't there' Busy Philipps
'Elegant and evocative' Guardian
'I never wanted it to end' Clea DuVall, actress
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Tegan and Sara’s intimate, confessional song lyrics have been capturing our hearts and imaginations for years. Now the twin sisters tell their personal stories with a new level of candour in this gorgeously raw memoir of their adolescence in suburban Calgary. Narrating in alternating chapters, Tegan and Sara immerse us in the ’90s of their teens, transporting us not just into the underground raves and alternative record stores that defined the era, but into the formative experiences that helped define them as people. From their respective struggles with their sexualities to their earliest endeavours as a musical duo, High School is a beautiful reminder that nobody—not even our creative heroes—makes it out of adolescence unscathed.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The Canadian musician authors focus on their high school years in this moody memoir set in the mid-1990s. The twin sisters tell their story in alternating chapters whose topics include first loves, coming out as gay, and making music. They heartbreakingly recall the girls they fell for and the discomfort that came with hiding their romantic relationships from critical adults. Even though the two bickered as teenagers ("It didn't matter what it was; everything was a battlefield," Sara writes), music always brought them together. Their life-changing moment came when they found their stepfather's guitar and played it for the first time. Their descriptions of touching the guitar match up strikingly. Writes Tegan: "Its thick body pressed into my thighs... the desire to play it felt instinctive." Adds Sara: "The weight of the wood felt intimate, touching almost all of me at once." The sisters began composing songs and eventually entered a contest that would get them a deal with PolyGram Records. The narrative ends as they gear up to make a name for themselves as artists. This quiet memoir which includes family photos will appeal to fans interested in the duo's formative years.