Ghost of Understanding: The Story of Mary John

As lead singer of the two-person band Mecca Normal, Jean Smith is regarded as one of the forerunners of the Riot Grrrl movement-unapologetic, in-your-face music by women rockers who are front and center, no strings attached. Her long-awaited second novel attempts to find the razor's edge between order and chaos in a complicated, male-dominated world. Impressionistic sound-bytes combine with colorful, hyper-aware riffs in which Claudine, the narrator, invites the reader to participate in her subjective world of memory, vision, and flashback.