The New York Times Book Review - Deb Olin Unferth
The book reads like a notebook of New York, a cultural history of a certain set. Filtered through [Crabapple's] eyes, we see 9/11, the excesses of the aughts boom, the aftermath of the crash, Occupy Wall Street, Hurricane Sandy and onward. But what makes the book captivating and sets it apart from other descriptions of these much-reported events is how it is essentially one long glorious description of what Crabapple drew and why she drew it.
Publishers Weekly
11/02/2015
Artist, writer, and activist Crabapple was compelled from a young age by the need to draw because it gives her a sense of self worth. Her struggles as an impoverished artist are rendered here in raw, vivid prose, accompanied by her arresting illustrations. The New York that Crabapple comes of age in is a city in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. As a freshman at FIT, she finds little work to fund her art supplies. Unable to gain a foothold in galleries, she decides to let her body be a canvas—and a commodity—via lucrative sex work, first via Craigslist ads and later as a SuicideGirl online pinup. “Naked girl money was my escape hatch,” Crabapple explains, as the work gave her the means to get noticed. But sick of the exploitation that she and other sex workers and performers were subjected to, she cofounds Dr. Sketchy’s Anti-Art School, a live-drawing workshop that treats its models with respect. When she becomes the house artist for the Box, a burlesque night club, she achieves financial stability and access to the world she’s hungered to join; after witnessing the London austerity protests in 2010, however, she realizes she’s done drawing for rich club patrons and lends her talent and fervor to the Occupy Wall Street movement. Crabapple has become a powerful artist and feminist, scrapping to make art that matters. Agent: Lydia Wills, Lydia Wills LLC.. (Dec.)
From the Publisher
Drawing Blood is packed with enough energy and edge to make Patti Smith’s Just Kids seem like a field trip to Disneyland…Candid, earthy, romantic, funny, omnivorous... A portrait of a tough woman winning (finally) in a tough profession in the toughest of cities” — Shelf Awareness
“Crabapple is smart and wicked and wicked smart, a master of imagery and perception, and so her art always works on multiple levels. So too the book. She’s not afraid to provide contradictory thoughts and feelings. Drawing Blood might be the sexiest thing you read this year.” — Daily Beast
“This beautiful book, generously graced with so many illustrations, is artfully designed and fun to browse for the images alone…But Crabapple’s tight, vibrant, jabbing prose, and prescient asides are the reason to buy this work. Her narrative is well-crafted, expertly told, and completely compelling.” — Seattle Times Book Review
“The book reads like a notebook of New York, a cultural history of a certain set. Filtered through her eyes, we see 9/11, the aftermath of the crash, Occupy Wall Street, Hurricane Sandy and onward... [Crabapple is] a new model for this century’s young woman. — New York Times Book Review
“Celebrated New York journalist Crabapple is also one of America’s best, most original artists. Her memoir tells the story of her remarkable life, from her days modeling for Suicide Girls to her groundbreaking Dr. Sketchy’s Anti-Art School and her work with Occupy Wall Street.” — Men’s Journal
“Hers is a story of art as liberation…Molly detects the bright and beautiful as well as she does the dark and fearful in the world not just because her eye is keen, but also because her eyes are so wide open.” — Alana Massey, Buzzfeed Books
“Among the book’s delights are the frequent examples of her work, from jittery sketches to lush, colorful paintings — both words and images are the product of a keen eye and devastating pen.” — Boston Globe
“Jaw dropping, awe inspiring, and not afraid to shock, Crabapple is a punk Joan Didion, a young Patti Smith with paint on her hands, a twenty-first century Sylvia Plath. There’s no one else like her; prepare to be blown away by both the words and pictures.” — Booklist (starred review)
“Lavishly illustrated, the book offers a candid portrayal of an artist’s journey to self-knowledge and fulfillment.” — Kirkus Reviews
“Artist, writer, and activist Crabapple was compelled from a young age by the need to draw because it gives her a sense of self worth. Her struggles as an impoverished artist are rendered here in raw, vivid prose, accompanied by her arresting illustrations.” — Publishers Weekly
“Using illustrations to bolster the written material, Drawing Blood, out now, is a more intimate memoir than we’re used to seeing, one that is blazingly honest and unafraid to offer up something real to chew on.” — Paper Magazine
“Artist Molly Crabapple delivers a violently felt and intimately revealing memoir.” — Book Riot
“Hands down, the best book I’ve read all year…an incredible book that has everyone talking… This raw, unrepentant memoir sheds light on Molly Crabapple’s early career, her first forays into reporting, and her tireless quest to improve as an artist. The lavish illustrations are just the icing on the cake.” — Heavy.com
“Molly Crabapple’s pen is a scalpel, and she’s not afraid to turn the blade on herself. Beautifully excruciating.” — Patton Oswalt
“Molly Crabapple could be this generation’s Charles Bukowski. She’s a great artist whose life is also a work of art.” — Matt Taibbi
“In a few short years, Molly Crabapple has proved to be one of the most determined and effective political artists working in these sorry times. I wish there were a hundred or even two or three like her.” — Joe Sacco
“Molly writes like she draws: the spare lines have a reporter’s keen accuracy, but can barely contain the boisterous, messy, soulful life splashing about within. Inspiring, intimate, and just a bit intimidating, this book is a must.” — Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and writer-director of The Avengers
“Molly Crabapple is turn by turn irreverent, respectful, enraged and then trembling with awe, and all of this is a tender meditation on the power of art to transform a singular life into one that can be emblematic for us all: powerful and magical.” — Chris Abani, author of The Secret History of Las Vegas and GraceLand
“Molly Crabapple writes that her ‘pen is a lockpick,’ and with it she has revealed truths about life, culture, and politics in America that are compelling, artistic, and memorable-as is this revealing new memoir. An engaging read by one of the nation’s most gifted activists.” — Bryan Stevenson, author of Just Mercy
Alana Massey
Hers is a story of art as liberation…Molly detects the bright and beautiful as well as she does the dark and fearful in the world not just because her eye is keen, but also because her eyes are so wide open.
Boston Globe
Among the book’s delights are the frequent examples of her work, from jittery sketches to lush, colorful paintings — both words and images are the product of a keen eye and devastating pen.
Shelf Awareness
Drawing Blood is packed with enough energy and edge to make Patti Smith’s Just Kids seem like a field trip to Disneyland…Candid, earthy, romantic, funny, omnivorous... A portrait of a tough woman winning (finally) in a tough profession in the toughest of cities
Daily Beast
Crabapple is smart and wicked and wicked smart, a master of imagery and perception, and so her art always works on multiple levels. So too the book. She’s not afraid to provide contradictory thoughts and feelings. Drawing Blood might be the sexiest thing you read this year.
New York Times Book Review
The book reads like a notebook of New York, a cultural history of a certain set. Filtered through her eyes, we see 9/11, the aftermath of the crash, Occupy Wall Street, Hurricane Sandy and onward... [Crabapple is] a new model for this century’s young woman.
Seattle Times Book Review
This beautiful book, generously graced with so many illustrations, is artfully designed and fun to browse for the images alone…But Crabapple’s tight, vibrant, jabbing prose, and prescient asides are the reason to buy this work. Her narrative is well-crafted, expertly told, and completely compelling.
Men’s Journal
Celebrated New York journalist Crabapple is also one of America’s best, most original artists. Her memoir tells the story of her remarkable life, from her days modeling for Suicide Girls to her groundbreaking Dr. Sketchy’s Anti-Art School and her work with Occupy Wall Street.
Booklist (starred review)
Jaw dropping, awe inspiring, and not afraid to shock, Crabapple is a punk Joan Didion, a young Patti Smith with paint on her hands, a twenty-first century Sylvia Plath. There’s no one else like her; prepare to be blown away by both the words and pictures.
Heavy.com
Hands down, the best book I’ve read all year…an incredible book that has everyone talking… This raw, unrepentant memoir sheds light on Molly Crabapple’s early career, her first forays into reporting, and her tireless quest to improve as an artist. The lavish illustrations are just the icing on the cake.
Chris Abani
Molly Crabapple is turn by turn irreverent, respectful, enraged and then trembling with awe, and all of this is a tender meditation on the power of art to transform a singular life into one that can be emblematic for us all: powerful and magical.
Patton Oswalt
Molly Crabapple’s pen is a scalpel, and she’s not afraid to turn the blade on herself. Beautifully excruciating.
Joe Sacco
In a few short years, Molly Crabapple has proved to be one of the most determined and effective political artists working in these sorry times. I wish there were a hundred or even two or three like her.
Bryan Stevenson
Molly Crabapple writes that her ‘pen is a lockpick,’ and with it she has revealed truths about life, culture, and politics in America that are compelling, artistic, and memorable-as is this revealing new memoir. An engaging read by one of the nation’s most gifted activists.
Book Riot
Artist Molly Crabapple delivers a violently felt and intimately revealing memoir.
Matt Taibbi
Molly Crabapple could be this generation’s Charles Bukowski. She’s a great artist whose life is also a work of art.
Joss Whedon
Molly writes like she draws: the spare lines have a reporter’s keen accuracy, but can barely contain the boisterous, messy, soulful life splashing about within. Inspiring, intimate, and just a bit intimidating, this book is a must.
Paper Magazine
Using illustrations to bolster the written material, Drawing Blood, out now, is a more intimate memoir than we’re used to seeing, one that is blazingly honest and unafraid to offer up something real to chew on.
Men’s Journal
Celebrated New York journalist Crabapple is also one of America’s best, most original artists. Her memoir tells the story of her remarkable life, from her days modeling for Suicide Girls to her groundbreaking Dr. Sketchy’s Anti-Art School and her work with Occupy Wall Street.
From the Publisher - AUDIO COMMENTARY
"Compelling reading about how art gave the author 'a way to see, to record, to fight and interrogate to find joy where once I could see only ash.'" —Kirkus
Men's Journal
Celebrated New York journalist Crabapple is also one of America’s best, most original artists. Her memoir tells the story of her remarkable life, from her days modeling for Suicide Girls to her groundbreaking Dr. Sketchy’s Anti-Art School and her work with Occupy Wall Street.
Library Journal - Audio
03/01/2016
Possessed by a restless spirit, young Crabapple followed her artistic muse from New York's Long Island to parts of Europe and the Near East. After 9/11, she returned to New York City and expanded her creative vocabulary to include burlesque dancing and nude modeling. After the financial crash of 2008, the resulting Occupy protests moved her to adopt a new mode of political expression called witness or citizen journalism. Visiting prisons such as Guantanamo Bay and Rikers Island, as well as other desperate corners of the world, she used voice, drawings, and reportage to illumine issues that are difficult, galvanizing, and needful of exposure such as solitary confinement, refugee concerns, and police brutality. Her tough prose is voiced by Jorjeana Marie with the edge and grit the material demands—the only drawback here being the omission of Crabapple's artwork. That Crabapple's words are so effective even separated from her illustrations bears testament to the power of her writing. VERDICT Highly recommended. ["Recommended for readers interested in the intersection of art and social commentary, but also anyone who relates to being labeled an "outsider": LJ 11/1/15 starred review of the Harper hc.]—Kelly Sinclair, Temple P.L., TX
Library Journal
★ 11/01/2015
Crabapple has been named "Occupy's greatest artist," and it is a title that is both well placed and deserved. In her memoir, she takes a direct approach to topics of sex work, race, income inequality, international travel and protests, burlesque performance, and the creation of her phenomenal Shell Game paintings. (Indeed, the true delight of Crabapple's account is the inclusion of her artwork.) The author's written style mimics the way artists often work; stark narrations exist for readers to interpret and analyze, much like paintings or sculpture is displayed without excessive textual description. This style may appeal to some readers; others might feel the need to ask, "Tell me more." Crabapple challenges our assumptions about artists, "professional naked girls," protestors, and others who live on the margins. Her book is a visual treat that provokes thought and discussion on what it means to create art in our modern world, and what we should expect art to do within that world. VERDICT Recommended for readers interested in the intersection of art and social commentary but also anyone who relates to being labeled an "outsider" (i.e., almost everyone).—Rachael Dreyer, Penn State Dept. of Libs.
Kirkus Reviews
2015-10-04
A New York artist and writer's illustrated memoir about how she rose out of obscurity during the tumultuous decade of the 2000s to become a renowned artist.New York native Crabapple, a contributing editor for Vice, grew up with loving parents in comfortable circumstances. Yet from the time she was a young girl, she felt trapped by her childhood and yearned for the freedom to explore the world. Crabapple left for Paris at 17, where she lived among bohemians at the legendary Shakespeare and Company bookstore and traveled around Europe and North Africa. When she returned, she began college at the Fashion Institute of Technology, where she drew compulsively, studied exotic cultures, and became involved in political movements that emerged in the aftermath of 9/11. Crabapple turned to "the naked girl business" to support herself and earned money first as an artist's model and then as a goth-inspired SuicideGirl and, later, as a dancer and burlesque performer. In the meantime, her artistic talent blossomed. Yet the author realized early on that making it in the art world wasn't just a matter of being good: it was also about "getting noticed." In 2008, Crabapple became house artist for The Box, a NYC nightclub catering to elite clients. She earned recognition and monetary rewards for artwork that satirized the excesses of the rich, yet her achievements left her feeling hollow. The world outside The Box was collapsing while she "was painting pigs in Nero's nightclub." After meeting up with journalist Laurie Penny and becoming involved in the Occupy movement, Crabapple discovered her true calling as a political artist and, later, writer. Lavishly illustrated, the book offers a candid portrayal of an artist's journey to self-knowledge and fulfillment. The author celebrates the function of art as an act of "hope against cynicism [and] creation against entropy." Compelling reading about how art gave the author "a way to see, to record, to fight and interrogate…to find joy where once I could see only ash."
