Perishable: A Memoir

by Dirk Jamison

Fascinatingly disturbing, this memoir chronicles seven years in the life of a distinctly unordinary American family. In 1973, Dirk Jamison's father started having a midlife crisis that never ended, and after purposefully losing his construction job, he moved his family to a ski resort and started feeding them from dumpsters in an effort to reject money and all its trappings. They were never homeless, never desperately poor, but they lived on garbage. While Jamison struggled with adolescence, he faced a father who valued freedom more than anything, an overweight Mormon mother, and a cruel sister who delighted in physical abuse. Hilarious and horrifying, this heartbreaking account tells the strange story of the anti-American dream.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction

224 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Julie N · Rating 1 out of 5]

Perishable is a memoir written by a man who grew up in unusual family circumstances - his mother was a devout Mormon and his father developed his own religious beliefs based around not doing anything. Part of these beliefs included only getting food out of dumpsters, which eliminated the need for those pesky time wasters we refer to as "employment". My school has an online library, and I usually have a book going on there that I can read a page or two of when things are slow. Thank goodness this was not for review, because I would feel even more terrible about posting what I'm about to say.

Writing
The writing was terrible. Abysmal. Worse than awful. I've read a lot of blog posts where people say they don't like negative reviews and that bloggers should try to find something positive to say about any book and what if the author reads it. And I truly hope Mr. Jamison doesn't read this and get his feelings hurt, but I have nothing positive to say. Honestly, this should have been a "did not finish". I'm not really sure why I kept going after the first few chapters other than sheer boredom and the assumption that it could not continue to be as awful as it was. And I'm not referring to the content, although you can see my opinion of that below. The writing was bad. Period.

Entertainment
Hrm. If awkward, make-you-squirm-but-not-in-a-good-way descriptions of children eating garbage and abusing animals appeals to you, maybe you will be entertained. I was horrified. There are extended descriptions (which I had to skip) of animal abuse. Which I think were supposed to be funny. Kittens are killed, puppies are tortured, it's truly disturbing. There's also a very detailed description by the son of the mother's genitals, which kind of weirded me out (see my post on incest fiction, except this is not fiction). Once again, I have no explanation for why I didn't just stop reading, especially when I saw that the animal abuse was going to be a recurring "joke".

My advice: save yourself and don't bother picking this one up.

[debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was a quick book to read...it took me one day...it's the story of a boy whose father decides to quit his job and dumpster dive for food to support his family...his mom is a mormon and a compulsive overeater...after i read the first chapter i said oh my god, it's my family! it was easy to read and went by quickly, left me wanting more...looking forward to future works by this author...

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was going to be more about dumpster diving. Turns out its about a shitty childhood. Engaging, but disturbing. The treatment of animals really upset me.

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of the more disturbing dysfunctional family memoirs I have read.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Usually I relish books about dysfunctional families, even when some of the characters are loathsome, but there is something about the characters in this book that made me very sad and disturbed. I am indeed glad that the author is no longer in such circumstances.

I got this book thinking that it would chronicle a time in the life of a family in which the members survived off of the tons of food that is wasted daily in our country. I thought that would be at the least an interesting read. Instead, this story chronicles a very sad time in this family in which the father, a narcissist of the worst kind, drags his family through hell with him, all in the name of freedom. But this freedom is the father's freedom, with no regard to the feelings and well being of the rest of the family. And, I hate to say that the mom isn't much better. She seems to hate herself and be powerless to protect, console or even identify with her children.

I think everyone is a little crazy. We all have our faults. However, reading this book felt like watching a train wreck, so disturbing, but I couldn't look away.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Think your family is dysfunctional? Dirk Jamison, child of a dumpster diving father and a self-absorbed Mormon mother (described by Jamison as more stupid than crazy) composes a gripping and candid memoir of his extremely unconventional 1970s childhood. Raised in an unstable environment and battling routine physical assault from a violent sister, Jamison manages to convey his experience in a very lucid and natural style, void of psychological interpretation. Throughout the memoir, the author provides us with the often hilarious details of concealing scavenged food in foil from his mother, building housing multiple times with his father, surviving adolescence in a Mormon community and a tumultuous relationship between his parents. Although Jamison’s family insanity is more extreme than average, the universality in family dynamics are undeniably evident.

[Tamara · Rating 1 out of 5]

All I can say is......sometimes you CAN judge a book by it's cover. This book is garbage. This guy sees life through poo colored glasses, and I just flat-out don't believe everything he says. I am proud to be a Mormon myself (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) and his depiction of every Mormon in the book is unbelievable. I realize that in any church there are bad, even evil, people lurking. But if any Sunday School teacher in my youth had written the "F" word on the church chalkboard or used his butt as a watergun at a Scouting activity, there would have been heck to pay. The majority of the kids would be shocked and disgusted and would run home to tell their parents, and that guy better run for his life. I did not finish the book, it was too offensive. All smut, no inspiration.

[Anna Boudinot · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a non-pretentious version of Running With Scissors!

Rather than use the shocking episodes from his childhood as a method to make the reader feel sorry for him, the author presents them without bias or manipulation. It will make you realize that the problems YOU thought YOU had as a kid were nothing at all, and humble you for this reason and because the author doesn't complain. He doesn't seem to be bitter, nor does he mock his parents... rather, his recollections analyze, without pointing any fingers, the wants and needs of human beings, and how people seek fulfillment of their various desires. Perhaps it is this analytical approach that allows him to love his family despite their often severe flaws.

A quick read.

[bibliogrrl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Full disclosure - I work for the company that published this book.

I enjoyed it. This is a memoir about growing up in a really unconventional family. His mom is a lapsed Mormon, his dad.... a selfish, self-centered man who wants to... live in such a way that he can do whatever he wants. He's a freegan before the word was really invented.

It was a very fast read for me. This is exactly the kind of book I read constantly and adored when I worked for Borders. It's not nearly as powerful as Walls' The Glass Castle, but would totally appeal to anyone who liked that book.

[LeGrand · Rating 4 out of 5]

i kind of stumbled upon this book at the library.. the author shares the story of his life in a very amusing way.. the trouble is that his actual life experiences as a child are a bit disturbing.. leaving you to wonder why it is you are laughing yourself.. overall i really enjoyed this book.. from the dad dumpster diving to feed the family to his overweight mormom mother eating her troubles away..

[Tracy St Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story of a dysfunctional family with a father who feeds the family out of dumpsters, a sister who is a sadist, a mother who is an overweight Jack Mormon (sometimes) and a troop leader who is a pervert. OK, Dirk, I was sitting smug with my family's story and my husband's, but you win.

[Meadow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heard him on TAL, interesting story and now I must read the book.

Oh, so many people to like and/or dislike and/or feel sorry for in this book. Makes me feel glad for my hum-drum childhood.

[Elaine Torrence · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the excerpts on This American Life.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the story on This American Life more than the book.

[Shane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome read, one hellofa crazy childhood. Only wished it would have gone on a little longer, I read it in about 3 days.
-s

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

really easy and humorous read.

[stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

i thought this would be comparable to a david sedaris/augusten burroughs type thing but it was a lot more depressing.

[Liz Foreman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written. Quick read and not a pity party, by any means, but disturbing.