Seven years in the making, Godspeed is the story of Lynn Breedlove's life. Kinda. Rather than making it completely autobiographical, the story is told through the eyes of a fictional character named Jim. Jim is a young, angry, punk rock tranny, speed-freak bike messenger living in San Francisco, presumably during the '90's. [I only assume this because of the mentions of Blatz, L7 and the Lunachicks that appear throughout the
book.] Jim is trying to get his shit together so that he can live happily ever after with the love of his life, a stripper named Ally.
The reader is instantly sucked into the story thanks in part to Breedlove's fast and furious narration. Some people may find the novel hard to follow. I probably would too, if I was not already familiar with Breedlove's spoken-word stylings, and hence able to hear her voice in my head while reading the book. [Note to Danise: she speaks about as fast as I read.]
Jim's journey from drug addicted, self destructive, pissed off bike messenger to rock band roadie to NYC squatter is chronicled with a perfect mixture of humor and angst. It' s the type of book that makes you wish the main character were your friend. Sure Jim is a fuck up but he is a lovable, well-intentioned and often heroic fuck up that I for one can easily relate to.
Despite her mile-a-minute pace, Breedlove is able to create colorful characters as well as provide fantastic imagery. The San Francisco scene that Breedlove sprung from is vividly described, and all of you San Fran rocker chicks out there will surely get a kick out of trying to figure out which of your friends (and enemies) Breedlove's characters are based upon.
Godspeed is unique for many reasons, most notably the fact that it is written for a group that is normally overlooked, about a time and place few if any people have documented. Every rocker chick out there needs to get their hands on this book, and then email Lynnee and encourage her to hurry up with the sequel.
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