Most of what is included are song lyrics, and it is difficult to read them without hearing the writer's physical voice, so dominant is her charisma. One wonders how interesting the book might be to someone unfamiliar with Smith's work and her voice. Smith provides the connective tissue: Entries from her journals introduce different sections of the work. It provides insight into Smith, the person: There is an odd formality, an almost Victorian stiffness in the language she employs, as if she is uncomfortable communicating with her audience without the armor of her lyrics or her poetry. For example:
"Easter arrived late in 1997. Peace and Noise near complete we took a holiday in Provincetown. We camped in a modest spot by the sea. It was my hope to lay work aside, to do nothing but dutifully love life and to contemplate the events in human history that led to the crucifixion and Christ revealing, at great cost, the process of his transfiguration. An Act one can barely comprehend in these scientific times."
