Quantcast
 
The Knowing
 




Penguin Books | Righteous Babe

The Knowing 
by Ani DiFranco
painted by Julia Mathew

“Di Franco’s debut picture book offers up a rhyming reverie on selfhood and collective consciousness....presented with a genuine openheartedness that should both intrigue and reassure.” – Publishers Weekly 

With art by first-time illustrator Julia Mathew, THE KNOWING is an Ani DiFranco-style lullaby, inviting young readers to ponder the distinction between outer forms of identity and the inner light of consciousness. The lyrical text is designed to be read aloud or sung, and is paired with Mathew’s universal scenes of childhood, set in her family’s native India, and glowing with honesty and love. This book encapsulates ideas that Di Franco feels strongly about sharing with her own children and all children: all the adjectives that you will ever be called are only half the story. Underneath all the adjectives, you are pure presence — steady and shining and impossible to define.

“I always relish a new challenge and creative adventure in life. Making a book for young readers was one such. I’m hoping that young people will connect with the message I am sending out in this book- that underneath all the labels and social and cultural signifiers, we are spirit, we are love incarnate, we are one.” — Ani
No Walls And The Recurring Dream
 
 

Penguin Books | Righteous Babe

Click here for Ebook and Audiobook formats

A MEMOIR
By Ani DiFranco
Read by Ani DiFranco

A memoir by the celebrated singer-songwriter and social activist Ani DiFranco

In her new memoir, No Walls and the Recurring Dream, Ani DiFranco recounts her early life from a place of hard-won wisdom, combining personal expression, the power of music, feminism, political activism, storytelling, philanthropy, entrepreneurship, and much more into an inspiring whole. In these frank, honest, passionate, and often funny pages is the tale of one woman’s eventful and radical journey to the age of thirty. Ani’s coming of age story is defined by her ethos of fierce independence–from being an emancipated minor sleeping in a Buffalo bus station, to unwaveringly building a career through appearances at small clubs and festivals, to releasing her first album at the age of 18, to consciously rejecting the mainstream recording industry and creating her own label, Righteous Babe Records. In these pages, as in life, she never hesitates to question established rules and expectations, maintaining a level of artistic integrity that has inspired and challenged more than a few. Ani continues to be a major touring and recording artist as well as a celebrated activist and feminist, standing as living proof that you can overcome all personal and societal obstacles to be who you are and to follow your dreams.

PRAISE

“The Grammy-winning [Ani DiFranco] recounts the eventful story of her life as a musician and feminist political activist. . . . Interspersed throughout with feminist/political musings and anecdotes about such music legends as Pete Seeger, Prince, and Bob Dylan, DiFranco’s tale celebrates both independent music and an unconventional life daringly lived. A refreshingly frank and free-spirited memoir from a feminist icon.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“[DiFranco] makes her literary debut in this powerful reflection on her life and career. . . . Throughout, DiFranco writes of her self-doubts and romantic hardships. . . . Honest and passionate, DiFranco’s memoir will resonate with her many fans.”
—Publishers Weekly