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Bread of Angels: A Memoir
A radiant new memoir from beloved artist and writer Patti Smith, author of the National Book Award winner Just Kids
God whispers through a crease in the wallpaper, writes Patti Smith in this indelible account of her life as an artist. A post–World War II childhood unfolds in a condemned housing complex described in Dickensian consumptive children, vanishing neighbors, an infested rat house, and a beguiling book of Irish fairy tales. We enter the child’s world of the imagination where Smith, the captain of her loyal and beloved sibling army, vanquishes bullies, communes with the king of tortoises, and searches for sacred silver pennies.
The most intimate of Smith’s memoirs, Bread of Angels takes us through her teenage years when the first glimmers of art and romance take hold. Arthur Rimbaud and Bob Dylan emerge as creative heroes and role models as Smith starts to write poetry, then lyrics, merging both into the iconic recordings and songs such as Horses and Easter, “Dancing Barefoot” and “Because the Night.”
She leaves it all behind to marry her one true love, Fred “Sonic” Smith, with whom she creates a life of devotion and adventure on a canal in St. Clair Shores, Michigan, with ancient willows and fulsome pear trees. She builds a room of her own, furnished with a pillow of Moroccan silk, a Persian cup, inkwell and fountain pen. The couple spend nights in their landlocked Chris-Craft studying nautical maps and charting new adventures as they start their family.
As Smith suffers profound losses, grief and gratitude are braided through years of caring for her children, rebuilding her life, and, finally, writing again—the one constant on a path driven by artistic freedom and the power of the imagination to transform the mundane into the beautiful, the commonplace into the magical, and pain into hope. In the final pages, we meet Patti Smith on the road again, the vagabond who travels to commune with herself, who lives to write and writes to live.
God whispers through a crease in the wallpaper, writes Patti Smith in this indelible account of her life as an artist. A post–World War II childhood unfolds in a condemned housing complex described in Dickensian consumptive children, vanishing neighbors, an infested rat house, and a beguiling book of Irish fairy tales. We enter the child’s world of the imagination where Smith, the captain of her loyal and beloved sibling army, vanquishes bullies, communes with the king of tortoises, and searches for sacred silver pennies.
The most intimate of Smith’s memoirs, Bread of Angels takes us through her teenage years when the first glimmers of art and romance take hold. Arthur Rimbaud and Bob Dylan emerge as creative heroes and role models as Smith starts to write poetry, then lyrics, merging both into the iconic recordings and songs such as Horses and Easter, “Dancing Barefoot” and “Because the Night.”
She leaves it all behind to marry her one true love, Fred “Sonic” Smith, with whom she creates a life of devotion and adventure on a canal in St. Clair Shores, Michigan, with ancient willows and fulsome pear trees. She builds a room of her own, furnished with a pillow of Moroccan silk, a Persian cup, inkwell and fountain pen. The couple spend nights in their landlocked Chris-Craft studying nautical maps and charting new adventures as they start their family.
As Smith suffers profound losses, grief and gratitude are braided through years of caring for her children, rebuilding her life, and, finally, writing again—the one constant on a path driven by artistic freedom and the power of the imagination to transform the mundane into the beautiful, the commonplace into the magical, and pain into hope. In the final pages, we meet Patti Smith on the road again, the vagabond who travels to commune with herself, who lives to write and writes to live.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published August 9, 2025
984 people are currently reading
19849 people want to read
About the author
Patti Smith
154 books13.6k followersPATTI SMITH is a writer, performer, and visual artist. She gained recognition in the 1970s for her revolutionary merging of poetry and rock. She has released twelve albums, including Horses, which has been hailed as one of the top one hundred albums of all time by Rolling Stone.
Smith had her first exhibit of drawings at the Gotham Book Mart in 1973 and has been represented by the Robert Miller Gallery since 1978. Her books include Just Kids, winner of the National Book Award in 2010, Wītt, Babel, Woolgathering, The Coral Sea, and Auguries of Innocence.
In 2005, the French Ministry of Culture awarded Smith the title of Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres, the highest honor given to an artist by the French Republic. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007.
Smith married the musician Fred Sonic Smith in Detroit in 1980. They had a son, Jackson, and a daughter, Jesse. Smith resides in New York City.
Smith had her first exhibit of drawings at the Gotham Book Mart in 1973 and has been represented by the Robert Miller Gallery since 1978. Her books include Just Kids, winner of the National Book Award in 2010, Wītt, Babel, Woolgathering, The Coral Sea, and Auguries of Innocence.
In 2005, the French Ministry of Culture awarded Smith the title of Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres, the highest honor given to an artist by the French Republic. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007.
Smith married the musician Fred Sonic Smith in Detroit in 1980. They had a son, Jackson, and a daughter, Jesse. Smith resides in New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 240 reviews
November 10, 2025
I read Bread of Angels during threads of encapsulated moments.
In my backyard, hair still wet from a shower, water dripping onto the pages. Curled up on my side in bed, long after I told myself I’d go to sleep. I read it with one hand while cooking dinner, going back and forth between the pages and what I was doing. And countless other small snippets of time.
Patti takes us through her life as an artist— starting with a poverty stricken childhood in Chicago, leading into a period of grief, after the loss of her husband, and so many other beloved friend and family members. We see her as a young bohemian, newly in love, a mother, discovering her voice as a writer, and so many other precious memories, all written with poetic prose and deep vulnerability.
Sparkling with wit and grunge, Bread of Angels reflect the life of a true artist, rebellious to their bones. Patti has always been punk rock, this only further cements it.
In my backyard, hair still wet from a shower, water dripping onto the pages. Curled up on my side in bed, long after I told myself I’d go to sleep. I read it with one hand while cooking dinner, going back and forth between the pages and what I was doing. And countless other small snippets of time.
Patti takes us through her life as an artist— starting with a poverty stricken childhood in Chicago, leading into a period of grief, after the loss of her husband, and so many other beloved friend and family members. We see her as a young bohemian, newly in love, a mother, discovering her voice as a writer, and so many other precious memories, all written with poetic prose and deep vulnerability.
Sparkling with wit and grunge, Bread of Angels reflect the life of a true artist, rebellious to their bones. Patti has always been punk rock, this only further cements it.
November 20, 2025
I love the way Patti Smith sees and gives words to her inner and outer world. Especially the chapters on her childhood are gorgeous—the level of detail and atmosphere not unlike a charles dickens story. After that, things become more rushed and unfocused. The premise promises the story of Patti and her great love, Fred, but he remains elusive and vague. As with Just Kids, there’s A LOT of name dropping, which both fascinates and annoys me in equal measure. But her writing remains, on every page, utterly touching and transporting.
October 28, 2025
i first fell in love with patti smith’s writing when i read just kids - a beautiful, moving portrait of her relationship with robert mapplethorpe and their shared journey to becoming artists in 1970s new york. bread of angels rewinds the tapes a little further back, detailing smith’s lineage and youth - a childhood marked by illness and frequent moves - her beginnings as an artist and writer, a wife and a mother, bringing us all the way up to where she is today.
the sections about her work are so illuminating, offering details about the recording of her albums and insights into the creative process, particularly how she found her voice as a writer. smith’s prose is so lyrical that her start as a poet is really no surprise. what a privilege it is to have patti smith’s art in the world, and with bread of angels, to be offered another piece of it.
thank you bloomsbury (and betsy!!) for the arc - it comes out next week in the uk on 4 november.
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original review: what a beautiful memoir / portrait of an artist.
the sections about her work are so illuminating, offering details about the recording of her albums and insights into the creative process, particularly how she found her voice as a writer. smith’s prose is so lyrical that her start as a poet is really no surprise. what a privilege it is to have patti smith’s art in the world, and with bread of angels, to be offered another piece of it.
thank you bloomsbury (and betsy!!) for the arc - it comes out next week in the uk on 4 november.
—————————
original review: what a beautiful memoir / portrait of an artist.
November 9, 2025
I enjoyed this audiobook narrated by Patti..
This is very autobiographical, her youth with her family in Philadelphia, they were poor.. moved 11 times in her youth.
Much of the book was about her life with her husband Fred Sonic Smith.. their meeting, courtship, and married life lived right here in St Clair Shores Michigan, their home was literally not even 10 minutes away from mine, talks about their children.
She writes about her many personal losses in the 80’s and 90’s, the major losses “the love of her life and the artist of her life” … Fred and Robert Mapplethorpe respectively.. strange fact: Robert’s birthday was November 4, and Fred died on November 4th
Robert Mapplethorpe took the beautiful picture on the book cover.
She speaks of her writing and touring later in life.
I enjoyed this one!
This is very autobiographical, her youth with her family in Philadelphia, they were poor.. moved 11 times in her youth.
Much of the book was about her life with her husband Fred Sonic Smith.. their meeting, courtship, and married life lived right here in St Clair Shores Michigan, their home was literally not even 10 minutes away from mine, talks about their children.
She writes about her many personal losses in the 80’s and 90’s, the major losses “the love of her life and the artist of her life” … Fred and Robert Mapplethorpe respectively.. strange fact: Robert’s birthday was November 4, and Fred died on November 4th
Robert Mapplethorpe took the beautiful picture on the book cover.
She speaks of her writing and touring later in life.
I enjoyed this one!
November 5, 2025
[4.5 stars] From one of the greatest living artists, comes another poignant memoir of her life through various phases not yet touched upon in her other books. We get a stronger view into her post-WWII childhood, the season of love she shared with her husband Fred, and the aftermath of his death and her travels as a single woman again. It's quite a sweeping memoir for her, less focused on one particular era of her life or artistic endeavor. At times that means we get just a glance at what was going on behind the scenes or how she was feeling about it before moving on to another, no less interesting, anecdote. Her life is her art! And she renders that on the page so eloquently and creatively. Her 'rebel hump' forms, sheds, and reforms in various ways across the years and we get an intimate and personal look at that process from the artist herself.
November 14, 2025
Dit jaar ontdekte ik de literaire kant van Patti Smith en dat was toch een kleine revelatie. Vooral wanneer ze autobiografisch schrijft. Haar soms iets té spirituele fictie spreekt me minder aan, al heeft ze ook in die teksten een heel eigen stem en timbre. Mijn ontdekkingstocht begon bij Just Kids en daar leunen deze nieuwe memoires het dichtst bij aan, met dat verschil dat ze daar focuste op haar coming of age als artiest en haar band met Robert Mapplethorpe, grofweg de jaren '70 dus, terwijl ze hier een heel leven overschouwt.
'Bread of Angels' opent met een prachtig citaat van Gogol - 'Obstacles are our wings' - en leest als een trein en in tegenstelling tot wat de krantenreviews schrijven, kan je het niet reduceren tot een afscheid van de vele inspirerende mannen die haar levenspad gekruist hebben en haar als veelzijdig artiest geïnspireerd en gevormd hebben. Alleen al haar uitgebreid behandelde kindertijd en jeugdjaren bruisen van de levenslust en de uitgesproken eigenzinnigheid (dat laatste is zowat de rode draad door Smith's leven). Ook wanneer ze over haar relatie en huwelijk met Fred Sonic Smith schrijft, haar grote liefde, blijft het een ode aan het leven, de kunst en de hang naar schoonheid.
Pas op twee derde van het boek doet de schaduw van het verlies zijn intrede en ja, op korte tijd speelt Patti Smith heel wat dierbaren kwijt. Haar lief, haar geliefde broer Todd en haar vader. Later ook nog haar moeder en de twee giganten van de beat-poetry met wie ze een levenslange band onderhield: Burroughs en Ginsberg. In de nasleep van zoveel verlies en verdriet worstelt Smith met het leven, maar ze blijft alert en vatbaar voor vernieuwing en schoonheid, hoe moeilijk ook. Zeker nadat er zowaar een familiale plottwist aan het licht komt. Dat alles zorgt voor boeiende inzichten van een levenswijze 78-jarige vrouw die, zonder ook maar ergens sentimenteel te worden, probeert op te schrijven wat niet of lastig in woorden te vatten valt.
Toch zijn het net de woorden - woorden van een dichter, songwriter, beeldend kunstenaar, performer en mens - die haar overeind houden, al kostte het haar tijd om ze terug te vinden. Tijd en plaats zijn immers altijd al van belang geweest voor Smith. Het gaat vaak over de juiste plek zoeken en vinden om te schrijven, van een kaarttafeltje in haar keukentje over illustere literaire cafés tot een hotelsuite met balkon in de 'Bay of Angels' in Nice. De laatste stukjes, onder de titel 'Vagabondia', schreef ze op die laatste plek. Ze vormen een elegant uitwaaierend coda bij alweer een grandioos autobiografisch meesterwerkje. 4,5*
'Bread of Angels' opent met een prachtig citaat van Gogol - 'Obstacles are our wings' - en leest als een trein en in tegenstelling tot wat de krantenreviews schrijven, kan je het niet reduceren tot een afscheid van de vele inspirerende mannen die haar levenspad gekruist hebben en haar als veelzijdig artiest geïnspireerd en gevormd hebben. Alleen al haar uitgebreid behandelde kindertijd en jeugdjaren bruisen van de levenslust en de uitgesproken eigenzinnigheid (dat laatste is zowat de rode draad door Smith's leven). Ook wanneer ze over haar relatie en huwelijk met Fred Sonic Smith schrijft, haar grote liefde, blijft het een ode aan het leven, de kunst en de hang naar schoonheid.
Pas op twee derde van het boek doet de schaduw van het verlies zijn intrede en ja, op korte tijd speelt Patti Smith heel wat dierbaren kwijt. Haar lief, haar geliefde broer Todd en haar vader. Later ook nog haar moeder en de twee giganten van de beat-poetry met wie ze een levenslange band onderhield: Burroughs en Ginsberg. In de nasleep van zoveel verlies en verdriet worstelt Smith met het leven, maar ze blijft alert en vatbaar voor vernieuwing en schoonheid, hoe moeilijk ook. Zeker nadat er zowaar een familiale plottwist aan het licht komt. Dat alles zorgt voor boeiende inzichten van een levenswijze 78-jarige vrouw die, zonder ook maar ergens sentimenteel te worden, probeert op te schrijven wat niet of lastig in woorden te vatten valt.
Toch zijn het net de woorden - woorden van een dichter, songwriter, beeldend kunstenaar, performer en mens - die haar overeind houden, al kostte het haar tijd om ze terug te vinden. Tijd en plaats zijn immers altijd al van belang geweest voor Smith. Het gaat vaak over de juiste plek zoeken en vinden om te schrijven, van een kaarttafeltje in haar keukentje over illustere literaire cafés tot een hotelsuite met balkon in de 'Bay of Angels' in Nice. De laatste stukjes, onder de titel 'Vagabondia', schreef ze op die laatste plek. Ze vormen een elegant uitwaaierend coda bij alweer een grandioos autobiografisch meesterwerkje. 4,5*
October 27, 2025
Major thanks to Random House for sending me an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts:
“𝘞𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘷𝘦, 𝘸𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘦𝘳, 𝘸𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮. 𝘞𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘶𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘺𝘴𝘴 𝘸𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘭. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘰 𝘴𝘰, 𝘸𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘦𝘵 𝘦𝘹𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘰. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘮, 𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘢 𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦, 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘯.
𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘐 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵?”
And here, Patti presents strict poesie to that of pastures that stretch on through time and history and pain and pages. A look at a life lived, with eclectic pickings from childhood to a time where she fell off the stage and got a gash on her head. The press did her dirty, but she remained helpless, neck-braced, but this is where a flood of joyful help entered her life. The Ramones brought her tequila and a copy of Punk mag. William Burroughs brought her a fish wrapped in newspaper, to cook, to feed her. But it was here that poetry flooded out of her.
The book creates a formation of how the poetry comes out. For all the medical and physical catastrophes that have wrecked her, they have been whirlwinded in ways full of life and appreciation for a life. All of this spirals into Godspeak, unreachable and incomprehensible at times, but spellbinds in the usual Patti way that we all know and love her for.
Another window into her life with various notes on how some of her albums came to be as well as Just Kids. A treasure. Precious.
“𝘞𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘷𝘦, 𝘸𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘦𝘳, 𝘸𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮. 𝘞𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘶𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘺𝘴𝘴 𝘸𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘭. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘰 𝘴𝘰, 𝘸𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘦𝘵 𝘦𝘹𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘰. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘮, 𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘢 𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦, 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘯.
𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘐 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵?”
And here, Patti presents strict poesie to that of pastures that stretch on through time and history and pain and pages. A look at a life lived, with eclectic pickings from childhood to a time where she fell off the stage and got a gash on her head. The press did her dirty, but she remained helpless, neck-braced, but this is where a flood of joyful help entered her life. The Ramones brought her tequila and a copy of Punk mag. William Burroughs brought her a fish wrapped in newspaper, to cook, to feed her. But it was here that poetry flooded out of her.
The book creates a formation of how the poetry comes out. For all the medical and physical catastrophes that have wrecked her, they have been whirlwinded in ways full of life and appreciation for a life. All of this spirals into Godspeak, unreachable and incomprehensible at times, but spellbinds in the usual Patti way that we all know and love her for.
Another window into her life with various notes on how some of her albums came to be as well as Just Kids. A treasure. Precious.
November 30, 2025
An ethereal being, a person so fully herself that she reveals most everyone I know (including me) as merely players. And her certainty is so generous, a pure acceptance that each person can know themselves, and their view of the world is their life and destiny if they have the conviction to realize and honor that self. Patti never thinks that she knows how you should live, just that you should lool inside, and stop listening to others who tell you how you should live.
Every Patti Smith book is transformational, but until now, I have never thought any of them measure up to Just Kids. This is every bit as wonderful, her words as miraculous and true. Rather than an epoch if Patti's life, this is a survey, from birth (actually gestation) to the current moment. This simply could not be more beautiful, more immersive, more perfect. A best of the best for me. An imperative read for anyone who wants to start to understand the soul of an artist.
I listened to this, recited by this South Jersey girl. Draw=drawl, pillow=pilla, and on and on. Let Patti tell you her story. I read Just Kids in print, and this made me plan to listen to that book soon, so she can tell me her story in her own voice.
Every Patti Smith book is transformational, but until now, I have never thought any of them measure up to Just Kids. This is every bit as wonderful, her words as miraculous and true. Rather than an epoch if Patti's life, this is a survey, from birth (actually gestation) to the current moment. This simply could not be more beautiful, more immersive, more perfect. A best of the best for me. An imperative read for anyone who wants to start to understand the soul of an artist.
I listened to this, recited by this South Jersey girl. Draw=drawl, pillow=pilla, and on and on. Let Patti tell you her story. I read Just Kids in print, and this made me plan to listen to that book soon, so she can tell me her story in her own voice.
November 9, 2025
A lot of Patti Smith’s art—whether written, visual, or performed—has always had a haunting, elegiac tone to it, so it seems only fitting that she chose for Bread of Angels, her most intimate and poignant memoir yet, to be published on November 4th, a significant date—the anniversary of her beloved husband’s untimely death, and what would’ve been Robert Mapplethorpe’s birthday. Six days later will mark the 50th anniversary of her seminal debut record Horses.
Patti usually writes about fleeting moments and shorter periods of time, making them seem poetic and profound, no matter how mundane; but this memoir is much more expansive than anything she’s written before, spanning her entire life. We begin with an account of her sickly, post-World War II childhood, spent moving from Chicago to Philadelphia to New Jersey, from one condemned, rat-infested housing complex to another. Hard, trying circumstances, yet through nostalgic and dream-like recollections, she manages to make it whimsically charming, almost romantic. She recounts how she fell in love with reading under her mother’s tutelage, spoke to the king of tortoises, captained an army of younger siblings to fight the neighborhood bullies, and searched for a magical silver penny with single-minded dedication.
In her teenage years, influenced by Bob Dylan records and girlish daydreams of Arthur Rimbaud, she begins writing her own poetry, which eventually turns into lyrics for her unique blend of punk rock and spoken verse. She offers insights into the recording of her early albums, including anecdotes about the genesis of some of her most iconic songs (I’d heard several of them at live shows throughout the years!); the many artists from all walks of life she befriended; glimpses of the vagabond touring life that suits her bohemian heart so well.
And then, four records in, she privately decides to leave New York and her rock star career behind. She moves to a Detroit suburb with her one true love, Fred “Sonic” Smith, and they build a quiet life and family together. In Michigan, gladly surrendering to the domesticity of married life and motherhood, Patti builds a room of her own, with heavy black felt floors, a throw pillow covered with Moroccan silk, a low table with mint tea in a Persian cup, an open notebook, and a fountain pen ready to be dipped in an inkwell. It was during this quiet decade spent away from the public eye that she found and honed her voice as a writer, filling notebook after notebook.
The last section is marked by an unrelenting series of profound losses, yet her grief is laced with deep gratitude, and she transform pain and vulnerability into hope, mettle, and stunning prose. Bread of Angels is an intimate, radiant portrait of an artist who lives to write and writes to live, as well as a tender elegy to all those she’s loved and lost. How will she cast her soul next?
“God whispers through a crease in the wallpaper.”
Patti usually writes about fleeting moments and shorter periods of time, making them seem poetic and profound, no matter how mundane; but this memoir is much more expansive than anything she’s written before, spanning her entire life. We begin with an account of her sickly, post-World War II childhood, spent moving from Chicago to Philadelphia to New Jersey, from one condemned, rat-infested housing complex to another. Hard, trying circumstances, yet through nostalgic and dream-like recollections, she manages to make it whimsically charming, almost romantic. She recounts how she fell in love with reading under her mother’s tutelage, spoke to the king of tortoises, captained an army of younger siblings to fight the neighborhood bullies, and searched for a magical silver penny with single-minded dedication.
“I did not want to grow up. I didn’t aspire to be a member of the adult world, with its endless responsibilities. I wanted to be free to roam, to construct room by room the architecture of my own world.”
In her teenage years, influenced by Bob Dylan records and girlish daydreams of Arthur Rimbaud, she begins writing her own poetry, which eventually turns into lyrics for her unique blend of punk rock and spoken verse. She offers insights into the recording of her early albums, including anecdotes about the genesis of some of her most iconic songs (I’d heard several of them at live shows throughout the years!); the many artists from all walks of life she befriended; glimpses of the vagabond touring life that suits her bohemian heart so well.
“There were no rules, save to be free, no material expectations. We were all striving for the new, merging poetry and rock, stripped down naked, devoid of artifice. In the pursuit of illumination, we may be sullied, but in the pursuit of simplicity, purged; we all sought both.”
And then, four records in, she privately decides to leave New York and her rock star career behind. She moves to a Detroit suburb with her one true love, Fred “Sonic” Smith, and they build a quiet life and family together. In Michigan, gladly surrendering to the domesticity of married life and motherhood, Patti builds a room of her own, with heavy black felt floors, a throw pillow covered with Moroccan silk, a low table with mint tea in a Persian cup, an open notebook, and a fountain pen ready to be dipped in an inkwell. It was during this quiet decade spent away from the public eye that she found and honed her voice as a writer, filling notebook after notebook.
“One must discern between a dream and a calling. I was spun backward, a small child pleading her mother to teach her to read. It was the word that first seduced me and to the word I would return.”
The last section is marked by an unrelenting series of profound losses, yet her grief is laced with deep gratitude, and she transform pain and vulnerability into hope, mettle, and stunning prose. Bread of Angels is an intimate, radiant portrait of an artist who lives to write and writes to live, as well as a tender elegy to all those she’s loved and lost. How will she cast her soul next?
“The unsullied memory of unpremeditated gestures of kindness. These are the bread of angels. The pen drops, I touch phantom wounds.”
October 7, 2025
I liked the beginning, didn’t like the middle, but oh is that ending incredible. Worth every page for that.
November 13, 2025
to live in the same time as Patti Smith is a gift I will treasure forever
November 13, 2025
Thanks for making me cry on the tube I guess
December 13, 2025
Reading Patti Smith feels like taking a deep, steady breath of fresh air. Her writing is such a treat. I adore Just Kids for its myth, grit, and chaos of youth, but this book hits a totally different nerve. Every line is beautiful, every reflection is precise, and every story is alive. She effortlessly weaves heartbreak, tenderness, and humor onto every page. Bread of Angels left me breathless and sad because I was not ready for it to end. Patti Smith’s writing is profound and necessary. If you loved Just Kids, do yourself a favor and read this one.
November 9, 2025
Such a gorgeous book! I enjoyed learning more about Patti Smith’s life and especially her creative process. The many habits of imagination from her childhood that she never stopped using. The mythic quality that many of her autobiographical stories take in—at one point, I even felt a bit of Jane Eyre emerge, in a good way.
The ending of the book is especially powerful. Smith takes up her poet’s voice to bring the memoir to quite an ending, taking us back through many of the stories she has recounted.
The ending of the book is especially powerful. Smith takes up her poet’s voice to bring the memoir to quite an ending, taking us back through many of the stories she has recounted.
November 9, 2025
feel like i need to read the whole thing over again
September 26, 2025
Patti begins with her impoverished childhood then leads us into her defiant teenaged years. Next, we visit her move to NYC, the people she meets, and the blossoming of her artistry. She has written before of her NYC years and with more depth, too. Her time in Michigan which she spent raising her family felt fluttery. It was as if she needed to write about it but not share too much. Why write a memoir without revealing, at least tangentially, what sort of wife and mother she became? Smith faced much tragic loss much too soon yet she reaches within to divulge her swirling, lyrical musings. A very satisfying read by one of my favorite artists even though it was overwritten in few segments.
Want to read
September 24, 2025i’m a simple kind of girl — patti writes and i read it
November 8, 2025
„Rearranging pieces, tiny bits of truths revealed. Standing in a patch of dried vegetation, cacti, desert flowers under a sky vomiting stars, I chant the same words as my ancestors, feeling a sense of human continuity.“
❤️🩹❤️🩹❤️🩹
❤️🩹❤️🩹❤️🩹
November 28, 2025
„Birth, love, and death, never touching, ever connected.“
November 24, 2025
She has always had such a clear sense of self and I could read about her childhood forever. I am inspired and moved by the way she experiences life
November 12, 2025
Patti Smith’s writing is like poetry. After reading Just Kids 4 times this year because yes I am obsessed, Bread of Angels is written just as beautifully.
December 10, 2025
I love patti smith!!! I was very excited for this release and I am happy i got around to reading yet another memoir by her.
I didn’t know what to expect from this one but at the same time it was completely different from what i thought it would he.
But the main thing is that i do find it very interesting to read about these different time periods or aspects of her life. The first third(ish) of the book about childhood i didn’t care for as much, but i think it was necessary to read to get a better understanding of her later in the book.
Anyway, i just adore her writing style and i will read anything she puts on paper.
I didn’t know what to expect from this one but at the same time it was completely different from what i thought it would he.
But the main thing is that i do find it very interesting to read about these different time periods or aspects of her life. The first third(ish) of the book about childhood i didn’t care for as much, but i think it was necessary to read to get a better understanding of her later in the book.
Anyway, i just adore her writing style and i will read anything she puts on paper.
November 27, 2025
alles wat patti smith schrijft vind ik fantastisch maar deze was toch wel weer heel erg mooi!!
het lezen van haar boeken is echt een soort meditatie, ze schrijft zo rustig maar toch heel pakkend dat het het echt waard is om iedere zin 20 keer te herlezen totdat je hem echt begrijpt
dit zit qua thematiek en stijl dichterbij just kids dan bij year of the monkey of m-train, en voelt echt als een soort companion van haar muziek, maar valt toch niet in herhaling en voelt misschien iets persoonlijker
grote aanrader!!! (alles van haar)
het lezen van haar boeken is echt een soort meditatie, ze schrijft zo rustig maar toch heel pakkend dat het het echt waard is om iedere zin 20 keer te herlezen totdat je hem echt begrijpt
dit zit qua thematiek en stijl dichterbij just kids dan bij year of the monkey of m-train, en voelt echt als een soort companion van haar muziek, maar valt toch niet in herhaling en voelt misschien iets persoonlijker
grote aanrader!!! (alles van haar)
November 28, 2025
Patti for dælen. Jeg vil aldrig stoppe med at elske den måde du skriver på, et fabel dyr med en blyant. Smith skriver om sit liv på den mest magiske og underlige måde tænkeligt. Hun gør en hver lille kop kaffe og hvert et fangirl moment over Rimbaud til sin helt egen dejlige fortælling. Erindringens dronning gør det igen.
November 7, 2025
pulled an all nighter for this
September 26, 2025
Her words are balm to me and my soul. She is whimsy and grief and everything in between.
December 11, 2025
Mijn relatie tot Patti Smith dateert van toen ik nog op de lagere school zat in de jaren ‘70. Op de speelplaats wisselden we als prille tieners lp’s uit die we op cassetjes opnamen. Zo maakte ik kennis met de beroemde platen van deze enigmatische zangeres (Horses - Easter - Wave).
Maar haar geschreven oeuvre - op haar songteksten na - was nog onbekend terrein voor mij. Deze ‘Engelenbrood’ is mijn eerste kennismaking met haar biografische notities.
Het spichtige en regelmatig zieke kind Patti groeit op in uitgeleefde woningen die klaar voor de sloop waren, in een voorsteeds Amerika van de jaren ‘50. Er was geen geld, er waren wel ratten die de foto’s met familieherinneringen opaten. Op een dag ontdekt Patti op een vuilnisbelt oude magazines met daarin zwart-wit foto’s van gerenommeerde fotografen, een trouvaille die haar kennismaking met echte kunst markeert. Kort daarop gaat ze met haar vader voor het eerst naar een museum waar haar kennismaking met Picasso een verpletterende indruk achterlaat.
Wanneer ze naar New York trekt om ‘kunstenaar’ te worden ontmoet ze de personages die mee haar carrière richting en kleur geven zoals Robert Mapplethorpe, Bob Dylan, overbuurman Tom Verlaine…
In een afwisselend literair poëtische en dan weer welhaast zakelijke vertelstijl haalt Smith herinneringen voor de geest. Soms zijn ze erg gedetailleerd zoals bij de productie van haar platen. Soms zijn er tijdssprongen van meer dan tien jaar. Er zijn foto’s die het geheel verluchten maar er zijn ook beelden die tussen de regels in mijn hoofd ontstaan zoals de plaatsen waar ze schrijft of het romantische huisje dat ze met zielsgenoot en man Fred Smith deelde.
Engelenbrood is een zoektocht naar de herinneringen die haar maakten tot wie ze is. We passeren langs haar grote liefde Fred, langs haar liefhebbende zus, haar ouders, haar kinderen, haar objets trouvés, haar schrijven en haar writer’s blocks. Het is een erg intiem en wat mij betreft prachtig boeiend boek. Ik laat ook met de hulp van Spotify graag mijn eigen herinneringen nu mee tot stand komen.
“De onbezoedelde herinneringen aan spontane gebaren van goedheid. Dat zijn stukjes engelenbrood.”
Maar haar geschreven oeuvre - op haar songteksten na - was nog onbekend terrein voor mij. Deze ‘Engelenbrood’ is mijn eerste kennismaking met haar biografische notities.
Het spichtige en regelmatig zieke kind Patti groeit op in uitgeleefde woningen die klaar voor de sloop waren, in een voorsteeds Amerika van de jaren ‘50. Er was geen geld, er waren wel ratten die de foto’s met familieherinneringen opaten. Op een dag ontdekt Patti op een vuilnisbelt oude magazines met daarin zwart-wit foto’s van gerenommeerde fotografen, een trouvaille die haar kennismaking met echte kunst markeert. Kort daarop gaat ze met haar vader voor het eerst naar een museum waar haar kennismaking met Picasso een verpletterende indruk achterlaat.
Wanneer ze naar New York trekt om ‘kunstenaar’ te worden ontmoet ze de personages die mee haar carrière richting en kleur geven zoals Robert Mapplethorpe, Bob Dylan, overbuurman Tom Verlaine…
In een afwisselend literair poëtische en dan weer welhaast zakelijke vertelstijl haalt Smith herinneringen voor de geest. Soms zijn ze erg gedetailleerd zoals bij de productie van haar platen. Soms zijn er tijdssprongen van meer dan tien jaar. Er zijn foto’s die het geheel verluchten maar er zijn ook beelden die tussen de regels in mijn hoofd ontstaan zoals de plaatsen waar ze schrijft of het romantische huisje dat ze met zielsgenoot en man Fred Smith deelde.
Engelenbrood is een zoektocht naar de herinneringen die haar maakten tot wie ze is. We passeren langs haar grote liefde Fred, langs haar liefhebbende zus, haar ouders, haar kinderen, haar objets trouvés, haar schrijven en haar writer’s blocks. Het is een erg intiem en wat mij betreft prachtig boeiend boek. Ik laat ook met de hulp van Spotify graag mijn eigen herinneringen nu mee tot stand komen.
“De onbezoedelde herinneringen aan spontane gebaren van goedheid. Dat zijn stukjes engelenbrood.”
November 22, 2025
Much closer to 3.5 stars than 3. Patti’s writing is hypnotic, as always. The first hundred pages of this book - Patti reflecting on her childhood - was the highlight for me. Once we move into her “classic” period - Horses and Robert Mapplethorpe and all that good stuff - it felt like we were re-treading Just Kids. There wasn’t much new in that section that illuminates or compliments the previous work and just felt unneeded. Having said that, it’s still quite enjoyable to read, as Patti Smith is one of the great writers of our time. It’s always a pleasure to be in Patti Smith’s mind for a few hundred pages.
Bread of Angels is structured more like a traditional autobiography, in stark contrast to her previous memoirs. What makes Patti’s three other memoirs so great is that they focus on very specific periods of time and/or her relationships with important people in her life. In this book, her subject matter strays often, feels unfocused. Again, I never once found myself bored by this book. Patti’s vibrant use of language - especially in the final chapter - is riveting. I just personally feel if I’m going to read about subjects she’s already discussed, I’d rather re-read M Train or Year of the Monkey.
There is a pretty substantial revelation that comes toward the end of the book that I wish would have been given more focus. Perhaps Patti is still processing it, who’s to say. There is a GREAT book in here somewhere, that’s more sharp and focused on her childhood. It’s just not the book that was published.
If you’ve enjoyed Patti Smith’s previous memoirs, you will certainly enjoy this one. But much like when you visit an old relative, be prepared to hear some familiar stories again.
Bread of Angels is structured more like a traditional autobiography, in stark contrast to her previous memoirs. What makes Patti’s three other memoirs so great is that they focus on very specific periods of time and/or her relationships with important people in her life. In this book, her subject matter strays often, feels unfocused. Again, I never once found myself bored by this book. Patti’s vibrant use of language - especially in the final chapter - is riveting. I just personally feel if I’m going to read about subjects she’s already discussed, I’d rather re-read M Train or Year of the Monkey.
There is a pretty substantial revelation that comes toward the end of the book that I wish would have been given more focus. Perhaps Patti is still processing it, who’s to say. There is a GREAT book in here somewhere, that’s more sharp and focused on her childhood. It’s just not the book that was published.
If you’ve enjoyed Patti Smith’s previous memoirs, you will certainly enjoy this one. But much like when you visit an old relative, be prepared to hear some familiar stories again.
November 10, 2025
4.5 stars. I can't possibly do justice to review this book, but I will try. Patti Smith brings you along with her when she is writing. I love how each of her memoirs adds a bit more of her life, anecdotes that aren't in her previous memoirs. We see more of Smith's childhood in postwar Philadelphia, and much more of her husband Fred, and her family.
I must admit that her books are so good, I cannot decide which one I like the most.
I must admit that her books are so good, I cannot decide which one I like the most.
December 3, 2025
looking for a note of pretention in patti smith's work is like looking for a needle in a haystack. her imagination and fervor for an artistic life is unparalleled. she radiates. she soothes. i don't know what else to say. i mean, i do and i can but i don't feel like it. thanks, patti, for being a friend.
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