# ADELE BERTEI’s Memoir “Twist: An American Girl” Threads Together An Extraordinary, Troubled Childhood

- Link: https://www.nyrdcast.com/adele-berteis-memoir-twist-an-american-girl-threads-together-an-extraordinary-troubled-childhood/
- Published: 2022-09-21T16:30:00-05:00
- Author: Eugene Tierney

![](https://i0.wp.com/mcusercontent.com/f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984/images/97b13bee-
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“Once ‘the Devil ran through’ her family, Maddie free falls from institution to 
institution, growing into her queerness and discovering her fate- that ‘God has 
to be music.’ This riveting novel/memoir by underground icon Adele Bertei situates
the making of a survivor rebel against the background of the chaotic side of 1960’
s America. An honest, hard times page turner filled with heart and revelation.” **—
Sarah Schulman**

**AUTHOR/MUSICIAN/ARTIST/SURVIVOR**
**ADELE BERTEI****THREADS TOGETHER THE TAPESTRY
OF AN EXTRAORDINARY, TROUBLED CHILDHOOD IN HER MEMOIR**_**TWIST: AN AMERICAN GIRL**_

[[**SEPTEMBER 21, 2022 (New York, NY) — ** “Some names have been changed to protect
the innocent _and_ the guilty,” says author, musician, artist, and survivor** Adele
Bertei** in her upcoming memoir _**TWIST: An American Girl**_** **(release date:**
March 14, 2023**; _via _Ze Books). At times tragic, at times triumphant, told with
a keenly observant eye and a wicked sense of humor, _TWIST_ is a deeply personal
story that takes place between 1965 through 1972, the formative years of Bertei’s
youth in Cleveland, OH.

![](https://i0.wp.com/mcusercontent.com/f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984/images/391992ed-
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A bare, frank, and unflinching retelling of her life, _TWIST_ is a first-person 
account told by “Maddie Twist,” a stand-in for Bertei herself. “I needed protection
while taking the journey back through the war zones of my youth,” Bertei explains
of her avatar, which helped her maintain journalistic integrity and a safe distance
to relay experiences that might otherwise be too personal, harrowing or painful 
to reveal.

Through the eyes of Maddie Twist, Bertei threads together the tapestry of an extraordinary,
troubled childhood, beginning with her mother, whose delusions of grandeur and undiagnosed
schizophrenia bring both wonders and horrors to Maddie’s home. Once Maddie is removed
by child protective services, she begins a wild journey through foster homes and
reformatories with a band of outcast peers, learning about and eventually embracing
her identity as a queer artist. As she ages out of the juvenile justice system and
finds herself navigating the world alone, Maddie’s only constant is a ribbon of 
music that weaves itself around her heart. She can sing, and she is certain that
her voice will be the beacon that guides her towards another life.  

An artist whose history stretches back to the ‘70s, Bertei fronted the punk band**
the Wolves** in Cleveland, OH with Pere Ubu bandmate **Peter Laughner **which became
the basis of her first book** **_**Peter and the Wolves**_. His sudden death prompted
her move to NYC in 1977 where she immersed herself in the counter-culture movement
of art, film, music and literature. A founding member of **The Contortions **(produced
by none other than **Brian Eno**), she dove deep into the underground, having toured
the world with her other band **The Bloods**, America’s first out, queer, all-women-
rock band.

Her musical history is essentially a who’s who of the ‘80s underground, performing
and recording as a backing vocalist for artists such as **Culture Club, Whitney 
Houston, Sandra Bernhard**, and **Matthew Sweet** among others. She released records
as a solo artist with the Geffen and Chrysalis labels and has had international 
dance and pop hits with **Thomas Dolby** (“Hyperactive!”) and **Jellybean** (“Just
a Mirage”). She has also written songs for artists as diverse as **Sheena Easton,
Arthur Baker, Lydia Lunch, **and the **Pointer Sisters**, among others.

![](https://i0.wp.com/mcusercontent.com/f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984/images/1625fe0a-
ad8c-b503-6c4d-418d55bb16f6.jpg?w=1290&ssl=1)

**Adele Bertei**
Photo credit: Jeanne Vienne

_TWIST_ explores her life and world _before_ her thrust into the spotlight, mining
the origins of the stories and experiences that would propel her forward. In frank
prose without an ounce of self-pity, _Twist_ is an episodic survival of the fittest,
navigating the crooked rivers of poverty, race, sexuality, and gender. It is a world
of little girl gangsters, drag queen solidarity, wild roller-skating, and magical
thinking. With _Twist_, Bertei gives us a story of violence and madness, of heartbreak
and perseverance, and, ultimately, redemption.

“_TWIST _is true to the cultural time and how it felt to be me in 1965 through 1972;
white, working-class, poor, queer, abandoned, and hungry for belonging,” Bertei 
writes. “I have remained faithful to the way people talked and how they acted. When
I describe people and events, I’m expressing my teenage thoughts through the lens
of memory. History is fact and cannot be whitewashed and put through a rinse cycle
of lies and omissions to avoid triggering another’s feelings, group sensitivities,
or collective guilt… _Twist: An American Girl_ tells of my learning this truth; 
faith in the goodness of people—and having the courage to keep looking for and finding
that goodness—is the antidote to suffering and the heart-song of communion.”

_TWIST_ is first in a trilogy of memoirs by Adele Bertei. _Peter and the Wolves_,
published in 2020, follows immediately after and recounts her time with seminal 
punk musician Peter Laughner of Pere Ubu, while the third volume, about her musical
experiences once in New York is currently being written. She is the author of _Why
LaBelle Matter_s, also published in 2021. Her work has been praised widely by the
likes of Nikki Giovanni, Jerry Stahl, Greil Marcus, Lucy Sante, Dorothy Allison,
Thurston Moore, Lenny Kravitz, and many others.

**[Website](https://reybee.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984&id=b96e3f4cd1&e=615f2b8493)
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