I Will Be Complete

I suspect that in time his extraordinary memoir will eclipse all that … It’s a tale of a boy’s moral and sentimental education, with all the febrile moods and heart-stopping lurches of a Donna Tartt epic … There’s something painfully sweet about this memoir, particularly the way Gold wills himself to extract something of value from the pain inflicted by irresponsible adults … Gold’s memoir is smart, generous, and gripping until the very last pages. It’s one of the best books I’ve read in 2018. - New Statesman

In this dazzling memoir, Glen David Gold shows us the dark side of the Auntie Mame myth. Raised by an unreliable bohemian mother in 1970s California, Gold follows the trail of damage she leaves, marking his adolescence and young manhood, until he decides he must choose between being ‘complete’ and emotionally whole. Beautiful and deft, witty and searing, like a playful song with a persistent bass line of unresolved grief. I can’t stop thinking about it. - Janet Fitch, author of The Revolution of Marina M. and White Oleander

Gold delivers an engaging work of nonfiction that shows the author in a continuous battle to reconcile axioms with personal truths. As readers accompany him through his tumultuous relationships, unsuccessful jobs, or awkward interactions with his father, most will enjoy the ride. A strong memoir that oozes with the excitement of a life well-lived-and well-analyzed. - Kirkus Reviews

Glen David Gold is one of the best storytellers working today. He could write about anything and make it gripping. As it turns out, he also has one hell of a story to tell. - Joseph Fink, author of WELCOME TO NIGHT VALE

It’s a memoir that sees Gold delving into his own past and his relationships with a largely absent father and a difficult mother … It’s a fine, funny, discomfiting book. And very candid. He writes about the boy he was and the man he would become. - Sunday Herald

I Will Be Complete is the best memoir I’ve read in years. It’s likely the best memoir published in years. Gold’s a novelist and this book reads like the best fiction. It’s exciting, beautiful, and clear-eyed in a way most memoirs aren’t. Oh, and you’ll never forget this charming, intelligent, unique narrator.

Gold’s heartbreaking, brave book deals with his tangled, troubled and troubling relationship with his tempestuous mother and, with insightful introspection, he reveals how it has affected all his other relationships. It’s a shocking read, describing a shattered childhood, a complicated adolescence and an adulthood that finds him happy and whole. - Book of the Month, Psychologies