The Hipster's Legacy - A Story about a Family by Lorraine Cohen is a well-written memoir that I found to be an interesting and humorous read. The book begins with a foreword that includes a bit of background on Lorraine’s childhood, a map of Hermosa beach (book location), and a glossary on jazz terminology. The jazz terminology was very helpful in familiarizing myself with some jazz words that were jargon to me. I found the background on Lorraine’s childhood helped me to understand how she became the person she was when the book begins at chapter one. One of the people who really shaped her life was her father Harry, also known as Harry the Hipster Gibson. When she was young, his love for jazz had him write a song about a man who is dreading that his mother-in-law might decide to live with his family permanently if she visits them for Christmas. Harry decided to include his family in the recording, so he hauled all his kids into a recording studio, and after many tries, it turns out good. It also led to Lorraine’s first entry into show biz as her father then took her and her siblings to a bunch of different local television studios where the family would perform the song live. 

I really liked how the author kept an even pace to the book that was not rushed, but also didn’t feel like things were dragging along. While the book was obviously non-fiction, there were parts that made me laugh and smile just as much as any fiction book has. This book may be a memoir, but it's not one of those dry biographies they make you read during high school history class. The pictures interspaced throughout added a nice visual element to the book that I enjoyed like the sketches in chapter 17, especially the one of the three teenagers she refers to as “Surf Bunnies.” 

One of the scenes I particularly liked was toward the beginning of the memoir when Lorraine has her light bulb moment, that is she realized that she was living in a city that she did not particularly like and had not become a commercial artist; instead, she was working a receptionist in a fashion-buying office making cringe worthy mistakes and dealing with a boss that she was afraid of. The scene of her realization might sound depressing, but I liked it because of its emotional depth as she realized she was not doing something she enjoyed, and she decided to take charge and make a change by moving back home and helping her injured mother heal from a back injury. I liked the interactions and the way the author included her own observations on the relationships and interactions she had with her family, friends, and acquaintances. I liked seeing how her life was shaped not just by the events of her life, but also by the people in it.

Overall, I really enjoyed the memoir, and I loved how the author pulled me into her life story and made me want to keep turning page after page. I was honestly a bit disappointed when I finished it as I ended up wishing that there was more to read.