Earth to Moon

The saying goes that "God only gives you what you can handle." Well God didn't grow up in my atheist, Wiccan, fame-laden, oversexed, teetotalling, drug-free, cloistered, chaotic, non-communicative, workaholic, feral-feeling house.'

For Moon Unit, daughter of musician Frank Zappa and his 'manager', Gail, processing a life so unique, so punctuated by the whims of creative urges, the tastes of popular culture and the calculus of celebrity, has at times been eviscerating. But it is her deep sense of humour and unshakeable humility that keeps her - and this memoir - pinned to the ground.

A child-star at age 14 after her accidental international hit single (recorded with her father), 'Valley Girl', turned her into a reluctant celebrity, Moon Unit Zappa's life has been utterly extraordinary from her birth in 1967 into a family that was already blessed/cursed as music royalty thanks to the acknowledged genius of Frank. But what are the consequences of growing up in a family who spend most of their time naked arguing about sexual/extra-marital liaisons and practising white magic in a free-for-all state of nonconformist, virtuoso abandon?

Earth to Moon is a reckoning with self-esteem, the ghosts of the past and a mother and a father who, in the process of leaving their mark upon on the world, scarred their first daughter on home soil. Brutally self-deprecating and funny as hell, it belies a rose-tinted perspective on the 70s and 80s west coast American scene, from within the belly of the beast of the rock and roll world.

Moon... is a sublime writer who dips her pen in Nora Ephron's ink Observer
Even if you're no Zappa fan, this is a funny and, yes, Frank, look at how selfish rock stars harm their kids The Sun
Engrossing Guardian
Earth to Moon makes for engaging and charitable company The Telegraph
Moon Unit is... very funny The Times
Gripping, hilarious and often mesmerising, this warts and all account of bohemian family life shines a light on the damaging effects of fame in the golden age of the counterculture Adelle Stripe
Will uplift you, inspire you, and blow your mind Pamela Des Barres
Anyone how has ever felt lost, weird, confused, disempowered, underutilised, horny, dismissed, then spoke up and took the high road will love this book as much as I do Kyle Richards
With unflinching detail and sharp, witty prose, Moon captures both the specificity and universality of an aloneness that comes from being raised by narcissists Ariel Leve
Rich with detail, this excellent book does not let you escape the feeling of being there and experiencing that life for yourself Justine Bateman
Every family is locked into its own form of dysfunction - but Earth to Moon is written with so much authenticity you cannot help but feel connected Rosanna Arquette

Moon Unit Zappa is an American actress, artist, singer and author. She is the daughter of musician Frank Zappa.

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