Gypsy NoMad Hippie Chick is one woman’s heartfelt, and sometimes funny, journey through life as she copes with the hardships of being homeless and suffering from depression while struggling to come to terms with choices from her past. This absorbing memoir captures a hard period in the authors life, utilizing writing she did at that time. We are invited to experience lowest point and join her at the end in a high point as she figures out what is important in her relationship with men, God, and herself.

At first, I didn’t know how to take this fiction or non-fiction, halfway through I settled on non-fiction. As I saw no sign of a plot, no in-depth cast of characters, just the introspection of ‘she’, which is an interesting way to go about telling the reader that she was finding herself. We  don’t find out her name until the end. By keeping the main character nameless and with little backstory to start, It was easy for me to see myself in her. The writing style showed her thought processes and state of mind very well. I understood right away that she was a person struggling with a mental illness. She seemed distracted and her thoughts were always jumping from subject to subject. What we do learn is absolutely fascinating and sometimes heart-wrenching, but I felt that I didn’t understand how she got to that point. I wanted to know the hardships she faced, what was so wrong with her ex, where were her children? My desire to dive into these topics is motivated by the authors engaging writing style and curious approach to life.

The author uses great descriptive words in the book by opening each chapter with either “her” writing or a description of what “she” was doing. The beginning of each chapter is set up nicely and you get a sense of the mood she is in. There were some lovely scenes when she was with her children and you really get the sense that she is a free spirit. Gypsy NoMad Hippie Chick is a delightful memoir that conveys the message that it is okay to be who you want and to live life your way.