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Almost Grown

A New York Memoir
Brief Description
"New York City is the center of the universe, and there is no New York City without Jesse Malin." -Billie Joe Armstrong, Green Day JESSE MALIN IS A "GRITTY TROUBADOUR OF THE STREETS" (Rolling Stone) and "fearless storyteller" (Uncut) who tours internationally, and collaborates with artists... Read More
Format: Hardback
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A literary memoir and coming-of-age story exploring native New Yorker Jesse Malin's boundless creativity and triumph over daunting challenges, both physical and emotional.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

"New York City is the center of the universe, and there is no New York City without Jesse Malin." -Billie Joe Armstrong, Green Day

JESSE MALIN IS A "GRITTY TROUBADOUR OF THE STREETS" (Rolling Stone) and "fearless storyteller" (Uncut) who tours internationally, and collaborates with artists like Bruce Springsteen, Green Day, Bob Weir from the Grateful Dead, and Lucinda Williams. Malin went from playing CBGB at age thirteen to Madison Square Garden in his twenties. His first solo album, The Fine Art of Self Destruction, which was hailed as "a masterpiece rising from the pain of a difficult youth" (Classic Rock), launched his long and successful solo career.

Almost Grown is a raw, honest, and often funny account of how a hyperactive kid from Queens made his dreams come true-and the hustlers, sweethearts, misfits, and lifelong friends he met along the way. With Malin as its streetwise narrator, the book has more in common with The Basketball Diaries or Just Kids than with the standard rock biography. Although music is at the core of Malin's soul, the memoir welcomes the reader into the tumultuous inner world of a boy from a broken home determined to create a life he could love.

In 2023, Malin was struck with a rare spinal stroke that paralyzed him from the waist down. The lifelong runner and vegetarian went public with this news-and his fierce resolve to walk again-in an interview with Rolling Stone. The story was picked up by the New York Times, People, CNN, Variety, the Los Angeles Times, and other outlets worldwide. The massive outpouring of love and support culminated in the release of Silver Patron Saints: The Songs of Jesse Malin-twenty-eight artists, from Jack Antonoff to Bruce Springsteen, covering his songs to raise money for his recovery. On December 1 and 2, 2024, Malin gave his first public performances since his stroke, taking the stage for two sold-out concerts hosted by actors Michael Imperioli and Mary-Louise Parker at New York's Beacon Theatre. Malin's sold-out theatrical production, Silver Manhattan: A Musical Memoir of Survival, is debuting at the Gramercy Theatre in New York in September 2025.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781636142876

Publisher: Akashic Books,U.S.

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 07 April 2026

Country: United States

Imprint: Akashic Books,U.S.

Contributors:

  • With Debra Devi

Audience: General / adult, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 3.0mm

Width: 14.0mm

Height: 22.0mm

Weight: 198g

Pages: 272

About the Author

JESSE MALIN is a "gritty troubadour of the streets" (Rolling Stone) who tours internationally and collaborates with artists like Bruce Springsteen, Green Day, Bob Weir from the Grateful Dead, and Lucinda Williams. Malin went from playing CBGB at age thirteen to Madison Square Garden in his early twenties; from crashing the stage with his friends during Fear's infamous Saturday Night Live performance to playing his own songs on The Tonight Show and CBS Saturday Morning. His body of work has garnered praise from Rolling Stone, Uncut, Paste, American Songwriter, Spin, the Times (UK), Classic Rock Magazine, No Depression, Pitchfork, Brooklyn Vegan, and many more. His autobiographical play, Jesse Malin's Silver Manhattan, debuted at the Gramercy Theatre in 2025.

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