The entirety of my Karen Carpenter knowledge before reading this book could be summed up in the span of four songs (only two of which I knew were Carpenters songs until I saw the titles again) and the broad strokes of how she died, but this book was no less interesting for my lack of both fandom and expertise. This is due to the author's personal involvement in Carpenter fandom and the way it influenced her as a member of a musical Filipino family and as a lesbian. Read at Mina's behest.