Jenny Valentish on 4ZZZ’s The Book Club
Jenny Valentish talked to Sky Kirkham about The Vines, press releases, and getting to say the things you can’t when you’re a journalist. Originally broadcast on 08/08/2014.
Jenny Valentish has had an extended relationship with the music industry. From her own fanzine at sixteen, the eye-catchingly titled Slapper: The Groupie’s Guide to Gropable Bands, to running publicity for Swans, to writing for NME and then, upon leaving England for Australia, editing Jmag, it’s fair to say that music has been a dominant force in her life. So it seems only fair that it’s also the setting for her debut novel, Cherry Bomb.
Nina and Rose Dall are cousins of the same age, and they’ve been close since early childhood. Now seventeen, both girls are musically talented, and more than that, they’re driven. They want to write hit records, to play to packed stadiums, to fly around the world – to be icons like their aunt, the now mysteriously reclusive Allanah Dall. But while family connections may help create shortcuts, this is still an industry where the artists are rarely in complete control, and the young woman must struggle with those around them, each other, and themselves. Cherry Bomb is a story set in the music industry, but it’s a tale that’s actually about coming of age, making mistakes, and coping with the lasting impacts of trauma.
