{"product_id":"better-to-beg-jillian-luft-9798268187779","title":"Better to Beg","description":"\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe bloody Deserters-the band that belongs nowhere. To no one.\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWith raw musical talent and wild sexual chemistry, early aughts NYC rock duo The Deserters, comprised of ambitious midwestern feminist Viv and the half-cracked British expat Hux, head west in a stolen jalopy to perform in the seedy bars and sketchy clubs of America's great cities, hoping to \"make it\" as crowds grow violent, money dries up, and their trust in each other erodes, forcing them to confront the limits of freedom, faith and creative integrity in an ever-changing post-9\/11 America. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"...a rip-roaring, heart-and-soul-gutting tour through the rock-n-roll sleaze of early aughts New York City, the funereal desolation of desert highways, and those many drug-fueled pit stops in between.\"-\u003cb\u003eJILLIAN LUFT\u003c\/b\u003e, author of \u003ci\u003eScumbag Summer\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"...pulses with rebellious energy [and] deftly captures music's gritty world with wit and hope, making this debut a true muse for those who dare to be different.\"-\u003cb\u003eMALLORY SMART\u003c\/b\u003e, author of \u003ci\u003eI Keep My Visions to Myself\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"...smart and irreverent, sexy and unhinged in all the right ways.\"-\u003cb\u003eD.T. ROBBINS\u003c\/b\u003e, author of \u003ci\u003eLeasing\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"...an honest, raw, and unsentimental look at what it means to stay true to yourself and your art, and what it can cost you.\"-\u003cb\u003eAMY JONES\u003c\/b\u003e, author of \u003ci\u003ePebble \u0026amp; Dove\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Two muses, two killers, two heartbroken loners-this duo can't fly too close to the sun because they're never awake to see it.\"-\u003cb\u003eSCOTT LAUDATI\u003c\/b\u003e, author of \u003ci\u003ePlay the Devil\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Electrifying! One of the best fictitious rock books you'll ever read-a \u003ci\u003eThis is Spinal Tap\u003c\/i\u003e for early-2000s indie sleazebags.\"-\u003cb\u003eBRIAN ALAN ELLIS\u003c\/b\u003e, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Errors Tour\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"...conjures a literary \u003ci\u003eBehind the Music\u003c\/i\u003e that swept me up and sucked me in until I was moving through my days thinking about The Deserters alongside so many real-world bands.\"-\u003cb\u003eAARON BURCH\u003c\/b\u003e, author of \u003ci\u003eYear of the Buffalo\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"...will leave you hungover and still longing for more.\"-\u003cb\u003eLEXI KENT-MONNING\u003c\/b\u003e, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Burden of Joy\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"[A book] for primal-screaming, dumpster-diving, cactus-shaped souls [and the] ones who understand what it means to cage yourself in search of freedom, reject yourself in search of validation, destroy your environment in search of home, and ostracize yourself in search of belonging when all you really need is space to fall apart.\"-\u003cb\u003eCLAIRE HOPPLE\u003c\/b\u003e, author of \u003ci\u003eTake it Personally\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"...\u003ci\u003eMeet Me in the Bathroom\u003c\/i\u003e reimagined as a road novel-a celebration of the beautiful pain that defines creative partnership.\"-\u003cb\u003eKEVIN M. KEARNEY\u003c\/b\u003e, author of \u003ci\u003eFreelance\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"...peels back the filthy film overlaying early-aughts rock 'n roll, a world of sweat and grime and drugs and jeans that have been worn for three-hundred-and-eighty-four days, to expose the ambition and heart underneath-unforgettable characters yearning to prove their worth, and the necessary reminder to make art no matter what. \"-\u003cb\u003eEMILY COSTA\u003c\/b\u003e, author of \u003ci\u003eGirl on Girl \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Jillian Luft,Kirsti MacKenzie\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9798268187779\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Independently Published\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 11\/15\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 252\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.56lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.00h x 5.00w x 0.57d","brand":"Jillian Luft","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":48066773582079,"sku":"9798268187779","price":15.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_e2eb3a67-63a5-44fc-90a9-5fb55e0bc9d1.jpg?v=1768680465","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/better-to-beg-jillian-luft-9798268187779","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}