Quotes
"Driven is an edgy memoir of cars, crises, and coming of age.” Texas Observer
“Wanderlust is instilled in Stephenson from a young age, and cars both enable her spirit of adventure and allow her to get at intangible emotions while dealing with very tangible objects…We need more stories from women like [this]…[who] crave new experiences and knowledge and are frank about the compromises they have to make for their families.” Outside
“Explores a woman’s relationship with her family and dead brother through the cars that came into their lives…Lyrical and eloquent, Stephenson’s book is a journey of pain, beauty, and healing that also celebrates the life of her tragically misunderstood brother. Raw, tender, and uniquely envisioned.” Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“Driven is a restless road trip of a memoir…[as] Stephenson finds comfort and freedom in the cars that grounded the turbulence and restlessness of her life.” Shelf Awareness
“Stephenson’s memoir offers a rewarding twist on an American story and is filled with love, grief, grit, and healing.” Publishers Weekly
“A coming-of-age memoir about wanderlust, grief, and perseverance, Stephenson’s first book packs an emotional wallop.” Booklist
“Melissa Stephenson’s Driven does the hard and wonderful work of exhuming the beauty from which disconnection and heartbreak are woven. Perhaps no life, she reminds us, is ever yet fully lived; and there’s a beauty in that, too.” Rick Bass, author of For a Little While