Woodstock, as well as Janis's life in general, was like nothing the world had seen before. Both impacted the culture through artistic expression and a powerful social message. Each combined aspects of sexuality, feminism, politics, and powerful words to produce musical experiences.
             Janis's performance at Woodstock was a natural progression in her career. Woodstock showcased a new generation of artists with a strong social message, yet many of these, like Janis, were not mainstream artists. Woodstock launched their careers simply by exposing their talent. Woodstock provided a stage where these artists could provide a once in a lifetime performance.
             Janis was no exception. Her performance was full of raw emotion and powerful lyrical licks. Her sexually suggestive and provocative lyrics and gestures reflected the same attitudes that were burning and breeding in the crowd. After reading Janis's biography, it was easy to see why Janis was chosen to perform at Woodstock. Janis was a vivid example of the counter culture and a new generation of thinkers and movers– and these same people fueled Woodstock, a musical experience that broke all previous barriers.
             The novel drags in it's beginning, going into explicit detail about the lives of Janis's parents. I think a lot of this could be extracted without losing the essence of the book. This passage, for example, offers little to the overall theme and story:
             Dorothy had a powerful soprano voice, by Amarillo afforded her few opportunities for showing it off. Her voice did land her a college scholarship at Texas Christian University. Dissatisfied with the college's singing program, she returned to Amarillo, where she found a temporary job as a sales clerk at Montgomery Ward. Although there were limits to how far a woman could go in those years, Dorothy went pretty far. In no time she'd displaced the vacationing worker, and shortly thereafter was...