Bonus: Contains songs performed by Eels guitarist The Chet

How does one young man survive the deaths of his entire family and manage to make something worthwhile of his life? In this poignant and original coming-of-age story, indie rock musician Mark Oliver Everett tells the story of his “ridiculous, sometimes tragic, and always unsteady” upbringing and how it fed into his creativity.

The insecure son of a genius physicist, Everett was left to run wild with his sister while his father was off in some parallel universe of his own invention. A string of tragedies would claim his family members one by one, yet somehow Everett managed not only to survive but to make a life. Striking out on a journey to find himself, he channeled his experiences into critically acclaimed music with the Eels.

Told with surprising candor, Things the Grandchildren Should Know is an inspiring and remarkable story full of hope, humor, and wry wisdom.

Mark Oliver Everett, a.k.a. “E,” is the lead singer, guitarist, and keyboardist of indie rock band the Eels. Rolling Stone magazine called Everett “the Kurt Vonnegut of the rock world.” While coping with the deaths of every member of his immediate family, Everett turned tragedy into the impetus for recording such acclaimed albums as Electro-Shock Blues and Blinking Lights and Other Revelations.