Review: Life and How to Live It: Begin the Begin by Chaz Holesworth
A life well lived starts with the willingness to begin again.
Life and How to Live It: Begin the Begin by Chaz Holesworth is a thoughtful work of nonfiction that explores what it really means to start-intentionally, honestly, and without waiting for the "perfect" moment. Blending philosophical reflection with accessible insight, this book invites readers to take a closer look at how they approach change, purpose, and the idea of beginning again.
In Begin the Begin, Holesworth leans into the quiet but powerful truth that most of us aren't held back by a lack of opportunity-we're held back by hesitation. This is not a loud or prescriptive self-help book. Instead, it offers a more reflective path, encouraging readers to sit with life's bigger questions and consider what it might look like to truly begin, right where they are.
If you're drawn to nonfiction that feels both philosophical and grounding-something you can read slowly and return to-this one settles into that space with ease.
About Begin the Begin
Life and How to Live It, Vol. 1: Begin the Begin By Chaz Holesworth
Published by Independently Published on May 2024
Genres: Adult Non-Fiction 18+, Memoir
Formats: Audiobook, eBook, Hardcover, Paperback
Pages: 226
In a city built on survival, one young boy learns the cost of staying alive—and what it takes to finally start living.
Philadelphia in the 1980s was no place for the soft-hearted. For Chaz Holesworth, childhood meant dodging gangs, addiction, and silence after slammed doors. His father’s world ran on heroin, his mother’s on holy fear.
Caught between two extremes, sin and salvation, Chaz learned early on how to disappear: keep your head down, don’t ask questions, and pray someone notices you anyway.
But everything changed the day he discovered music. In R.E.M., Tori Amos, and Nirvana, he hears something no sermon ever offered: truth, raw and imperfect. As his home life spiraled and his faith fractured, those lyrics became lifelines, every note pulling him closer to the one thing he never had: his own identity.
What happens when the noise outside becomes louder than the voice inside?
Or when loyalty to broken people starts to break you too?
Unflinching and darkly funny, Life and How to Live It: Volume One is more than a coming-of-age memoir: It’s a portrait of grit, grief, poverty, and the fragile beauty of hope born from chaos. Chaz Holesworth’s story captures the pulse of Philadelphia’s rough-edged streets and the soundtrack that kept him alive as he battled lost faith, family dysfunction, and his father’s addiction.
For anyone who’s ever grown up in the wreckage of someone else’s choices, Chaz’s story is proof that you can still build something beautiful from the debris.
Reader resources:
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Review at a Glance
| Genre: | Nonfiction / Memoir / Life Philosophy |
| Length: | 296 pages |
| Content Rating: | Mature (themes of addiction, violence, family trauma) |
| My Rating: | 3.5 stars |
| Quick Take: | Raw, layered, and emotionally unfiltered-this is a story of survival, resilience, and finding meaning in difficult beginnings. |
- Drug addiction (heroin use)
- Domestic instability and poverty
- Religious intensity and family strain
- Violence and emotional trauma
With that in mind, let's take a closer look.
My Thoughts
This is not an easy read-but it is an honest one.
In Begin the Begin, Chaz Holesworth lays out a life shaped by instability, hardship, and deeply complicated family dynamics. From poverty and a broken home to a father's heroin addiction and a mother's retreat into born-again Christianity, the layers here are not softened or filtered. They are presented as they are-messy, painful, and at times overwhelming.
The emotional rawness of the narrative is gripping. There's a sense that nothing has been polished for comfort. Instead, the story unfolds with a kind of unguarded honesty that may not resonate with every reader, but will feel deeply real to those who connect with it.
Amid that weight, there are threads of resilience that quietly hold everything together. Music-particularly the alternative and rock scene of the time-becomes a form of escape and identity. And perhaps most meaningfully, the idea of chosen family emerges as a counterbalance to what was lacking in biological ties.
This is ultimately a story about continuing forward. Not in a triumphant or neatly resolved way, but in a persistent, hard-earned sense of survival. That message-keep going, even when the path is unclear-is where the book finds its grounding.
In Conclusion
Life and How to Live It: Begin the Begin is not a polished or easy journey-and it doesn't try to be. What it offers instead is something more raw and unfiltered: a look at how resilience is built over time, often in circumstances that feel anything but hopeful.
While the emotional weight and layered experiences may not connect with every reader, there is an underlying message that quietly persists-keep moving forward. Not perfectly, not all at once, but in whatever way you can.
For readers who are drawn to deeply personal stories of hardship, identity, and survival, this is a reflective and thought-provoking read that doesn't shy away from the difficult parts of life.
If this kind of emotionally honest storytelling resonates with you, you might also enjoy
Laugh Cry Rewind, which similarly explores trauma, resilience, and the choice to keep living through life's most challenging moments-this time with a balance of humor and heart.
If you enjoy thoughtful nonfiction that leans into life's harder truths, Life and How to Live It: Begin the Begin offers a perspective that is both grounded and real.
Meet Chaz Holesworth
About Chaz Holesworth
Chaz Holesworth grew up in Philadelphia’s Kensington neighborhood, where addiction, poverty, and faith defined his daily life. Those experiences shaped his perspective and fueled his drive to write honestly about survival, memory, and meaning.
Now living in the suburbs with his wife and their dog, he still carries Philly with him in his humor and his belief in standing up for the underdog.
When he isn’t writing, Chaz can be found at a live show, exploring new corners of the world, or enjoying a craft beer. A passionate advocate for social justice, he is deeply committed to championing the rights of workers and animals, striving to make a difference in the causes closest to his heart.
Life and How to Live It is his memoir series told with unflinching honesty. With his gift for storytelling, he writes to connect, to remember, and to show others that even in the darkest corners of the past, there is a way forward.
Explore more from the author:
Website | Amazon | Goodreads
Where to Find Life and How to Live It: Begin the Begin
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Tour dates: April 20 to May 8, 2026. To see the full schedule of stops, visit the
iRead Book Tours - Life and How to Live It: Begin the Begin Tour Page.
A special thank you to iRead Book Tours and Chaz Holesworth for the opportunity to read and share Life and How to Live It: Begin the Begin as part of this tour.
Be sure to follow the tour for additional reviews and reader perspectives on this thoughtful nonfiction release.
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