Just Kids

**Author:** Patti Smith **Estimated Reading Time:** 2 hours, 15 minutes

**What You'll Learn**

The true story of two young artists who found each other in New York City and built a creative partnership that changed American art and music. You will learn how Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe navigated poverty, self-doubt, love, and artistic ambition to become two of the most influential artists of their generation. This is a book about devotion, the sacred nature of creative work, and what it means to believe in someone completely.

**Who This Book Is For**

This book is for anyone who has ever felt the pull of a creative life but did not know how to begin. It is for people who understand that art requires sacrifice, that great work emerges from unlikely places, and that the people who believe in you can change everything. If you have ever wondered what it takes to become an artist, or what it costs, this book holds the answer.

In the summer of 1967, a young woman left her factory job in New Jersey and moved to New York City with no plan, no money, and no connections. She was twenty years old and pregnant, but she gave the child up for adoption because she knew she was not meant for a conventional life. She was meant to be an artist. Her name was Patti Smith. That same summer, a young man from Long Island was wandering the streets of Brooklyn, searching for something he could not name. He had left Catholic school and his family's expectations behind. He knew he wanted to make art, but he did not yet know what kind. His name was Robert Mapplethorpe. When they met, it was not romantic at first. Patti was walking with a friend through a park in Brooklyn when she saw Robert sitting on a bench. He looked lost. She approached him, and something clicked. They spent the rest of that day together, and by the end of it, they had decided to share their lives. What followed was one of the most remarkable artistic partnerships of the twentieth century. They lived together, starved together, made art together, and believed in each other when no one else did. They watched each other transform from unknown dreamers into figures who would reshape photography, poetry, and rock music. But this is not a love story in the conventional sense. Their relationship evolved from lovers to friends to something deeper and harder to define. When Robert began to understand that he was gay, it could have ended their bond. Instead, it deepened it. They remained devoted to each other until Robert's death from AIDS in 1989. Patti Smith wrote…