Nico Case has one acclaim as both a singer and songwriter.

This month, she's out with a memoir that reveals her difficult journey to indie stardom.

Special correspondent Tom Casado spent time with Case for our arts and culture series, Canvas.

On the socialers of fendence.

Nico Case's new memoir is called The Harder I Fight, the More I Love You.

And a big part of her story is right on the cover.

The cover of your book is you as a little kid hugging a cat.

And then there's this big, scary-ass monster drawn behind you.

The monster was kind of my buddy who protected me.

That was my rage.

I'm not supposed to have that rage, but that rage has saved my life so many times.

I'm not getting rid of that rage.

The roots of that rage are explored in painful detail in the book.

Well, my parents, they both were dealing with incredible trauma, and there was a part of them that was numb and turned off, and they had a kid.

And that was you?

That was me.

And you spent a lot of time literally by yourself?

A great deal of time by myself.

She describes a childhood of neglect.

Her father, she says, barely spoke to her.

And then if I was with my mom, my mom and my stepdad, they would leave around six or seven,

and they would be gone until six.

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