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In this case, it's a chain of mothers who seem to lack maternal instincts. Lila is an ambitious reporter, married to a nice guy who really wanted kids. The deal: he'll essentially bring them up. But their youngest, Grace, is quite unhappy. She writes a thinly disguised novel about family history, including Lila's mother Zelda who might have deserted her own children to save herself, though she was supposed to have died in the loony bin. It's chilling to read about women who have trouble relating to their kids but also fascinating.
When Kingston’s mother Kristina got a devastating cancer diagnosis, she prepared letters and gifts to see her two children through subsequent years without her. Genevieve, aka Gwenny, was only 11 when Kristina died, leaving her with an older brother and a complicated dad. The author shares the contents of the box Kristina filled for her, including jewelry for every birthday and the story behind each piece. We are privy to Kristina’s search for healing, including a radical nontraditional regimen that failed. There are also revelations about the mess of the parents’ relationship, and the complications that ensue when their father takes a new wife. Tenderness and sadness are constantly at play in this moving memoir. Set in Santa Rosa and Berkeley.
Neon and Aria have been together since junior high. Now, at the start of the book, they’re seniors in high school and about to have sex, fraught with teenage angst mixed with eagerness. We back up in increments to fill in their story, including the colorful origins of their unusual names. They both have supportive parents but that doesn’t mean totally smooth sailing for this rite of passage, full of humor as well as wisdom. This is a book for teens, but one that will work for anyone who’d like to witness something that can go right for once in this crazy world.
Jude grew up in the theater, was homeschooled and folded into her actor father’s modest production company. Her mother Sadie, a celebrated actress and fierce feminist, absconded when Jude was very young and has been performing her one-woman show titled The Mother Act which lays out the subject in coruscating detail. Now Jude has set out on her own and is also about to get married. Sadie horns in on Jude’s life and tries to mend their long estrangement. It’s rough going, and Sadie comes off as a self-aggrandizing monster until we finally understand what drove her to such extremes. Lots of theater lore in this entertaining story.
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