Category: Book Review
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In Memoirs, Changing Thoughts Reveal the Wisdom of a Lifetime
Dawn Novotny’s memoir “Ragdoll Redeemed: Growing up in the Shadow of Marilyn Monroe” satisfies the requirement for any good story. The end relieves the tension set in motion at the beginning, and summarized so nicely in the book’s title. As a child, Novotny was a “ragdoll,” a passive child who had been used and abused.…
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If this memoir author is famous, maybe you are too
Consider all the potential readers you are or will be connected with through various personal and internet groups. In addition, to internet acquaintances there are also people who want to know more about your situation. If you grew up in the Midwest, or are involved in Twelve Step programs, or love to quilt, people who…
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A Memoir That Relieves the Lifelong Burden of Shame
After I became a therapist, I quickly realized that reenactment is quite normal. We are often pulled into life situations in which we attempt to replay circumstances of our childhood. The phenomenon often drives us to select partners uncannily reminiscent of our family history.
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Ten Reasons I Loved Man Who Couldn’t Eat, Part 2
When I started submitting pieces of my own memoir to critique groups, I realized with rising horror that the protagonist I was describing had been a jerk. That was the first time the thought had occurred to me. Before then, I always wanted to think of myself as the good guy in the room. Writing…
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Ten Reasons to Read a Memoir About a Man Who Couldn’t Eat
Jon Reiner’s ending is superb and inspiring. He teaches thoughtful lessons and leaves me with the sense that he is a better person than he was at the beginning. When he makes sense of his life, I feel a surge of hope that others can do the same. Good denouements lead to enthusiastic book recommendations.
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Mom of Troubled Teens Tells Her Side of the Story
A parent suffering through the rebellion of a child is an important, under-reported facet of family life. Most kids rebel to some extent, and despite all the suffering and confusion that parents must feel, most of the social attention to the matter is limited to half measures and shared confusion. “Live Through This” provides a…
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When is a memoir by a celebrity not a celebrity memoir?
Andre Agassi was one of the greatest tennis players of all time, and he was married to supermodel Brooke Shields. So it would be natural to expect his memoir, “Open,” to be just another celebrity memoir, taking a free ride on his household name. But Agassi’s memoir was not a vapid look at the privileged…
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