They are form-forward essays, as Chew-Bose relies on intricate braiding or collage or enumerated pieces, even an essay in the third person, an objective presentation of the self. We get to meet Naomi and her daughters Martha and Willow, this is a moving and emotional story and so beautifully told. Giménez Smith illuminates the difficulties of being a mother, an artist, a professor, and daughter of an ailing mother—offering realizations and epiphanies that any parent (or person) will recognize, “I was sandwiched between who I was and who I must be. As a woman the same age as Naomi, it’s she I feel the greatest empathy for, and I must admit that at first I did not take to Martha at all.

Late in the novel, after Miranda befriends a homeless man (something Indie did at the age of five) by giving him a sandwich, her mother “blows up” at her. The benign neglect meant that the mother left the daughter’s mind alone, never trying “to tidy things up, to hide the bad thoughts and plump up the good. If you love epistolary novels, you’ll enjoy this book told through messages between mother and daughter, as they discuss work and school and boys before a shocking diagnosis turns their letters more serious. Parent memoirs have become so common that we may fail to appreciate the challenge that the novelists Elizabeth McCracken (the author of witty novels and stories and a heartbreaking memoir about a stillborn son) and Lynne Tillman (an edgy, cerebral novelist and critic) took on in their recent books. Despite being sisters, Willow and Martha are opposites in how they live their life and what gives them enjoyment.When Brodeur’s own daughter turns fourteen, she realizes, “[T]here is something noxious in our matrilineal line. I could not foresee how the story would progress and liked how the narrative shifted mostly between the three women. She is currently a Mental Health Counselor at the Elon University Counseling Center as well as Director of the BASICS program which addresses substance abuse concerns of students.

Martha is in a stable satisfying marriage and Willow is finally with a man that is viewed as perfect boyfriend material by the rest of the family. Her parents thought that “if what you had to say about your life impinged on the privacy of others, then you shouldn’t say it.very useful volume [that] provides a valuable cross-cultural context for the study of the mother-daughter relationship in literature… [The editor’s] strong theoretical introduction also provides very useful statistics on European birth rates, abortion rates, social policies, family patterns and the ethics of reproductive technologies. Without introducing any spoilers by giving examples, there were moments when I found myself feeling furious with Martha’s controlling, manipulative behaviour as she attempted to derail her mother’s relationship with Ellis!

I must say I thoroughly engaged with Willow’s character as I think women too often are negative about themselves and she seemed such a believable character, although I suspect she may annoy other readers! She has over a decade of experience working within the college setting and is the author of several publications and presentations addressing this population and has also co-authored a book exploring female friendship over the lifespan. This disparity between the siblings is reflected in their terse relationship, made even more strained when their mother reveals some secrets of her own.Naomi’s husband Colin passed away suddenly two years ago and life has moved on well for Naomi she has settled into life on her own in her beautiful home by the sea and has her daughters and friends and is very happy. Ellis’s relationship with his mother gives the reader insight into his character, as does Rick’s recollection of his own unhappy childhood with his parents. Having rebuilt her life and reconnected by random chance with Ellis, a friend from university, Naomi is ready to start afresh but worried about both her daughter’s reaction to a new man, especially that of Martha who idolised her father. The Joy Luck Club is made up of four Chinese women who immigrated to San Francisco around the same time.

With this confession, Brodeur’s mother turns her daughter into a confidante, one who helps to orchestrate the ongoing affair for years. Paula sets out to find her mother and discover the truth about her family and past in this novel (and audiobook) driven by both mysteries and Paula’s own emotional journey.The arrival of Ellis has also put a spanner in the works of her plans for Naomi to move closer and be a hands-on grandparent. The characters, their lives and their conflicts were very realistic and immensely enjoyable – a perfect holiday read to sweep you away.