Let me offer examples. Robert James Waller’s “The Bridges of Madison County” comes to mind. A seemingly simple tale of sudden passion, “Bridges” mines some deep soul caverns. Then there’s Mitch Albom’s “Tuesdays With Morrie,” a book that celebrates a deeply lived life.
I just found another. “Lift” by Kelly Corrigan is a deceptively simple book. Corrigan’s first book, “The Middle Place,” was a memoir in which she described her bout with breast cancer.
This mother of two young girls was dealing with that situation when she learned that her father had bladder cancer.
This second book is quite short. It is written in the form of a letter to her daughters. Corrigan decided to write it when she realized that her eldest, a third-grader, was already changing and spending more time with her friends, on the computer or sending text messages. Childhood can be so fleeting.
She worried that her daughters will not recall enough of their childhood.
She writes: “You won’t remember how it started with us, the things that I know about you that you don’t even know about yourselves. We won’t come back here.”
Corrigan’s reasons for writing are poignant: “You’ll remember middle school and high school, but you’ll have changed by then. That means you won’t ever know me as I am right now — the mother I am tonight and tomorrow, the mother I’ve been for the last eight years, every bath and book and birthday party, gone.”
This fond letter to her children will resonate with readers, particularly women. The author reflects that “people rarely rave about their childhoods, and it’s no wonder. So many mistakes are made.”
Her perception of her own reactions will ring true with many moms out there: “Almost every day I yell at one of you so loudly that my throat hurts afterward.”
Their mom’s observations will be appreciated one day: “I don’t mirror your emotions enough, though I can’t say why because when I do, it seems to calm you down. I forget to praise your effort instead of your achievement...”
The book’s candid reflections are enhanced by the author’s decision to include some other maternal perspectives.
Her cousin Kathy has lost a child in a tragic accident. Her friend Meg is single and wants to have a child so she takes a different route to motherhood. This book honors the power of the maternal bond.
Corrigan wrote an essay, “Transcending.” The video of her reading it has generated more than 4.5 million views so far on YouTube. Her writing reveals a perspective that is by turns wistful, humorous, and incredibly wise.
From her essay on YouTube: “Things will break — they always do.”
Contact book reviewer Vick Mickunas at vick@vickmickunas.com.
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