Memorial Drive: A Daughter's Memoir
Ratings21
Average rating4.4
I really wanted to like this book. I am an Investigator who has worked violent crimes for 15 years. This book is a horrible case of domestic violence that ended in murder. It does an excellent job at showing the toll DV has on everyone involved (including the children). It also does a great job at showing how insane these monsters can be. The problem with the book is that the opening grabs your attention, but then it drags for a very long time. The most interesting part was the 12-page document her mother wrote. It stays interesting for a little longer, then gets boring again. Don't get me wrong, I feel for Mrs. Trethewey, but I'm not going to lie, I feel asleep several times reading it and had to fight to not DNF. ⭐️⭐️⭐️
When the author wins the Pulitzer Price, I often pass because the prose might be too literary for my taste. Not this one! Themes of race, divorce, and the death of her mother at the hands of family make this engaging. I love to listen to memoir to hear the author's read and Natasha did a wonderful job. The poet's cadence really shines in audio.
»All those years I thought that I had been running away from my past I had, in fact, been working my way steadily back to it.«This was not easy to read and even less so to review. In “[b:Memorial Drive 48613168 Memorial Drive A Daughter's Memoir Natasha Trethewey https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1572991814l/48613168.SY75.jpg 72583361]” Trethewey remembers her childhood, born 1966, in a still very much segregated Gulfport, Mississippi, USA. Her mother black and her father white this clearly was a challenge.Trethewey's father leaves the family and when her mother meets another man and, ultimately, marries him, things quickly escalate for young Trethewey who is routinely abused by her stepfather, Joel, who also beats his wife and terrorises the entire family.Joel eventually murders his then-ex wife.First and foremost, “Memorial Drive” is about remembering a loving mother and telling her story. When asked about what Trethewey would want to be a key takeaway from reading “Memorial Drive” she answered as follows:“If I was really honest, I would want for people to fall a little bit in love with her the way I love her. I want people to care so much about her life so that when you read it, despite knowing the outcome, you wish fiercely, fiercely for her survival. ”Trethewey succeeded at that for me.Four out of five stars.Blog Facebook Twitter Instagram Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam
Non-Fiction memoir from Pulitzer Prize winning author. Goodread 2020 award nominee for best memoir book. Tells the story of her mother's death by her stepfather! A story you won't forget!
David N.
What a beautifully written book about a very haunting and hard upbringing and life.