
Description
". . . a darn good page-turner that could easily rival any riveting novel." --INDIEREADER (5-Star Review)
My teenage mom viewed my arrival as having a live baby doll she could dress in cute outfits with matching booties. Beyond that, she wasn't quite sure what to do with me. She hadn't imagined that from the near get-go, I'd be (in her words) the "wiser, more mature one" of the two of us, responding to her antics with squinty-eyed scrutiny, or a hand thrown on my hip when I'd gotten her number on some joke she'd played on me. Statistically, our exceedingly open and playful role-reversal friendship should have hurled us both into the realm of dysfunction. But the "meant to be" magic we shared, and the path we were fated to travel both together and apart, was deeper than either of us could have imagined.
When Stacey Aaronson was born in 1969, her mother, Bree, was sixteen and barely out of braces. Hastily wed to Stacey's dad and divorced soon after, Bree raised Stacey with his and her parents' loving support. Following the nudging of her heart, she rejected mothering cues from her mostly structured, mid-century upbringing and favored allowing Stacey to bloom unfettered in her own particular soil, boldly and unapologetically giving her daughter complete freedom to be her authentic self. The result is the extraordinary story of this mother-daughter duo reminiscent of Gilmore Girls.
Anchoring each other to the world through their distinct brand of "us-ness," Bree and Stacey take on life with an uncanny gift for seeing magic in the most ordinary moments. Whether bouncing between the markedly different homes of her mom, dad, and grandparents, discovering her religious and sexual identities, or starting college in her mid-twenties, Stacey is buoyed by Bree's unwavering love and acceptance. Even when bookish and conservative Stacey bobs through choppy waters with her free-spirited mom, their uncommon closeness remains unshakable. She is by Bree's side as she seeks the biological mother she never knew, and applauds her mom's resilience as she rises above several hard-hitting challenges. But Bree--despite her vibrant spirit and astounding near-reversal of an MS diagnosis--learns too young she has cancer, whose underlying emotional roots even a cutting-edge, non-toxic treatment can't cure.
As Stacey steps into the role of caregiver, the two face the most poignant leg of their journey: nurturing their deep soul connection even as one soul transitions to another realm. Brimming with miracles, wonder, and joy even in its saddest moments, Raising, and Losing, My Remarkable Teenage Mother is a tender yet ebullient celebration of life, of love, of death's mysterious passage, and the mystical forces that bind us all.
A candid, humorous, and touching story of an uncommon and heartwarming mother-daughter connection that upends popular notions of teenage pregnancy and what constitutes an "ideal" family.
"An intimate and moving account of a singular bond." --KIRKUS REVIEWS
Product Details
Publisher | Astoria Books |
Publish Date | June 14, 2021 |
Pages | 426 |
Language | English |
Type | |
EAN/UPC | 9781736460535 |
Dimensions | 8.5 X 5.5 X 0.9 inches | 1.2 pounds |
About the Author
Reviews
"Beautiful and moving from beginning to end, this chronicle of Stacey's and Bree's life is a glorious depiction of an unusual mother-daughter role-reversal dynamic. The journey from childhood to adulthood is masterful, heartfelt, and so gripping that there were points when it was impossible to take a breather from this book . . . a heartwarming and heartbreaking memoir of a mother/daughter love that knows no limits."
--SACHA T.Y. FORTUNÉ, Discovery Book Review
". . . a darn good page-turner that could easily rival any riveting novel . . . a memoir worth relishing."
--INDIEREADER (5-Star Review)
"This uncommon and heartwarming mother-daughter relationship through the years is a quirky, tender, playful, mystical, inspiring breath of fresh air! At its core it paints a picture of what we all long for: unconditional acceptance. Springing from a teenage mom, and growing up within the loving embrace of her family, the author was blessed to be raised with an abundance of love, laughter, freedom, and natural self-esteem, not to mention more than a little magic. This memoir will leave you bemused, intrigued, warmed, and subtly changed by this life journey and the relationship at the heart of it."
--PATTY BEAR, author of the memoir From Plain to Plane: My Mennonite Childhood, a National Scandal, and an Unconventional Soar to Freedom
"Aaronson's approach has a disarming charm and is warmly intuitive . . . this frank and affecting work is a deeply personal celebration of maternal love that avoids the pitfall of being narrowly anecdotal by exploring broader issues of personal identity, family lineage, and struggles with grief. . . . An intimate and moving account of a singular bond."
--KIRKUS REVIEWS
"Raising, and Losing, My Remarkable Teenage Mother is a sensitive, and at times hilarious, depiction of the special love between a teenage mother and her daughter. Wrought with the occasional role-reversal that shows the poignant reality of a sixteen-year-old mother and her "old soul" daughter, Stacey gives the reader the gift of laughter through the telling of a child raising a child, while highlighting her young mother's solid values. Your heart will be touched in a way that only the truest of loves between a parent and child can. There's no doubt in my mind after reading Stacey's book that our relationships of love endure past our final day on Earth, and that the truest love is forever. Make sure to have a box of tissues nearby as you travel through this beautiful love story."
--MARY TWOMEY ODGERS, author of the memoir Six Funerals and a Wedding
"A precocious daughter and her wildflower mother navigate life through complex family dynamics and relationships, happiness and tears . . . impossible to put down."
--LORI STILLMAN, co-author of Jumping from Helicopters: A Vietnam Memoir
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