2013 Governor General's Literary Award -- Shortlisted, Non-Fiction
2013 Hilary Weston Writers' Trust -- Shortlisted, Non-Fiction
Projection is the story of this mother-daughter meeting in Brazil,
of how two strangers, connected by little more than blood, spent ten
days together trying to build a relationship.
In 1977, Priscila Uppal's father drank contaminated water in Antigua and
within 48 hours was a quadriplegic. Priscila was two years old. Five
years later, her mother, Theresa, drained the family's bank accounts and
disappeared to Brazil. After two attempts to abduct her children,
Theresa had no further contact with the family.
In 2002, Priscila happened on her mother's website, which featured a
childhood photograph of Priscila and her brother. A few weeks later,
Priscila summoned the nerve to contact the woman who'd abandoned her.
The emotional reunion was alternately shocking, hopeful, humorous, and
devastating, as Priscila came to realize that not only did she not love
her mother, she didn't even like her.
Projection is a visceral, precisely written, brutally honest memoir
that takes a probing look at a very unusual mother-daughter
relationship, yet offers genuine comfort to all facing their own
turbulent and unresolved familial relationships.