Author of Reese's Book Club pick Honor and the bestselling The
Space Between Us, Thrity Umrigar returns with a powerful new story
about family secrets, a mother's power, and the importance of
forgiveness.
Remy left India for the United States long ago, taking his resentment
for his mother with him. He has now returned with his wife to adopt a
baby from a young pregnant girl -- and to see his elderly mother for the
first time in many years. Discovering that she is in the hospital, has
stopped talking, and seems to have given up on life, he is struck with
guilt for not realizing just how sick she has been and for not seeing to
her care.
His return and assiduous attention brings her back to life, and Remy is
able to settle her back at home. In the process, he finds a note from
his late, adored father, opening the door to shocking long-held family
secrets which he is only now able to unravel, thus finding a path of
empathy towards his mother and a new vision of the father he had
idolized. As his mother begins to communicate again, Remy must
reevaluate his entire childhood, his relationship to his parents, and
his harsh judgment on the decisions and events long hidden from him,
just as he is on the cusp of becoming a parent himself. But even more,
he must learn to forgive others for their failures.
In a heartwrenching story of family secrets and how we move beyond them
in order to heal, Umrigar reminds us that no matter how things appear,
forgiveness comes from realizing that the people we love are fallible
and are usually trying to do their best, in the most difficult
situations.
