Book Review - What We Have by Amy Boesky

Synopsis:  At thirty-two, Amy Boesky thought she had it all figured out: a wonderful new man in her life, a great job, and the (nearly) perfect home. For once, she was almost able to shake the terrible fear that had gripped her for as long as she could remember. Women in her family had always died young-from cancer-and she and her sisters had grown up in time's shadow. It colored every choice they made and was beginning to come to a head now that each of them approached thirty-five-the deadline their doctors prescribed for having preventive surgery with the hope they could thwart their family's medical curse. But Amy didn't want to dwell on that now. She wanted to plan for a new baby, live her life. And with the appreciation for life's smallest pleasures, she did just that. In What We Have, Amy shares a deeply transformative year in her family's life and invites readers to join in their joy, laughter, and grief.

First Line:  "On March 25, 1993, at the end of a long, unusually snowy winter, I got a letter from the chair of the Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health at Creighton University."

Random Quote: "I couldn't get over watching my mother with Sacha - she knew exactly what she was doing, she was so casual, matter-of-fact, warm, offhand, just the way I wanted to be, how did she know how to do all of this?  I wanted a transfusion, I wanted to pour her knowledge knto me, I wanted to know how to fold a cloth diaper and use it to make a clean place for Sacha to lay her face, how to swaddle with three taut folds, how to hold Sacha's ankles in one deft hand and wipe her with the other, how to tuck the phone under my chin while I rocked her, how to slide Sacha into some magic crook in my arms or on my hip while I did a million other things, all casual, easy, and this was astonishing to me, because much as I may have admired certain things about my mother before - her discipline, her tenacity, her organization - I'd never wanted to do what she did, none of it had ever held any interest for me, but now - I was besotted, she was my hero!"

Review:  I liked this memoir.  It's well-written, sincere, playful yet serious, and the author manages to bring herself and her own struggles to light in a way that feels honest.  The book gave me a lot to think about, particularly as the author struggles with her own need to think ahead and be prepared and the reality of a world that throws what it wants to at you in its own time and fashion.

Farlow Tot Lot, Newton, MA - Image by doughaslam via Flickr
Ms. Boesky obviously belongs to a clan that loves and supports each other, even when it's difficult.  I particularly appreciated her honesty about her own feelings when her sister lost her baby and then had difficulty supporting Ms. Boesky in her pregnancy and delivery.  I can only imagine how purely awful that must have been for everyone involved - two sisters, pregnant together and planning for their children to play together until one loses her child.  Just awful.

Also illuminating was the story of the author's mother's death from cancer.  I liked the mix of humor and pathos and I liked reading about everyone trying to come to terms with the inevitable.  The story of the house her parents almost bought, A River Runs Through It, touched my soul and really brought her mother to life for me.

The author is at her least successful when she talks about her own work and in talking about making decisions about her own health based on her family's extensive cancer history.  The book is marketed as being primarily about this aspect of Ms. Boesky's life and I think it does her a disservice because that's not, ultimately, what the book is about.  As the author's specialty is the advent and evolution of timepieces and timekeeping, I would have liked for her to play more with this element within her own story.  I don't think she's written the book she meant to write, and she may still write, but I liked this book and hope she writes more.

FTC Disclosure:  Advance copy from the publisher for the author's blog tour sponsored by TLC Book Tours

Rating:  Purple

I'm very pleased to be a stop on Ms.Boesky's blog tour!  For more reviews of this memoir, please be sure to visit the other stops on the tour!

Amy Boesky’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

 

Monday, August 16th:  Reviews from the Heart
Tuesday, August 17th:  Suko’s Notebook
Wednesday, August 18th:  Luxury Reading
Thursday, August 19th:  Book Club Classics!
Friday, August 20th:  not that you asked
Monday, August 23rd: A Nut in a Nutshell
Tuesday, August 24th:  Amy’s Creative Side
Wednesday, August 25th:  Overstuffed
Thursday, August 26th:  Rundpinne
Tuesday, August 31st:  Cozy Little House
Wednesday, September 1st:  Silver and Grace
Thursday, September 2nd:  BookNAround
Friday, September 3rd:  Peeking Between the Pages
Tuesday, September 7th:  Musings of a Bookish Kitty
Thursday, September 9th:  Chaotic Compendiums

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