Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Family Tree of Grief

Novelist Elizabeth McCracken was living a fantasy life in France with her husband, eagerly anticipating the birth of their first child whom they'd nicknamed Pudding. When she learned her baby would be stillborn her world fell apart. Searching for a geographic cure for her sadness, the author writes in this excerpt from her new book, she found an unexpected community.

An excerpt from Elizabth's book, An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination: A Memoir (which I am now going to have to immediately run out and purchase).

But first...

To all the mothers of dead babies who I have found in my travels online and in the world, and to whom I owe so much credit and thanks for where I am today, I just want to say that, like Elizabeth McCracken, I love you in a way that no one who has not walked in our shoes can ever begin to understand.

And I will always, always remember.

5 comments:

loribeth said...

I saw this in the paper today too. There was another excerpt from the book in Oprah's magazine, either the one that's on newsstands right now or the one before that. Sounds like an excellent read!

Aurelia said...

I love you too!

;)

ladywithasong said...

Oh wow... what an excerpt. I'll be getting that book, for sure.

Of course this only makes me more certain that a publisher should be taking a look at this blog... Kokoloco, don't make me come all the way out there to make you do this!

Heather said...

I'll definitely be looking for that book too. Thanks for posting that.

Shan said...

Thank you for posting this. I need that book NOW!