Earlier this year, I won The Quest for Family: Beauty from Ashes, by Jessica Clancy in a Goodreads Giveaway. This is the author’s true story of overcoming childhood abuse to become a productive member of society as an adult.
Understanding Me As a Reader
First, in no way is my 3-star rating a reflection on the seriousness of Jessica Clancy’s story. I respect her for overcoming childhood trauma to become a successful person as an adult. For the most part, my rating is a matter of personal preference when it comes to certain features of the book. For me, there were just little things that added up to making this not quite the book I had hoped for. I may come off a bit nitpicky, but these are things that really bothered me as I was reading, and I am sure that they will bother other people.
I read some historical nonfiction, but I don’t read a lot of self-help or memoirs sort of nonfiction. While I do find it interesting to read about people overcoming obstacles to achieve success, I don’t have a lot of experience reading books where the author talks about doing that. Because of that, I don’t have a lot of books that I can compare this to.
Where It Didn’t Work for Me
One of my big issues with this book was the timing of events. Toward the beginning of the story, the story for the most part is chronological. Later in the book, it seems to be by topic or theme. For me, this was a bit confusing at times because I wasn’t sure if one event happened before or after another event. To some people, this might not be a big deal. For me, it was distracting as I felt like we were jumping around.
Early in the story, the author says that she’s changed the names of people to protect their identities. While I get why she did that, this also caused confusion because in a few places, she focuses on the meaning of people’s names. If that’s not their real names, I’m not sure why the meaning of the fake name matters. If it is the person’s real name, then she didn’t actually change everyone’s names. I’m thinking that she changed some names but not others, but I’m not entirely sure. On that same path, the author had a Dina and a Dana. If those aren’t their real names, I’m not sure why she chose two very similar names. There’s at least one paragraph where both Dina and Dana are mentioned.
Age Issues
I would also have liked a better understanding of her age and the age of other family members when she’s an adult. One example that stands out is when she mentions learning her biological father’s name when she’s 34. Soon thereafter, she shares a letter she sent her biological father. According to information provided in that letter as well as other information included in the story, she would have been 32 when she sent the letter. While that two-year discrepancy might not bother some people, it was a glaring error as I read the book.
I would also like a better understanding of her husband’s age as well as how old her children were when certain events took place. For example, how old was her son when she and her husband became foster parents? How about when they adopted their daughter?
At one point, she makes a big deal about how she was so much older than her husband, so she was reluctant to date him. I think she was in her early 30s at that time (although I’m not 100% sure), but I have no feel for how much younger he was than her. I mean was he 18 or 19, or are we talking about something more like only a six- or seven-year difference? If it’s important enough to mention the age difference, I feel like it’s important enough to say how big the gap is.
*I did find out from the author that she was 33, and there was an 8-year age difference.
Warnings to Readers
This book does not include swearing. While the author does talk about both sexual abuse (or at least potential sexual abuse) and physical abuse, she does a good job of letting the reader know what has happened without making the descriptions too graphic. She doesn’t, though, minimize the situation either.
Like It or Not?
As this book is currently, if you are someone who gets a bit hung-up on the little details, I wouldn’t recommend reading it. If the little details that don’t quite match up or fully make sense don’t bother you, you may enjoy this book. It is a good story about overcoming the odds and not allowing her childhood to define her. With some minor adjustments, I feel like this could easily be a 4-star, maybe even a 5-star book.
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