Sweet Mystery
A Book of Remembering
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- $32.99
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- $32.99
Publisher Description
An exquisitely written memoir—combining sorrow and joy, anger and forgiveness, suffering and healing—that affirms the resilience and strength that imbue the human spirit
Judith Paterson was just nine years old in 1946 when her mother died of a virulent combination of alcoholism and mental illness at the age of 31. Sweet Mystery: A Book of Remembering is Paterson’s harrowing account of the memories of her mother, told with eloquence and understanding. Set largely in Montgomery, Alabama, the story plays out against a backdrop of relatives troubled almost as much by southern conflicts over race and class as by the fallout from a long family history of drinking, denial, and mental illness.
While rich in the details and flavor of small-town life in the South during the 1940s, Sweet Mystery transcends time and regionalism to evoke universal American themes. Ultimately, it confirms the damaging effects of early trauma on children as well as the innate and familial strengths that enable some children to survive, grow up, and heal.
Originally published in 1996 to critical acclaim in the national media, Sweet Mystery was called “a beautifully written, excruciating collision of form and emotion, joy and pain, willpower and self-examination, control and surrender” by the Washington Post. This edition contains a new afterword written by the author as well as a list of suggested readings.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this autobiography, Paterson, a college professor and journalist, recounts her memories of growing up in a Southern family during the 1940s, plagued by her family's addictions and mental illnesses in addition to the trauma of her father's leaving to serve in World War II. Her first ten years until her mother's death at 31 were marked by fear, pain, and uncertainty, never knowing which mother she would encounter: the warm, loving parent who took her on special outings to the beach or the frightening addict in the darkened bedroom who snapped at the simplest request and told everyone to go away. Paterson manages to capture her heartbreaking childhood feelings with startling realism. For instance, her fear is nearly palpable as she tells of waiting hours in the car for her father to come out of a bar until she finally has to walk the several miles home alone. This book is for all who appreciate eloquent writing of bittersweet memories, as well as those struggling with the legacy of a painful childhood.--Nancy R. Ives, SUNY at Geneseo
