Spirals: A Woman's Journey Through Family Life - Hardcover

Gould, Joan

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0394557050 ISBN 13: 9780394557052

Publisher: Random House, 1988

Synopsis

The author draws on personal experiences to create a meditation on the life of a woman, her role in the family, her relationship with her husband, and the complexity of the mother-daughter connection

About this title

From Publishers Weekly:

At once intensely personal and universal, Gould's book goes beyond the memorable pieces she has contributed to the New York Times "Hers" column. She describes her life as a daughter, wife, mother, widow and grandmother in prose that is exquisitely simple, unsentimental and powerfully moving. After 28 years of a loving marriage, her husband Martin succumbed to cancer and her life changed irrevocably; the "spirals" continued as her children grew up and she was no longer so necessary to them. Although Gould celebrates the frequent joys of her life's journey, it's clear that she has suffered wounds, particularly in the sterile relationship with her mother. The scenes between them convey a deep sense of loss. Trying to understand why her mother merely tolerates her, Gould concludes that mother love is a talent abundant in some women, denied others. It is a talent she herself possesses, along with the strength to live and work on her own.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal:

In this excellent book Gould focuses on her deepest feelings, as she shares what it means to be a daughter, wife, mother, mother-in-law, widow, and grandmother. She likens this progress through life to a spiral, rather than a straight line or a circle. Gould's poignant meditations are well written and touch universal themes. Although Gould discusses her husband's death to cancer, she doesn't dwell on being a wife and widow; rather she discusses the many roles of a woman throughout her adult life. Still, readers who enjoyed books like Lynn Caine's Widow (1974) will enjoy Spirals. Recommended for public libraries and women's studies collections. Susan A. McBride, L.R.C., Northeast Texas Community Coll., Mt. Pleasant
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Random House
• Publication date: 1988
• ISBN 10: 0394557050
• ISBN 13: 9780394557052
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320