First published 2014
Kelly Corrigan explores the complicated relationship between mothers and daughters through her own transformation from dismissive teenager to understanding adult. In high school, Corrigan's mother described their family as "Your father's the glitter but I'm the glue," words that meant nothing to young Kelly. She saw her mother's rules and stoic nature as background noise to escape. After college, Corrigan packed a backpack and headed to Australia seeking adventure and meaning. When her money ran out, she faced a choice: find work or return home. She became a live-in nanny for John Tanner, a widowed father raising two children in a Sydney suburb. Ten thousand miles from home, Corrigan found her mother's voice everywhere. Caring for the Tanner children forced her to reconsider everything she thought she knew about her mother. Each day brought new understanding as she turned their relationship over like a seashell, listening for hidden messages. This memoir examines how our views of the people who raise us shift as we step into their roles ourselves.
Genres: family-life, contemporary, memoir, non-fiction
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Australia, Sydney
Period: After College
224 pages · Hardcover · Ballantine Books