Hold Still

What’s it about? Can your child ever do anything that you cannot forgive them for?  How responsible are you, and your parenting, for their mistakes?  This novel centers on the relationship between Maya and her daughter Ellie, and how they try to find their way after tragedy strikes. What did it make me think about? It made me think about parenting.  About our children- what they become.  How much of whom they are is due to our parenting, and how much is their responsibility?  This novel asks lots of interesting questions as it explores the bond between mother and daughter. Should I read it? I liked this novel, but I did not love this novel.  It made me think, but it did not captivate me.  It was just too easy to put down.  I could never fully understand either Maya or Ellie’s motivations, and basically did not get very invested in their characters.  This was the downfall of this novel for me.  It took me until the last page to really care too much about either one of them. Quote- “Before she realized it, she’d laughed.  And she’d been terrified by this, this moment.  By feeling like all that had happened hadn’t happened after all.  She’d been terrified by the implication that they might somehow have moments when they didn’t remember, that they might still get to live.” If you like this try- Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Toews The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson Boy, Snow, Bird by Helen Oyeyemi