The coming of age story is a frequent plot line in many novels. But this story is not fiction. Saving Ellen is a memoir of a large Irish family, growing up in the sixties and dealing with terminal illness. Here is my book review Saving Ellen by Maura Casey.
Buffalo New York
As adults, we all look back on our childhood from a vantage point unimagined while we were living it. Maura Casey takes advantage of her long career as a journalist and editorial writer for the New York Times to eloquently describe the tumultuous years of her own growing up, using humor and brutal honesty as she looks back.
A working-class Irish family in the 60’s and 70’s in Buffalo New York is not so hard to imagine for most of us. But the chaos this family lived through, due to terminal illness of one of their own, might be. And if you have struggled with caring for a family member who is chronically ill, you will identify closely with this family.
Sisters
Saving Ellen presents Maura’s memories of her childhood, and her close relationship with her older irrepressible sister Ellen. When Ellen is diagnosed with kidney disease, the entire family and their world will begin to revolve around “saving Ellen”.
Though Maura realizes the importance of focusing on Ellen’s illness and recovery, she finds herself with her own quiet youthful struggles and nowhere to turn. She internalizes things that are happening to her (including a sexual assault) in an effort to not cause the family more angst. She wants her beloved sister to get well, but also resents the mayhem Ellen’s health has created for the family.
Family
Maura’s father is a well known philanderer and drunk, while her mother is the champion for Ellen and the family. Focused and determined, Maura’s mother will risk her own long-term health to save Ellen by donating a kidney during a time when this procedure was dangerous and uncommon.
Tumultuous
In an already tumultuous time period in America, this family lives through a family crisis, held together by their love and determination for each other – and a smart, strong and determined mother. Tragic and uplifting, with moments of humor and gratitude – Saving Ellen is a beautiful story of family ties.
****Four stars for Saving Ellen by Maura Casey. Thank you for reading my book review Saving Ellen by Maura Casey. See last week’s book review Nightwatch by Jayne Ann Philips.
I received this book, Saving Ellen by Maura Casey, gratis from Books Forward.
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