Andy Bridge and his mother Hope loved each other with a deep, abiding love, but she was so tormented in her mind that she was unable to care for her son. Andy was seven when she was institutionalized, and he was placed in foster care.

The book begins and ends at the Eufaula Adolescent Center in Alabama, site of a class action lawsuit centering on poor treatment of its residents. Newly-hired as a lawyer, Andy interviews Jeff, a teenager sequestered in a drafty basement for an infraction of the rules. Andy sees himself in Jeff and flashes back to his own experiences.

The descriptions in this memoir are so vivid that the reader feels an affinity for Andy and his story. A page turner, this memoir is hard to put down and provides a moving portrait of a boy who refused to fail in life in spite of his circumstances. This book is a must read!  Reviewed by Susie Nightingale

Strength in What Remains by Tracy Kidder

Pulitzer Prize winner Tracy Kidder writes a cogent analysis of the genocide in Burundi (1993) and in Rwanda (1994) and its effect upon one young Burundian Deogratias, a former medical student, who emigrates to the United States in 1994 with $200 in his pocket. 

Deo's gripping story is a testimonial to the resiliency of the human spirit and to the strength of one man who created good out of unimaginable evil.

There’s a healthy dose of sarcasm in the title of Lijia Zhang’s new memoir, “Socialism is Great!” A Worker’s Memoir of the New China. And the picture on the cover, a beaming Chinese girl holding two... ...

Crazy for the Storm by Norman Ollestad

Danger, suspense, action are the three main ingredients Norman Ollestad uses to weave his powerful memoir, CRAZY FOR THE STORM.  When I first saw the title, I...

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The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa

Ogawa weaves a beautiful, enchanting story of a family formed by unlikely circumstances. A single mother of a ten year-old son takes a housekeeping...

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