By Roger Rosenblatt
Ecco
Publication Date: February 16, 2010
ISBN: 9780061825934
On December 8, 2007 at 2:30 p.m., Roger Rosenblatt's daughter, Amy Elizabeth Rosenblatt Solomon, suddenly died. Making Toast is the story of what happened after.
Grieving from his daughter's untimely death, due to an asymptomatic heart condition, Roger and his wife Ginny leave their home on Long Island and move in with Harris, their widowed son-in-law, and his three children: Jessica (Jessie), Sammy, and James (Bubbies). From being content grandparents, living lives of their own, Roger and Ginny are thrown back into the world of changing diapers, bedtime stories, checking homework and talking toys. And though still sad about their daughter's death, they somehow learn to cope and keep moving.
Making Toast is the story of life after a traumatic experience. It's about getting up, pushing others to try, and completing everyday normalcies. Roger's memoir is beautifully told through short passages documenting everyday events. It shows how a family reforms and strives to live on. It's about grandparents becoming parents again, showing three lively children how to live.
The book is written with an amazing amount of heart and depth, each passage a secret story waiting to be told. Each person is drawn beautifully and delicately - showcasing their strengths and small cracks. I loved each character - I felt their pains, yet pushed them along as they lived. Ginny was my favorite - her strength was admirable and her heart was enviable. The children were adorable, and written excellently. Their enthusiasm (and frustration when they didn't get their way) read very truthfully.
I enjoyed the mundane at times, yet always normal stories throughout the book, such as dealing with talking toys buried deep inside a suitcase or fishing teeth out of cereal. I loved that the book was written that way - through small, short stories that defied time; a train-of-thought sort of writing that made sense. But most of all, I like how Amy was represented, through older stories and happy memories. A terrific mother, wife, daughter, and doctor, she was amazing and it was obvious why everyone grieved.
Having gone through losing someone recently, I wasn't sure if I could handle the book - but I did. Because Making Toast wasn't about the sorrow of losing someone - it was about coping and living afterwards and making everything normal again. So many books concentrate on loss, they forget about the afterwards. I think that's why I liked to it so much - for me, it's not about the loss anymore, it's about making toast every morning and living my life.
The blurb from the book says it best: "The day Amy died, Harris told Ginny and Roger, 'It's impossible.' Roger's story tells how a family makes the possible of the impossible."
An absolute beautiful read, and a truly wonderful tribute.
Read the beginning at The New Yorker
Listen to Roger talk about the book.
4 comments:
Love the review! Lookslike something a lot of us can relate to :)
I am soberly impressed you were able to read this so soon after the death of your grandmother. I guess that is a tribute to the book - that it is full of hope and strength. I didn't realize this was a memoir. I've been on a real memoir kick lately; I may have to look into this one.
This sounds like such a moving tale. So heartfelt. A death in the family is never easy. Really great review, Lauren.
I heard this author on NPR recently and have added this one to my TBR pile. The story of how they take in the children and move forward, appreciating all of the small and wonderful things in their lives, even after the untimely death of their daughter is truly inspirational.
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