Fionnáin reviewed The Faraway Nearby by Rebecca Solnit
A memoir from a writer of wonders
4 stars
I love how Rebecca Solnit writes. She is one of a few writers who can carefully cover many topics with both deep research and personal reflection. This book leans more on the personal, as a memoir of the time when her mother was going through dementia before dying.
Somehow, even when writing so honestly about grief, Solnit also manages to write critically about complex family relationships, international geopolitics and travel. Beginning and ending with apricots from her mother's tree, this is a beautiful, compassionate text.
I love how Rebecca Solnit writes. She is one of a few writers who can carefully cover many topics with both deep research and personal reflection. This book leans more on the personal, as a memoir of the time when her mother was going through dementia before dying.
Somehow, even when writing so honestly about grief, Solnit also manages to write critically about complex family relationships, international geopolitics and travel. Beginning and ending with apricots from her mother's tree, this is a beautiful, compassionate text.