Description
Ignoring her mother may have been a mistake. During a bout of sobriety, Barbara implored her young daughter to turn her back on her if she began drinking again. Exhausted by her mother's alcoholism, Cass finally took this advice and ignored everything the woman said or did for many years. She did not return calls, she did not visit, she did not react, send letters, or cajole. She simply turned away and waited for her mother to hit bottom or die trying. But as she discovered, bottom may be much farther down than one expects. Eventually, she is forced to wade in and untangle the mess her mother has created. A gripping series of moments - painful, loving, desperate - Rescuing Barbara is a bitterly funny, and even lyrical story about the inherent dangers of detachment ... and a reminder that predators are everywhere, waiting to fill in the gaps.
About the Author
Cass McMain was born in Albuquerque and raised in the far North Valley, among the cottonwoods. Her first love was always houseplants, and she now maintains a house full of them. Her background as a greenhouse manager led to a long career in garden center management, but when the bottom fell out of the local industry, she took a new path. Or rather, an old path; Cass started writing at the age of six, knocking out stories on her typewriter. While her love of nature came in part from her father, a man with the heart of a farmer and the soul of a philosopher, much of the writing Cass did as a child was done to please her mother, a woman with the heart of a philosopher, the soul of a demon and the unquenchable thirst of the mind reserved for the brilliant. Recently, Cass's writing muse has again been speaking to her: a voice she stopped paying attention to a long time ago. Her plants, some of which she has had since she was nine years old, remain the heart of her life, but now she has a desire to express herself in other ways. Bowed, but not broken, Cass keeps her eye on the horizon, looking for a greenhouse to manage. Her favourite saying these days is "that was then; this is now."
Reviews
'It is an extraordinarily clipped piece of writing that manages to subdue one into complete and horrified fascination with the difficult relationship between the author and her mother. The effects of a work like this linger for days.' - Karen Jennings, author of "An Island"
Book Information
ISBN 9781910688403
Author Cass J McMain
Format Paperback
Imprint Holland House Books
Publisher Holland House Books
About the Author
Cass McMain was born in Albuquerque and raised in the far North Valley, among the cottonwoods. Her first love was always houseplants, and she now maintains a house full of them. Her background as a greenhouse manager led to a long career in garden center management, but when the bottom fell out of the local industry, she took a new path. Or rather, an old path; Cass started writing at the age of six, knocking out stories on her typewriter. While her love of nature came in part from her father, a man with the heart of a farmer and the soul of a philosopher, much of the writing Cass did as a child was done to please her mother, a woman with the heart of a philosopher, the soul of a demon and the unquenchable thirst of the mind reserved for the brilliant. Recently, Cass's writing muse has again been speaking to her: a voice she stopped paying attention to a long time ago. Her plants, some of which she has had since she was nine years old, remain the heart of her life, but now she has a desire to express herself in other ways. Bowed, but not broken, Cass keeps her eye on the horizon, looking for a greenhouse to manage. Her favourite saying these days is "that was then; this is now."
Reviews
'It is an extraordinarily clipped piece of writing that manages to subdue one into complete and horrified fascination with the difficult relationship between the author and her mother. The effects of a work like this linger for days.' - Karen Jennings, author of "An Island"
Book Information
ISBN 9781910688403
Author Cass J McMain
Format Paperback
Imprint Holland House Books
Publisher Holland House Books
