Just finished reading Torch by Cheryl Strayed which was 
reviewed by Lisa in early December. And I agree with Lisa that this is one compelling read. This is a story of death and dying and the resulting grief that overcomes a family when a loved one dies. Teresa Rae has escaped an abusive marriage and now lives with Bruce her life partner and acting father to her two teenage children Claire and Josh. Teresa learns she has terminal cancer and has only a short time to live. In a few weeks time she is gone and the novel focuses on the ensuing grief the family goes through. Strayed’s writing is wrought with honesty and gives the reader glimpses into the many different ways people deal with loss. It is a heartwrenching story but not one without hope.
My reason for revsiting this book is twofold. One is because the book is a splendid read and I want to encourage others to read it. The second is to remind readers that Cheryl Strayed will give a book talk at Sequoya Library on February 24th at 2pm and to invite everyone to come. More information on the author is available on her website.
February 16th, 2007
Why would someone read a novel about grief? I asked myself that when I began reading
Torch by debut author Cheryl Strayed. As the book begins, you find out that one of the main characters, Teresa Rae Wood, has just learned she is dying of terminal cancer. She has 2 kids: Claire, who is away at college, and Joshua who is a senior in high school. She also lives with her boyfriend Bruce, who the kids consider their father. Since you fall in love with this woman from the get-go, you know her death is going to hurt, but you’re kind of stuck, because you find yourself loving her family right away too and you need to know what happens to them.
Teresa is a single mom who takes her kids and leaves her abusive husband to reinvent herself in a small Minnesota town. She has a radio show, a kind of wide-eyed exploration of the world show, which she signs-off with the words, “be incredible.” The family, especially Teresa, becomes beloved by the townfolk. So when she dies, the whole place falls apart. What is so compelling about the novel is watching Claire, Josh and Bruce go through the process of figuring out what to do with the enormous pain that is all of a sudden the big nasty elephant in their lives. You don’t necessarily like what they do. As a matter of fact, you get pretty upset by their behavior. So do the other characters. But that’s what makes this book so real, the people so human. We all know people (or ourselves) who have reacted to grief in ways that don’t make sense.
I guess the reason you read books about grief is to see how others do it and to know that people survive it.
December 13th, 2006