Zoe FitzGerald Carter

This memoir is Zoe FitzGerald Carter's story of her mother's decision to end her life after a long decline with Parkinson's disease. Carter, a mother of 2 young children living on the west coast has to juggle the logistics of helping her mother through this difficult ordeal in Washington DC as well as the emotional roller coaster of having a mother who no longer wants to live. Although the subject matter was very interesting and I appreciate how difficult it must have been for Carter to bare her emotions in this book, I found it difficult to relate to (or even like) Carter's mother. The mother waffles on her decision of when she should end her life as well as the method. In flashbacks of Carter's childhood, her mother comes across as self-absorbed and this behavior stays with her in her plans for suicide. I did find parts of this book to be very touching, but lacking in the spirituality and closure I was hoping for with this book.… (mehr)

The topic of "euthanasia" "assisted-suicide" does not seem to be one that is tackled too often. Bravo for Zoe FitzGerald Carter. The book reflects the long, and uncertain decision that her very intelligent and emotionally clear mother has to make regarding the end of her life. She calls her children round (from all over North America) to be with her - then extends the final date several times. And the author does drag this process on in the book -- perhaps deliberately in order to transmit the sense of the Long Journey into Night. All in all an interesting read on relationships among 3 sisters; a family of some wealth, and managing motherhood in our current time, compared to the one before. "Mad Men" era. Unforgettable book, written with adequate skill.… (mehr)