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Amazon Product Description:
Kimberly Rae Miller is an immaculately put together woman with a great career, a loving boyfriend and a beautifully tidy apartment in Brooklyn. You would never guess that behind the closed doors of her family's idyllic Long Island house hid teetering stacks of aging newspaper, broken computers and boxes upon boxes of unused junk festering in every room - the product of her father's painful and unending struggle with hoarding.
In this dazzling memoir, Miller brings to life her experience growing up in a rat-infested home, hiding her father's shameful secret from friends for years, and the emotional burden that ultimately led to her suicide attempt. In beautiful prose, Miller sheds light on her complicated yet loving relationship with her parents, which has thrived in spite of the odds.
I downloaded this audiobook out of curiosity, free with Kindle Unlimited. It focuses on a mental condition that has been highlighted in the TV series The Hoarders. The TV series - as with most shows that seek to obtain and maintain a viewing audience - showcases the most extreme cases of hoarding - always escalating the cases with each season. I watched the show until it began to slip into animal hoarding and the sad state of the hoarder and the terrible outcomes for the animals they kept. I couldn't watch any longer. It greatly tore at my heart. But when I found this book, I was drawn to it as it seemed to focus on the struggle and the love that this family had for each other - while dealing with this affliction.
I didn't expect such a sensitive and touching story. The author reads this story in the audiobook. Since it was her own story, I felt comfortable with her reading style. I felt compassion for her as she struggled to pull away from her upbringing while not abandoning her parents. Her supportive love for them was apparent. The parents love for their daughter was equally demonstrated but it did not overcome the strong hold of hoarding behavior. There is no simple resolution at the end of the story despite all their efforts, but acceptance, love and continued family loyalty provided a realistic ending to this memoir - something that was missing from all The Hoarders TV shows I watched.
I recommend this book to anyone who wants a better understanding of this mental problem.
7 comments:
Thank you for this review. I've never had hoarding tendencies, the opposite in fact. It's hard for me to understand what a hoarder goes through. I think this would be a good book for me to read!
I enjoyed the book too Elaine!
Sounds like an interesting read Elaine . . .
I wouldn’t call myself a hoarder but I sure can get obsessed with “collecting” . . .
Like Santa’s of all kinds, Hummel’s . . . gardening books . . .
Now, I am better at tempering myself . . .
I need to add this to my list. Sounds like a good read. I've never done the audible thing, do you enjoy that? Do you tend to do it while walking or doing other things?=Sandy's Space
I read a lot of memoirs and this one sounds interesting. There are so many different lives out there.
Hoping you're alright, it's been awhile since you posted.
Sandy's Space
Me popping back in, hoping the 3rd times the charm; but apparently not. Maybe you're not blogging any more? Sing out if you make it back so we can re-connect.
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