Deep and reverential treatment of a difficult topic
Rating:
5 / 5
The aspect of this excellent and thoroughly riveting book that was most striking and impressive to me as I read it is this: the author has accomplished a work of scholarship and great depth while, at the same time, sustaining an attitude of seemingly immeasurable respect for her subjects and their varied stories. Early on, Dr. Davidman lets us in on something: "Ethnographers are emotion workers. In order to do this work with integrity we need to seek actively to create a safe space for our interviewees as well as for ourselves." Evidently she succeeds. The interviews - oral histories, really - are presented and interpreted with care and subtlety by Dr. Davidman. The stories are heartbreaking, each subject has suffered a grievous loss; but this book is never maudlin. In addition, its lessons are useful not just for readers who have lost mothers, but for anyone interested in the why and hows of human caring, hope, and love. I was deeply affected and inspired to action as a result of experiencing this book. I will say that in my view, "Motherloss" helps to heal the world - not a small thing for academic research and hard work to accomplish.
motherloss
Rating:
5 / 5
I was impressed with the diversity of people interviewed. A central theme for most of the interviewees was how little disclosure of their mother's illness was given to them before or even after death. I was happy to see that children of the mothers who died in the 1980s and 90's were made more aware of their family situations. This book gives permission for those of us who have lost our mothers to open up the emotional attic and relive the memories that we all too often bury in our day to day lives.
The Art of Storytelling and Meaning Making
Rating:
5 / 5
What is perhaps most impressive about this high-achieving book is the wide audience to which it appeals. On one hand, Davidman is a masterful storyteller, weaving her own story of loss with the poignant and remarkable stories of her respondents. She is sensitive and incisive and expertly is able to represent the broad array of experiences with motherloss that she encountered during her fieldwork. This book is also a superb example of what sociology can be. Far from crunching numbers or stating hackneyed conclusions, Davidman offers a work of qualitative sociology replete with thick analysis and an understanding of the complexities and contradictions of the lives we live. She offers a fresh perspective on the role of the sociologist that, I hope, will inform sociologists in years to come. Her writing is lucid and engaging and carries the reader through many painful stories about motherloss and the aftermath of what she terms the loss of caring. Her steady voice and astute analysis demystifies the often silenced and unspoken tragedy of losing a parent at a young, formative age. There are few people--in the academy and outside of it--who I can think of who would not grow and learn from this book.
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