One of my favorite reads this year is The Part That Burns, a lyrical, searing debut memoir by Jeannine Ouellette (Split/Lip Press, 2021), and so I’m thrilled to be in conversation with Jeannine next Wednesday, September 1st at 3pm PST. This is a free virtual event hosted by The Writer’s Center, MD. Please register here to join us!
The Part That Burns:
Caught between the dramatic landscapes of Lake Superior and Casper Mountain, between her stepfather’s groping and her mother’s erratic behavior, Ouellette lives for the day she can become a mother herself, and create her own sheltering family. What she does not know is how the visceral reality of birth and motherhood will pull her back into the body she long ago abandoned, revealing new layers of pain and desire, and forcing her to choose between her idealistic vision of perfect marriage and motherhood and the birthright of her own flesh, unruly and alive. This is a story about the tenacity of family roots, the formidable undertow of trauma, and the rebellious and persistent yearning of human beings for love from each other.
Order now from Split/Lip Books, Moon Palace Books, Bookshop, or your favorite independent bookstore!
