Off Kilter
A Woman's Journey to Peace with Scoliosis, Her Mother, and Her Polish Heritage
A Woman's Journey to Peace with Scoliosis, Her Mother, and Her Polish Heritage
Born to a cruel father and a long-suffering mother in an insulated Polish-Catholic community, the author learns martyrdom as a way of life. "Off Kilter" shows her learning to stretch herself, as well as her spine, as she comes to terms with her mentally deteriorating, widowed mother and her culture.
Reviews with the most likes.
For someone shallow like myself, I've always wondered why people write memoirs. However, the author's introspection was so compelling, it prompted me to consider events and people from my own life that may have shaped who I am and how I think. I could relate to the time period, mostly growing up in the late 1950s and 1960s, surviving Catholicism, my Irish (not Polish) heritage, and what the heck made my parents tick.
I was also intrigued by the journey the writer had with scoliosis. My daughter has it, while I have my own chronic illness to deal with. These lifelong challenges also shape how we act and react to the world around us.
As a reader, I felt the healing that took place on this author's journey through writing made me a little healthier too. There are some events, like my own mother's dementia, that echoed those of the author's. It's not a easy experience to examine and it helped me to see how someone else got through it.
Overall, this little book really spoke to me and I, for one, am glad the author took the time and had the insight to create it. Well done!
