The Shelf Life of Ashes: A Memoir

When Hollis Giammatteo sought a job working with the elderly, she did so with the intention of finding models of healthy aging. And she failed. In The Shelf Life of Ashes, Giammatteo chronicles her experiences with her wards, as well as the trip she embarks upon when her mother, who is convinced she is dying, entreats her to come "home." Trips back, traumas triggered, identity in crisis, equanimity gained--this quasi-comic, concentrated journey engages the reader in the process of naming and facing the tasks involved in growing old, while asking a simple but weighted question: Can aging be done well?

Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: She Writes Press
Published: 05/10/2016
ISBN: 9781631520471
Pages: 272
Weight: 0.70lbs
Size: 8.40h x 5.40w x 0.70d

Review Citations: Library Journal 05/01/2016 pg. 79