The Faraway Nearby

I don’t usually read memoirs. At least, I haven’t in the past. This is my second one in a month, and I have to say I may be changing my mind. Though I have to say that this isn’t exactly a memoir. It is, but not really. When you read it, you’ll see what I mean. From stories of her mother’s descent into Alzheimer’s to her own brush with cancer, the author weaves an intimate narrative about personal trauma and family relationships in such a way that we see the beauty amid the chaos, the poetry in the pain. Solnit’s ability to connect seemingly random and disparate elements amazed me, as did her insight. She seems to see right to the heart of things, touching the delicate pulse of truth beneath layers of superfluous camouflage with surprising power and sensitivity. More than once I would have sworn she was speaking directly to me; her words were that apropos to my own experience, that synchronistic to my own journey. Each time I felt her at my shoulder and had to put the book down for a while, so that I might fully absorb the impact of her words. Throughout the book, Solnit demonstrates the importance in our lives of the stories we tell ourselves. With a true sense of artistry, she lays words like breadcrumbs that lead us toward understanding. Gently, she challenges us as readers to examine our own stories, to recognize their power to nurture love or fear, forgiveness or spite, empathy or anger, recovery or suffering. Her words coax us to believe that perhaps, if we are willing to see our stories for what they are and what they bring to our worlds, we can make new stories that bridge the extremes and lead to healing. This is not an easy read. Its subject matter is far too thought-provoking. The Faraway Nearby is more a book to savor slowly, with a cup of tea or a glass of wine, perhaps on a quiet balcony or in a comfortable nook. And when you’ve finished it and put it down, keep it handy. It reveals itself in layers as you go, and will likely offer different insights with each pass, so you’ll want to read it again and again.

The Faraway Nearby, is the first work I have read by Rebecca Solnit. Far and away I am awestruck with her literary genius, and her genius in general. I did not agree with many of her views but that is neither here or there. Incomparable, is the only way to describe her incredible ability to put into word the abstract feelings and emotions written upon her psyche. Many of the feelings and emotions she shares are common to humankind, but few of us could come remotely close to putting these into acute focus with words, written or spoken.She shares that this book was written as an emergency, by the time you read that you will have already known that before she shares it in words. Dealing with her mothers disappearance into the mists of Alzheimer's, dealing with the trauma of surgery, possible breast cancer, the death of a dear friend, and the pain of a breakup with her boyfriend, wow, a walk on a thin line for any of us. I was left with the feeling that her emergency is still somewhat imminent. If so, may she find a light shining on the path that is to lead her to the steps of healing and metamorphosis to her higher self. A master of description, a rare gift of literary ability to her readers, Rebecca Solnit walks above the realm of the average gifted author.

Rebecca Solnit is an amazing, intelligent writer. Unfortunately, I couldn’t finish this book. Who knows, I may return to it but it was so damn depressing I simply didn’t have the bandwidth to deal with the feelings it evoked. Which says something about how powerful it is. I guess it was just too triggering at the time I began reading it.

This is a beautiful book, seemingly inspired by the loss of her mother, where Ms. Solnit takes on an idiosyncratic journey through disintegration and hints of rebirth. Framed by a pile of apricots from her mother’s tree, we travel through Ms. Solnit’s present and her reflections on everything from history to the writing she creates and the literature that inspires her. I was already taken by this book when I saw the table of contents and wondered how she would make use of the symmetry of the chapters. I was immediately brought into the quirkiness of her style when I started reading the passage that runs in a single line along the bottom of the pages. It seems to be her way: a subtle logic to her stories that has a personality unique to herself. Ultimately, I found this book to be many things. It is informative and moving, personal and universal, captivating and inducing of intellectual challenge. I have come very much to enjoy Ms. Solnit’s style and look forward to reading more of her.

The Huffington Press has chosen this lilting book as the book they are "talking about this week.". It will certainly haunt me. The story that launches her current book is the loss of her mother to Alzheimer's, step by awful step. In her attempt to frame this reality, she nests the narratives that her mother has told herself and her own responsive attempts to organize reality. Her mother had not been a warm, or often even kind. With a deft hand, Solnit weaves the doors and windows through which she travels into a mesmerizing story. As a child, she was a solitary person, but found that " books are solitudes in which we meet." ( possibly my favorite sentence in the book.). She shares the stories that have helped her to shape her own life and have in turn inspired her own writings. She had decided early on to never refuse an adventure, and she shares a few she had taken as relief and growth as the burden of her mother grew. Solnit also speaks of the ways in which our interior dialogues can trap us. They can tell us who to love or hate. "Not a few stories are sinking ships." She believes among these tales are the ones that stiffened and distanced her mother into jealousy and aloofness. Somehow, the author successfully weaves the story of Frankenstein and the history of his creator into a meaningful, and even necessary, part of her own discourse. Along the way, Solnit goes to the "country where many go much further and some don't return." She has been diagnosed with breast cancer. This is a literate book for the reader who loves a well crafted work. It is thoughtful, insightful, and even funny. It challenges the reader to evaluate one's own internal script and to open for the constant change of every context. This is a book that fills the promise of solitudes meeting.

While this is a lyrical and unique book- half memoir, half literary/cultural criticism - I did not connect with much of the author's issues related to her mother, or former boyfriend, or friend in crisis, or her own disease. This is because she is far too vague and lacking in any chunk of specifics in order to properly identify with her. Passages regarding her travels also seem out of sorts with an otherwise cohesive work, compounding and building with each new piece of her puzzle, whether it is a historical figure, a work of art, or extended metaphor that is artfully carried well beyond its assumed shelf life.

It is rare that I finish a book and in the next minute turn back to the first page to re-read it word by word to make sure I devoured every essence. I did that with this book. It is not only beautifully written, but the range of emotions, journeys, topics, ideas, events, questions, and understandings presented here is mind boggling. This is one of, if not the most, thought-provoking books I have ever read. It will stay at the top of my bookshelf now, for future reference when I need to once again read that having the answer is not the end; that the story, the complicated story, is what counts. Bravo.

I"m still reading this collection--part memoir, part history, part literary criticism, part everything else you can think of--because I stop constantly after a paragraph and think, deeply and long , about something Solnit has said. My own mother was not unlike Solnit's, but I think it's just that she is that kind of writer, one who combines enormous skill and knowledge with great heart and honesty. I love her. In my head I call her Rebecca, because her writing lets me feel that I know her. I would recommend this collection to anyone who cares about writing or who wants to write but also to anyone who likes to learn arcane bits of knowledge while being immersed in beautiful words. This is one of my favorite books, one I will buy for others.