Reviews
"Maggie Smith's book is one of the most powerful memoirs I've ever read....This book makes me see the women in my life in a new light, not that they are different, but I am." --Kwame Alexander, Oprah Daily "Rich in nuance and unrelenting in its honesty, Smith's memoir is a bittersweet study in both grief and joy." -- TIME "This book is extraordinary." --Ann Patchett "A beautiful book...stunning." -- Oprah Daily "A triumph" --Mary Louise Kelly, NPR "Smith turns to prose to chronicle the end of her marriage and the hard, beautiful work of loving and valuing herself." -- People "Throughout, she quotes the Emily Dickinson line 'I am out with lanterns, looking for myself,' and the book shines with a light all its own." -- New York Post , Best Books of 2023 "Sparkling & brilliant. Maggie was able to put into words things I've always felt as a writer and a human." --Daisy Perez, CBS Mornings "[An] elliptical, inquisitive book" -- Buzzfeed "By engaging anguish directly, Smith carves a space for the beautiful over the heart that holds initials alongside 'forever.'" -- The Rumpus "This book is a gift." --Leslie Jamison, bestselling author of The Empathy Exams "Beautifully written... Smith should be just as celebrated for her prose." -- Town and Country "Incredibly relatable...At turns devastating and darkly funny." -- Columbus Monthly, "Smith opens her heart like a book, dog-earing moments both painful and joyous...Smith's conjuring of beauty through pain and her special blend of vulnerability and encouragement go down like a healing tonic." -- Booklist (starred review)