WHEN I MARRIED MY MOTHER - "Hilarious, heartbreaking, and real." - Nancy Giles, CBS News Sunday Morning

Hardcover with photos.
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Who would think taking care of an elderly parent full-time, particularly one you weren't close to, could turn into some of the best years of your life? At first Mama Jo's decline, and extreme hoarding, stirred up plenty of anger, guilt, and heartbreak in me. I was her only daughter and lived a busy life far away. What could I do? Finally, I left my "Sex in the City" NYC radio DJ world for something closer to "Andy of Mayberry." There I was, living in the Bible Belt, surrounded by my mother's massive doll collection, and in a place the locals called "Greens-boring" North Carolina. I quickly discovered there wasn't anything boring about it . . .

About When I Married My Mother

Mama Jo's eccentric behavior had long been a source of frustration. Now with her increasing dementia added to the already volatile mix, it looked like Operation Mama Jo could well be a disaster. My therapist suspected I had Rescuer's Syndrome--and my mother could not be rescued. My friends staged an intervention. Even Mama Jo wasn’t sure it would work.

Daughter Jo reasoned that, at the very least, my mom's uninhabitable house would be cleared out (as soon as I figured out how to do that without my mother's cooperation). And maybe, just maybe, I'd solve a few of my own problems, like my uncanny ability to be attracted to men just like Mama Jo.

My roller-coaster ride with my unforgettable mother and her massive doll collection, my born-again brother, the laid-back South, and first-time home ownership--plus a few drag queens along the way--proved to be a magical, hilarious and, at times, heartbreaking antidote to heal a long-fractured family. As I go around the country talking about this book, I'm happy to see that it's resonating with people of all ages, and not just those in caregiving situations. I hope you enjoy it, too. Shoot me an email when you're done and let me know what you think!