Estranged: A Memoir of Leaving Family and Finding Home - Inspiring Story of Self-Discovery, Healing & New Beginnings | Perfect for Book Clubs, Therapy & Personal Growth Journeys

Nicely written memoir.....First I need to give full disclosure then I will give objective review as a book reader. Full disclosure...1) I am the family that Jessica refers to in her book. The family on page 6 in Stony Brook. 2) I, first hand, witnessed some of the bad behavior that Jessica describes throughout the book from her father. I witnessed it onto her brothers as well as her. I was extremely close to The Berger Boys as childhood friends. Her father had what today would be called "significant anger management issues". 3) I do actually remember getting hit once or twice by him myself for closing the electric garage door without his permission while they lived in Plainview. I never told my parents (even until today) and didn't even remember it until I read this book. 4) Jessica's mother didn't say she lived in Plainview - she called it Syosset which she felt was more upscale. 5) On a light note, Yes, Jessica's father did actually climb a pole in their backyard, attached his own wire to his house and stole TV cable and was proud of it. He bragged about it to my family and I, with a smile on his face and a sparkle in his eye that he was smarter than everyone else because he got cable for free. 6) I would have preferred that Jessica use my brother's real name and give him the dignity and respect he deserved after 23 years of him fighting for his life through multiple illnesses. (Jessica used fake names throughout the book). My brother's name is Richard, same as her brother. "Mark Stevens" just doesn't do it for me...my mother's name is Dolores, not "Constance", and she is a Fulbright Scholar, decorated author and PhD against all odds and barriers, she was solely and collectively responsible for saving my brother's life hundreds of times adding several years on to his life. 7) Jessica's oldest brother has my brother's first name and my first name as his middle name. We were very close. 8) I remember this one time I witnessed Mr. Berger was screaming at Jessica and making her cry for not wearing her Girl Scout T-shirt, that was way too small for her and looked very unflattering on her body type, when she was going to sell cookies door to door. She pleaded with him not to make her wear something that would make her feel so ugly. His solution was, in anger, to snatch up the shirt and stretch it out as far as his clinched fists could. You could hear stitching and cotton weave popping, threw it at her face, and yelled "Wear it now, it's perfect!". I left out some other words that were in that statement because of their vulgarity and offensiveness towards women. He used all the wrong language to communicate with a 11 year old girl and it was very disturbing to observe. I, also a child at the time, was sitting next to her at the kitchen table at the time of the incident that went on and on for an unbearable amount of time. I do not recall what the outcome was. 9) My family were friends with The Bergers from mid 1960's thru the mid to late 1980's. None of them attended my brother's funeral in the mid 1990's which was not surprising because they never once visited him in the hospital anytime in the 70's, 80's or 90's. My brother spent over 1,200 days in the hospital and ICU. I guess the Bergers were busy those 1,200 days. Maybe Kenny (Jessica's father's real name) had some very important magazines to sell on those days.Now the book itself....A great read at face value. If you are a critical reader you will find much to like. If you are a submissive reader you too will find plenty to keep you involved. The critical reader will find a lot to analyze and will continuously draw their own conclusions. You will find it hard not to be judgmental and intrigued as you read on. Where as the submissive reader can take the book at face value and find it an interesting, well expressed, trip into Jessica's life. Be careful, parts of it are very powerful and will draw you in and not let you go, for a while. The book is not about the resolution of life issues. It is much better described as Jessica writing a clear and well thought out story of her life as she remembers it. The book is fast moving and a worthwhile read.