When George Hodgman leaves Manhattan for his hometown of Paris, Missouri, he finds himself—an unlikely caretaker and near-lethal cook—in a head-on collision with his aging mother, Betty, a woman of wit and will. Will George lure her into assisted living? When hell freezes over. He can’t bring himself to force her from the home both treasure—the place where his father’s voice lingers, the scene of … of shared jokes, skirmishes, and, behind the dusty antiques, a rarely acknowledged conflict: Betty, who speaks her mind but cannot quite reveal her heart, has never really accepted the fact that her son is gay.
As these two unforgettable characters try to bring their different worlds together, Hodgman reveals the challenges of Betty’s life and his own struggle for self-respect, moving readers from their small town—crumbling but still colorful—to the star-studded corridors of Vanity Fair. Evocative of The End of Your Life Book Club and The Tender Bar, Hodgman’s New York Times bestselling debut is both an indelible portrait of a family and an exquisitely told tale of a prodigal son’s return.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD
“A beautifully crafted memoir, rich with humor and wisdom.” —Will Schwalbe, author of The End of Your Life Book Club
“The idea of a cultured gay man leaving New York City to care for his aging mother in Paris, Missouri, is already funny, and George Hodgman reaps that humor with great charm. But then he plunges deep, examining the warm yet fraught relationship between mother and son with profound insight and understanding.” —Alison Bechdel, author of Fun Home
From the Hardcover edition.
more
tedious
The book tells a personal story of how a gay man was accepted and not accepted by his parents. It portrayed a harsh reality for probably many in the gay community–the quiet but no less biting denial of who you are by the ones closest to you. The book was easier to read at the end perhaps because the author does a great job at character development of characters in the beginning and then by the end, I understood them well…
The good, bad, ugly but loving relationship between a son and his ailing mother.
The book is beautifully written with the author disclosing as much of himself as his mother. Provided lots of food for thought.
Talented writer. More of an autobiography than a biography. Made the “endless waiting” and “inevitable decline” stages of dementia of a parent as interesting as possible and succeeded in fairly showing the challenges and efforts of both the parent and the adult child caretaker facing that situation. The rare book that squarely, but with some irony and humor, faces the reality of physical deterioration and ultimately death
Sometimes the author jumped around, on and off a subject and I found it distracting, but I loved his frank take on caring for an elderly parent. I laughed out loud in several places
Very boring, confusing book. I only read 50 percent.
While I appreciated and related to the experiences the author shared about his mother I didn’t really enjoy what he shared about his personal life. Some of it was just TMI.
This is the story of one family’s life told in a witty, thoughtful way. Some sad, some happy but mostly just true moments that occur in everyone’s life.
A life story of a man who never felt he “found” his place in the world, returns Hoke to care for his ailing mother, and realizes, just maybe, he was where he should have been after all.
Poignant, sometimes sad, realistic look at an aging parent as she slides further and further towards senility and incapacitating illness, yet the author manages to see the humor is his life as he sees for his ailing mother. She is the “Betty” of “Bettyville.’
Highly recommended
Loved this author’s style and voice!
I live in rural Missouri so I had to read this. It was really fun to read and so true to this area! Very enjoyable
This starts out very funny but then dims as we learn more about the author’s struggles with his sexuality and family ties.
I find it disappointing most times when I read a memoir written by a male author. Great story, but very superficial at times.
I had to quit watching it because the character, Betty, reminded me of my mom before she died. Depressing for me.
While it IS a sad story about Betty with some funny moments, I didn’t enjoy that it seemed to be more about the son’s various issues about being gay. Book title should have had son’s name and his story line highlighted; I thought his mother story was secondary in the book.