“[Weaves] together her own story and a stranger-than-fiction true-crime tale…gripping prose that by turns is tragic and hilarious.”–Stephen Hinshaw, author of Another Kind of Madness This remarkable memoir by a Pulitzer Prize- and Polk Award-winning journalist takes readers on a wild, tragicomic ride from the criminal courtrooms of California’s Silicon Valley to the Himalayan mountains of … Valley to the Himalayan mountains of Pakistan to the deserts of Ethiopia. In delightful, insightful prose, Katherine Ellison reflects on her mistakes and her triumphs as she reveals the stories of how her career almost ended before it began, how she nearly missed marrying the love of her life, and how she unwittingly got drawn into a bizarre murder case.
Rich in drama and self-reflection, replete with unique characters–including two bumbling hitmen, a rodeo-riding prosecutor, a flamboyant Beverly Hills defense attorney, and a charismatic stay-at-home mother-of-three who is keeping outrageous secrets–Mothers & Murderers is like a mashup of Fargo and Eat, Pray, Love–a memoir to make you laugh, cry, and think.
“In what she’s authentically dubbed a ‘true-crime memoir, Katherine Ellison brings to bear the demons of her own past, her considerable chops as a reporter, and her willingness to plunge into the psychological depths. What she created is a dark jewel. The reader cannot look away.”–Jacquelyn Mitchard, New YorkTimes-bestselling author of The Deep End of the Ocean
“Mothers and Murderers is like nothing else I’ve ever read, and I mean that in the best possible way…Katherine Ellison captivatingly describes a young woman’s path from blind impulse to wisdom…she makes an ultra-strong case for the examined life, shedding light on the lies we tell ourselves and others–and the hard work involved in taking responsibility for yourself.”–Stephen Hinshaw, author of Another Kind of Madness
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This is one of those books that you just keep reading because you can’t wait to see what’s going to happen, or you think you know but you can’t wait to see how it actually does happen. So masterfully written — I hung on every word. Just loved it, so much so that I’ve written to a dozen friends to recommend it. Weeks later, I’m still thinking about it!
I binged on this book! It kept me turning pages for hours to see what happened in one of there most bizarre murder cases I’ve ever read about and to one of the most funny, honest writers I’ve come across. I’m giving it to everyone I know for the holidays, especially the daughters.
Mothers and Murders by Katherine Ellison
Here is one of those rare, non-fiction writers of a superlative vocabulary and a style as smooth as silk, whose voice becomes a trusted presence in the reader’s mind. This magnetic story turns its own pages. Her voice becomes a trusted presence while she submits herself to the same penetrating examination she applies to all others in her memoir, especially those guilty of planning a murder.
The interweaving of a journalist’s memoir and a “true crime” story in MOTHERS AND MURDERERS isn’t just a plot device. It’s crucial to the point of this compelling, highly readable book by a Pulitzer prize-winning journalist who shares a deeply personal account of how her analytic psychotherapy saved, and changed, her life. It illuminates how parts of our own histories that are out of our awareness can shape our perceptions and actions. Ellison manages simultaneously to write a page-turner and a deeply felt exploration of goodness and evil, of public and private faces, of the impact of trauma on personality, and of the nature of emotional healing. In a world focused on short-term symptom relief, she makes a moving case for something much more ambitious and ultimately valuable. I highly recommend this book.
In what she’s authentically dubbed a “true-crime memoir,” Katherine Ellison brings to bear the demons of her own past, her considerable chops as a reporter, and her willingness to plunge into the psychological deeps…. What she created is a dark jewel. The reader cannot look away.
Mothers and Murderers” is like nothing elseI’ve ever read, and I mean that in the best possible way. Weaving together her own story and a stranger-than-fiction true-crime tale, Katherine Ellisoncaptivatingly describes a young woman’s path from blind impulse to wisdom. In gripping prose that by turns is tragic and hilarious, she makes an ultra-strongcase for the examined life, shedding light on the lies we tell ourselves and others — and the hard work involved in taking responsibility for yourself.
Ellison has an uncanny ability to weave together provocative stories in which she is a wounded daughter, a brilliant journalist, a world traveler, and a woman seeking answers to questions about her past that besiege her for years. This book digs deep into murder and reconciliation. The rewards of her story are rich, satisfying, and universal.