Empathy is one of the most powerful traits human beings possess. When it is present, we see great things accomplished to alleviate the suffering of others. When it is absent, the greed and lust for power lead to some the greatest atrocities the world has ever witnessed. Yet for all of it's vast importance, the subject of empathy is often overlooked in our society. There are no formal classes to teach empathy, no popular parenting books to guide it's induction into our youth. One either learns it or they don't.
One of the most important ways we do learn empathy is through reading books. A skillfully written novel can place the reader in another person's shoes in the span of a mere paragraph and hold them there for a lifetime. One suspects that author Emma Healey took this responsibility quite seriously when she set out to write her debut novel Elizabeth is Missing, a mystery most notable for it's astounding narration: a elderly woman beset with dementia.
At eighty-two, Maud doesn't have many friends left and her best friend, Elizabeth, has gone missing. Maud is determined to find her. Maud's heartbreaking dementia -- which the reader suffers right along with her with every turn of the page - makes finding Elizabeth a daunting task. Maud knows good and well that her memory is slipping - she writes herself dozens of notes to rectify the problem, then finds she can't remember when or why she wrote the notes - but seems unaware the severity of her condition.
One thing Maud does remember: Elizabeth is missing. And like many dementia patients, Maud frequently slips into the past, confusing it with the present. This presents a dual story line that takes us back to 1946 when Maud's sister went missing just after WWII had drawn to a close and England was trying to pick up the pieces. Maud, only a young teenager at the time, idolized her beautiful and sophisticated older sister Sukey, a newly married bride who suddenly disappears without a trace amid the chaos of a country traumatized by war. Presumed dead by foul play with no body ever recovered or suspect ever arrested for the crime, Sukey's unresolved disappearance and the trauma it inflicted upon Maud is woven throughout the narrative and underscores why it is so imperative that Maud find the missing Elizabeth. If she could just remember....("I quickly retrieve my pen. Elizabeth all right says son, I write. Said fuck on phone, I add, though I'm not sure why it's significant.")
As we slip back and forth between Maud's past and present, it presents a horrifying picture of what it is like to suffer from this disease. Because as the book progresses, so too does Maud's dementia. She finds herself spending more and more time in the past and increasingly unable to differentiate between the years. And she isn't the only person suffering: her daughter Helen, as primary caregiver, is frequently taxed to the limit as she is required to do everything from extricating her mother from the police station in the middle of the night to finally being forced to admit that Maud can no longer live independently. Bringing her mother into her own home only serves in increase the Maud's confusion which frequently erupts as frustration and anger. As is often the case, if Maud's degenerative condition wasn't so tragic, there would be moments of humor...
At eighty-two, Maud doesn't have many friends left and her best friend, Elizabeth, has gone missing. Maud is determined to find her. Maud's heartbreaking dementia -- which the reader suffers right along with her with every turn of the page - makes finding Elizabeth a daunting task. Maud knows good and well that her memory is slipping - she writes herself dozens of notes to rectify the problem, then finds she can't remember when or why she wrote the notes - but seems unaware the severity of her condition.
As we slip back and forth between Maud's past and present, it presents a horrifying picture of what it is like to suffer from this disease. Because as the book progresses, so too does Maud's dementia. She finds herself spending more and more time in the past and increasingly unable to differentiate between the years. And she isn't the only person suffering: her daughter Helen, as primary caregiver, is frequently taxed to the limit as she is required to do everything from extricating her mother from the police station in the middle of the night to finally being forced to admit that Maud can no longer live independently. Bringing her mother into her own home only serves in increase the Maud's confusion which frequently erupts as frustration and anger. As is often the case, if Maud's degenerative condition wasn't so tragic, there would be moments of humor...
There is, of course, no cure for dementia and as such, Elizabeth is Missing can have no happy ending. That, however, will not serve as an adequate excuse for skipping this novel. Although mysteries both past and present do get resolved by the end of the story, don't read it for the whodunit properties or a resolution filled with social justice. Read it because it is a well-written, well-structured novel with a unique voice. Read it because although it is frightening and sad to see the world through the eyes of a dementia patient, it creates empathy. Read it because it - hopefully - makes you a better person.
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Title: Elizabeth is Missing
Author: Emma Healey
Publisher: Harper
Date: June 10, 2014
Pages: 320
Source: advance copy courtesy of publisher
I recently finished a book with Alzheimer's figuring largely in the plot and it was very intense and also frightening and sad. Alo a great book. (We Are Not Ourselves)
ReplyDeleteTitle duly noted...thankyouverymuch. #needmorebookslikeaholeinmyhead pfffft
DeleteWow, it sounds like an amazing novel. Definitely going to be reading it--such an amazing review!
ReplyDeleteIt's worth taking a few days to read it, I think. If for no other reason than to gain that perspective of how frustrating it must be to suffer from dementia. As my parents get older, I'm thinking I will be ruminating a lot about this book.
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ReplyDeleteI'm pretty excited about reading this one. I haven't heard a single bad thing about it. And she's coming to the Edinburgh Book Fest, so I plan to get a ticket.
ReplyDeleteOh it would be lovely if she could sign a copy for you! I'm green with envy over your book fest --- never had the slightest inclination to attend BEA but I'd love to attend the Edninburgh Book Fest!
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