The Escape Artist

A luminous family memoir from the author of the critically acclaimed Boston Globe bestseller, After Long Silence, lauded as âmesmerizingâ (The Washington Post Book World), âextraordinaryâ (The Philadelphia Inquirer), and âa triumphant work of ar... Read more

A luminous family memoir from the author of the critically acclaimed Boston Globe bestseller, After Long Silence, lauded as âmesmerizingâ (The Washington Post Book World), âextraordinaryâ (The Philadelphia Inquirer), and âa triumphant work of artâ (Publishers Weekly, starred review). In the tradition of Alison Bechdelâs Fun Home or George Hodgmanâs Bettyville, Fremont writes with wit and candor about growing up in a household held together by a powerful glue: secrets. Her parents, profoundly affected by their memories of the Holocaust, pass on, to both Helen and her older sister, a penchant for keeping their lives neatly, even obsessively compartmentalized, and a zealous determination to protect themselves from what they see as danger from the outside world. She delves deeply into the family dynamic that produced such a startling devotion to secret keeping, beginning with the painful and unexpected discovery that she has been disinherited in her motherâs will. In scenes that are frank, moving, and often surprisingly funny, Fremont writes about growing up in such an intemperate household, with parents who pretended to be Catholics but were really Jewsâsurvivors of Nazi-occupied Poland. She shares tales of family therapy sessions, disordered eating, her sisterâs frequently unhinged meltdowns, and her own romantic misadventures as she tries to sort out her sexual identity. In a family devoted to hiding the truth, Fremont learns the truth is the one thing that can set you free. Scorching, witty, and ultimately redemptive, The Escape Artist is a powerful contribution to the memoir shelf. Less