The Rest of Her Life (Hardcover)

by Laura Moriarty (Author)
Key Phrases: dairy maid, Laura Moriarty, Diane Kletchka, Sue Taft (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Moriarty's follow-up to book-group favorite The Center of Everything again explores a tense, fragile mother-daughter relationship, this time finding sharper edges where personal history and parenting meet. Now a junior high school English teacher married to a college professor, Leigh has spent much of her adult life trying to distance herself from her dysfunctional childhood. Raising their two children in a small, safe Kansas town not far from where Leigh and her troubled sister, Pam, were raised by their single mother, Leigh finds her good fortune still somewhat empty. Daughter Kara, 18 and a high school senior, is distant; sensitive younger son Justin is unpopular; Leigh can't seem to reach either—Kara in particular sees Leigh (rightly) as self-absorbed. When Kara accidentally hits and kills another high school girl with the family's car, Leigh is forced to confront her troubled relationship with her daughter, her resentment toward her husband (who understands Kara better) and her long-buried angst about her own neglectful mother. The intriguing supporting characters are limited by not-very-likable Leigh's POV, but Moriarty effectively conveys Leigh's longing for escape and wariness of reckoning. (Aug.)
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From Bookmarks Magazine
Laura Moriarty's first novel, The Center of Everything (***1/2 Sept/Oct 2003), explored a difficult mother-daughter relationship through the eyes of a sympathetic child narrator. In The Rest of Her Life Moriarty takes a different tack: although the mother-child relationship still takes center stage, it is the less-than-perfect mother who narrates the story. Most critics praised Moriarty for her sensitive and realistic portrayal of a parent struggling with her child's transgression; however, a few reviewers found Kara one-dimensional and too perfect, and Leigh difficult to relate to. Despite these criticisms, The Rest of Her Life asks important questions about how singular actions-and the weight of the past-alter family dynamics.

Copyright © 2004 Phillips & Nelson Media, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion (August 7, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401302718
• ISBN-13: 978-1401302719
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #409,460 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars What are you doing the rest of your life?, February 5, 2008

By	Linda Bulger (Avon, Maine) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

What does a family do when it's tested by a child's terrible mistake? "The Rest of Her Life" makes a strong opening when eighteen-year-old Kara Churchill drives through a crosswalk on her way home from picking up her graduation gown. The family SUV strikes and kills another teenaged girl.

But this is Leigh Churchill's story, and right from the start her isolation shows. Leigh arrives home from the last day of school to find her husband, daughter and son circled in misery; and it's a closed circle.

Leigh has never had the relationship she hoped for with her independent daughter, and much of the book is devoted to Leigh's own painful childhood. Leigh and her sister Pam were raised by a self-absorbed mother who left to start her own life when Leigh was sixteen. Leigh carries the marks of that abandonment into her adult life.

In the hours and days after the accident Leigh shuts herself off from friends, co-workers, and the rest of their small Kansas town. The family copes with lawyers, court, reporters, and the mother of the dead girl.

Laura Moriarty writes beautifully and the elements of her story are all there for a great, thought-provoking read. The problem is that the entire book is from Leigh's point of view, and Leigh is not very likeable. She's lacking in joy and intimacy, and some of the dramatic scenes are "out of the blue" compared to her otherwise passive behavior. One scene that seems unsupported: when her mother visits to meet the infant Kara, Leigh berates her with an unfamiliar passion for being a bad mother.

There are other scenes that don't rise easily out of the story. Three examples: after two painful confrontations with the dead girl's mother, Leigh finds the key to defusing the woman's anger; she has an open and reconciling conversation with her only friend; and she reaches inside herself to build a bridge with her daughter. These redemptive scenes are certainly possible, but they would be more effective if we had a clearer view into Leigh's emotional journey.

The husband and son, and even Kara, are a bit lightly drawn. Kara becomes stronger as the book goes on and in the end, she shows a decisiveness and autonomy lacking in Leigh.

Overall I recommend "The Rest of Her Life" for the fine prose and the well-devised plot, while taking one star away for the limitations of its point of view.

Linda Bulger, 2008

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Motherhood Misunderstood, August 12, 2007

By	Lynn Lyon (Coppell, TX United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I highly recommend this book for mothers, daughters and sisters.

The Rest of Her Life is a wonderful book about the complexities of motherhood -- the impact of our mothers on our hopes and aspirations for our children. It deals with never-ending assessments of our relationships.

It is also about perseverance while balancing your needs with those around you (especially in a time of tragedy). The book jacket asks "What would I do?" but the balance of the characters and their positions make it a tough question with multiple answers.

I was drawn in and read the entire book over the weekend. The characters were engaging and real. I especially enjoyed the part where Leigh was criticizing her mother for not seeing her as individual who wanted different things from life and realized her daughter felt the same way.

Halfway through the book, Leigh felt like a friend I should comfort and support.

I enjoyed The Center of Everything. I'm glad that Amazon recommended this one because I enjoyed it more.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An amazing second novel!, August 17, 2007

By	C. Bluemond (Bel Air, MD United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I was looking forward to this book for months after reading The Center of Everything, which was Moriarty's first novel. Once again she wrote a unique story with characters that were beautifully developed. She has a real talent for getting the complete character of a mother right, even when they are mothers that you may want to hate. I can't wait for her next book!