Off Kilter: A Woman's Journey to Peace with Scoliosis, Her Mother, and Her Polish Heritage (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"...Wisnniewski takes us on her personal journey to overcome her challenging past to emerge a balanced, compassionate woman." -- Leslie Pietrzyk, author of A Year and a Day & Pears on a Willow Tree

"...one woman's testimony to the effects of childhood abuse, which left her 'off kilter' in more than one way." -- Linda Joy Myers, author of Becoming Whole: Writing Your Healing Story & Don't Call Me Mother

"A courageous, insightful book, particularly relevant for anyone who grew up feeling physically 'different.'" -- Maureen Murdock, author of Unreliable Truth: On Memoir and Memory

"All of us can relate...yoga helps Linda find alignment, flexibility and strength to discover her own inner balance." -- Elise Browning Miller, M.A., Iyengar Yoga teacher & author of Yoga for Scoliosis & Yoga: Anytime, Anywhere

"Unflinchingly honest....It touched me deeply and will remain in your heart long after you've turned the last page." -- Mary Shafer, author of Wisconsin: The Way We Were & Devastation on the Delaware

Product Description

Even before she was diagnosed with scoliosis at thirteen, Linda Wisniewski felt off kilter. Born to a cruel father and a long-suffering mother in the insulated Polish Catholic community of upstate New York, she learned martyrdom as a way of life. Off Kilter shows her learning to stretch her Self as well as her spine as she comes to terms with her mentally deteriorating, widowed mother and her culture. Only by accepting her physical deformity, her emotionally unavailable mother, and her Polish American heritage does she finally find balance and a life that fits. Susan Wittig Albert calls Off Kilter a "splendid first memoir about the difficult business of finding balance in our lives. Funny, honest, deeply moving, Off Kilter reminds us just how hard it is to adjust to the physical pain, the emotional loss, and even the surprising beauty of being fully who we are."

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Product Details

• Paperback: 164 pages
• Publisher: Pearlsong Press (April 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1597190128
• ISBN-13: 978-1597190121
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,110,833 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Telling It True, August 1, 2008

By	Susan Wittig Albert (Texas) - See all my reviews

I loved this energetic, thoughtful, courageous book about the ways we can be thrown off-balance by life's many challenges. What I admire about Linda Wisniewski's memoir is the way she uses all her experiences, no matter how painful, to bring herself back into balance--and help to show the rest of us how we, too, can find a way through pain.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Scoliosis was the least of her problems., July 10, 2008

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

Scoliosis was the least of her problems. "Off Kilter: A Woman's Journey to Peace with Scoliosis, Her Mother, & Her Polish Heritage" is the story of a woman's truly American life. She must deal with an abusive father, an apathetic mother, and the rigid stiffness of the Catholic Church. Only when she accepts her affliction, her family, and her heritage does she find a life she can live with it all in this compelling memoir. "Off Kilter: A Woman's Journey to Peace with Scoliosis, Her Mother, & Her Polish Heritage" is highly recommended for community library memoir collections.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Life Examined, August 15, 2008

By	M. Vieille (USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

In Off Kilter the reader is given an insightful look at the author's life growing up in a working class Polish neighborhood in upstate New York. Linda Wisniewski has the courage to examine a difficult childhood in her beautifully written memoir. In the process she comes to terms with her past and is liberated from years of torment and anger. This thoughtful book gives meaning to the words of Socrates, "The unexamined life is not worth living." Bravo!