Approaching Neverland
Have you ever cried at the end of a book—not because it had a tragic ending but because you’d turned the final page, the story was complete and you longed to read even more? This latest in my pre summer reading reviews is just such a book. In Approaching Neverland: A Memoir of Epic Tragedy & Happily Ever After, Peggy Kennedy has written the story of her remarkable family with such tenderness and honesty that you can’t help but get lost in her words and wish the story would go on and on.
As one of five siblings, Peggy grew up in a family that was blessed with great talent and creativity. And like that other Kennedy family, these Kennedy children were truly gifted. However, like their more famous namesakes, they also suffered heartbreaking losses that would have torn lesser families asunder.
Much of the children’s early life was marked by their mother’s mental illness. In the 1960s, mental illness was little understood and generally feared. It certainly wasn’t openly discussed outside the four walls of their home. The children kept their mother’s secret and her condition was the underlying shadow that bonded the family in silence.
Peggy’s story is a deeply moving account of a complex family and a celebration of overcoming the odds. Despite some truly harrowing experiences, she went on to make a successful life for herself and her family. I interviewed Peggy on Feisty Side of Fifty Radio and you can hear her story in her own words. As the woman who makes the San Francisco Chinese New Year’s Parade the huge success it is year after year. Peggy has carved out a remarkable career. She has also written a book that will draw you in like no other. Do yourself a favor and get this one. It truly is a blending of epic tragedy and happily ever after and will leave you smiling with tears in your eyes.
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May 9th, 2009 at 10:32 am
I agree with Joyce, you DO give amazing book reviews. It makes me want to go out and read the book! Actually, your reviews will make a non-reader start reading because they will see what they are missing if they are only reading the paper.
Thanks so much. You know, it might be time for you to do TV.
May 6th, 2009 at 7:47 am
I don’t suppose she’s released a Kindle version? I think I would really enjoy this book and I’m going to click over and listen to your interview of her on your radio show right now.
May 4th, 2009 at 12:09 pm
I will just have to go out and get this book so I can review it for WE Magazine for women. Sounds like a book that will inspire many.
Thanks for all you do to bring amazing resources to us.
Warmest regards,
Heidi Richards Mooney, Author, Business Coach, Entrepreneur
May 4th, 2009 at 7:42 am
This is so wonderful, Eileen. We all need to know there can be life after tragedy. And I, too, know firsthand how in the 1960s mental illness was that pink elephant in the middle of the room no one mentioned. My mother finally beat the odds a few years before her death. Anyway, thanks for yet another insightful interview and post…
Diana
http://www.woofersclub.blogspot.com
http://www.wendelwordsworth.blogspot.com
http://www.booklandheights.blogspot.com
May 3rd, 2009 at 8:51 pm
Eileen, you are a gifted writer yourself. You have described this book in such a way that I want to read it right away.
Like Beverly said, women of our mothers’ ages were often accused of mental illness, because of mood swings and all that accompanies menopause, even if they weren’t mentally ill. This would be an excellent subject to research and report on.
May 3rd, 2009 at 7:55 am
Sounds like an interesting book. You’ve given a good review.
You know, while I was doing some research for my book (Whatever!) I read that women going through menopause back in the 1960s were often diagnosed as having a mental illness because male doctors didn’t understand all of the symptoms associated with it. I know that doesn’t have anything to do with the book but it is an intersting sidebar.
May 2nd, 2009 at 11:08 am
Thank you, Eileen, for yet another amazing book review and addition to my Must Read List. This topic touches me, as my mom had what they then called a “nervous breakdown” when I left the nest and went away to college. Same era, not such hot solutions available … although she blessedly got better in spite of them. We all need testimonials about our wounding holds the key to our healing. Triumph is in overcoming and sharing how we did it with our community, so we don’t all have to make the same mistakes.