A Living Remedy A Memoir
A Living Remedy A Memoir by Nicole Chung, published by HarperCollins Publishers in 2023, is a poignant exploration of family, class, and grief. This 239-page memoir delves into the author’s journey to understand the lives of her adoptive parents and the impact of socioeconomic disparities on her own life. Through her narrative, Chung reflects on the challenges faced by those who navigate the complexities of identity and belonging, particularly within the context of healthcare and economic inequality.
Readers will find a deeply personal account that examines the intersection of personal loss and systemic issues. As Chung recounts her experiences growing up in a predominantly white Oregon town and later raising her family in a different socioeconomic environment, she confronts the realities of healthcare access and the emotional toll of familial separation, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. A Living Remedy sheds light on the enduring strength of family bonds amidst hardship, while also addressing broader societal inequalities that affect many individuals and families.
Official synopsis Publisher
A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK
Winner, Tillie Olsen Award for Creative Writing
Named a Best Book of the Year by: Time * Harper’s Bazaar * Esquire * Booklist * USA Today * Elle * Good Housekeeping * New York Times * Electric Literature * Today
From the bestselling author of ALL YOU CAN EVER KNOW comes a searing memoir of family, class and grief–a daughter’s search to understand the lives her adoptive parents led, the life she forged as an adult, and the lives she’s lost.
In this country, unless you attain extraordinary wealth, you will likely be unable to help your loved ones in all the ways you’d hoped. You will learn to live with the specific, hollow guilt of those who leave hardship behind, yet are unable to bring anyone else with them.
Nicole Chung couldn’t hightail it out of her overwhelmingly white Oregon hometown fast enough. As a scholarship student at a private university on the East Coast, no longer the only Korean she knew, she found community and a path to the life she’d long wanted. But the middle class world she begins to raise a family in – where there are big homes, college funds, nice vacations – looks very different from the middle class world she thought she grew up in, where paychecks have to stretch to the end of the week, health insurance is often lacking, and there are no safety nets.
When her father dies at only sixty-seven, killed by diabetes and kidney disease, Nicole feels deep grief as well as rage, knowing that years of precarity and lack of access to healthcare contributed to his early death. And then the unthinkable happens – less than a year later, her beloved mother is diagnosed with cancer, and the physical distance between them becomes insurmountable as COVID-19 descends upon the world.
Exploring the enduring strength of family bonds in the face of hardship and tragedy, A Living Remedy examines what it takes to reconcile the distance between one life, one home, and another – and sheds needed light on some of the most persistent and grievous inequalities in American society.
Author
Publisher
Topics
FAQ
What is “A Living Remedy A Memoir” about?
Who is the author of “A Living Remedy A Memoir”?
When was “A Living Remedy A Memoir” published?
What is the ISBN for “A Living Remedy A Memoir”?
What are the book details (language, pages, edition)?
