Russo writes chiefly about his difficult relationship with his mentally fragile mother. ( )

I liked this book and read it in one sitting. I’ve enjoyed the author’s earlier fiction; That Old Cape Magic comes to mind. I decided to read his memoir before realizing it was primarily the story of his relationship with his needy mom. Needy as in NEEDY as in she moved with him when he went off to college.

The book was alternately amusing, frustrating, thought-provoking and sad. For anyone who has to deal with a needy parent, this may hit too close to home; on the other hand, they may take some comfort that they are not alone.

From an NPR article: "Of his own decision to attend the University of Arizona, Russo writes:

"I expected my mother to put up stiff resistance to this plan; after all, I'd be twenty-five hundred miles away and her mantra had always been that we were a team, that as long as we had each other, we'd be able to manage. So I should have been suspicious when she didn't object to my heading west. But even if I'd twigged to the possibility that she was up to something, I never would've grasped the obvious inference, and it was years before it occurred to me that maybe the westward-ho notion hadn't been mine at all, that she'd steadily been dropping hints — for example, that the best place to study archeology, my current interest, was the Desert Southwest — and that I'd dutifully been lapping them up. Nor did she object when, in the spring of my senior year I announced I wanted to buy a car.

"The reason she didn't, of course, was that we'd need one. Because she was coming with me."

For anyone interested, here is the link to the NPR article and interview with the author:
http://www.npr.org/2012/10/30/163876274/resenting-and-respecting-mom-in-russos-e...
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Like all Russo books this one has the folksy feel about it like all the others though this one is a memoir rather than fiction. We learn much about his life including his Mother who's a real piece of work. Ricky's patience is demonstrated throughout the story as is his ties to small town living. A father of two girls his life path is strongly intermingled with his mother who he sees through to the end. It's always interesting to learn the story of talented authors and how their families and friends influence their writing. Highly recommended if you enjoy Russo's stories. ( )

This is perfect reading for the flight home to see your crazy family. ( )

A memoir of the close, interdependent relationship between an only child and his demanding mother. The title refers, in part, to her incessant search for somewhere else to live. Having left the small industrial town in which she grew up (the setting of many of Russo's novels) and followed him to the Southwest when he went away to college, she became increasingly restless. The older she became, the more dissatisfied. Her hometown was suffused with a nostalgic glow when she was at a distance from it, but every time she moved back, she hated it. Every apartment was insufficient: she always wanted to be Elsewhere. Russo writes of all this, and his responses to her maddening requirements, with clarity and elegance. Highly recommended. ( )