As her other books do, Missing Mom, pulls the reader right in. Just as Gwen would make you feel part of her family. Gwen invited over neighbors and strangers which made her 2 daughters jealous. Clare, like their intolerant father, outraged by Gwen's invited over. Nikki wasn't angry at her mom; she simply moved to another town making a life for herself with scarce visits home.

After their father's death Nikki begins to grasp a bit more of Gwen's need to reach out to other people. But when tragedy strikes, Clare, Nikki, their extended family and the town are shocked and devastated.

Oates describes in detail how Clare and Nikki grieve for a woman they often ridiculed for her sweetness, heartfelt desire to help, and generosity of spirit to so many. It takes months and months for Nikki to open her heart and understand what extended family, friends and neighbors have been telling her: how much Gwen meant to them.

Beautiful story.

Joyce Carol Oates ergreifendes Porträt einer trauernden Tochter. Was bedeutet es, die Mutter zu verlieren? Nikki Eaton, Anfang dreißig, unabhängig und eigenwillig, will endlich ihr schlechtes Verhältnis zu ihrer Mutter klären. Sie ist noch unterwegs, da wird diese Opfer eines Raubüberfalls. Wäre Nikki zehn Minuten eher bei ihrer Mutter eingetroffen, hätte sie deren Tod vielleicht noch verhindert. Bisher hatte sie ihre Mutter nur an Feiertagen besucht, immer auf der Hut vor deren Einmischung in ihr Leben. Nun trifft sie der Kummer um ihren Tod unerwartet und heftig. Einfühlsam und spannend beschreibt Joyce Carol Oates das Spektrum der Veränderungen und verwirrenden Gefühle in Nikkis Trauerjahr: Lähmung, Wut, Sorge und auch Erkenntnis. Du fehlst ist ein erschütternder, intensiver Page-turner über Mütter und Töchter.

As with every Oates novel I've read, it is beautifully written. But it is also terribly depressing. ( )

I listened to the audio version of this book which I'm sure influenced how I reacted to it. The reader was good but the book never grabbed me. I find Joyce Carol Oates work uneven. I absolutely love some of it but a lot of it leaves me cold. This story, about a single, adult woman who visits her widowed mother and finds her body, murdered in the family home, isn't a mystery. It's about her reactions to the death, and her interactions with her sister -- her only sibling -- in the aftermath. I didn't identify with the main character, which is why I didn't connect emotionally with the story. I have a paper copy of the book and in looking at it, I think I may have enjoyed it more on the printed page. On the other hand it's fairly long and I may have found it slow. How's that for an ambivalent review? You will have to decide this one for yourself. ( )

Another wonderful book by one of my favorite authors. Great characterizations and development of narrative flow! ( )