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Too Close to the Falls Catherine Gildiner

Too Close to the Falls By Catherine Gildiner

Too Close to the Falls by Catherine Gildiner


$20.89
Condition - Very Good
Only 4 left

Summary

With no siblings to provide role-models; a workaholic father; a mother who looks the part of the perfect 50s housewife but refuses to play it; and a gambling-obsessed best friend, Roy, who is 30 years older, perhaps it's hardly surprising that Cathy grows up a little eccentric. This is her memoir.

Too Close to the Falls Summary

Too Close to the Falls: A Memoir by Catherine Gildiner

It is the mid-1950s in Lewiston, a sleepy town near Niagara Falls, famous only for the invention of the cocktail. Divorce is unheard of, mothers wear high heels to the beauty salon and television has only just arrived. But with no siblings to provide role-models; a workaholic father chosen by most of her class as Lewiston's present-day saint; a mother who looks the part of the perfect 50s housewife but refuses to play it; and a gambling-obsessed best friend, Roy, who is 30 years older, perhaps it's hardly surprising that Cathy grows up a little eccentric. Especially considering that the family doctor's prescription for her hyperactivity is a full-time job in her father's pharmacy - at four. Cathy is rarely out of trouble whether it's asking why seeing Elvis below the waist is a sin, stabbing the school bully with a compass, breaking through police cordons to interview the Tuscadora Indians or swapping holy water for vodka to test the local priest's alcoholism. She even delivers Nembutal to a sleazy Marilyn Monroe who promptly makes an assignation with Roy.

Too Close to the Falls Reviews

'TCTTF has only one fault. It ends too soon.' Toronto Life 'TCTTF shimmies and shakes with Gildiner's hilarious antics...Her writing sparkles on the page and the episodes she recounts have the clarity of ice after a winter storm in Lewiston. This is a memoir that makes the world seem fresh again, and worthwhile.' Literary Review of Canada 'Here is a memoir to prove that life is stranger than fiction. Both funny and true, TCTTF depicts the formative years of an extraordinary child, but it also captures the essence of childhood itself. The combination is altogether compelling; I cannot recommend this book highly enough... A fascinating childhood is no guarantee of a fascinating memoir. It still takes a gifted writer to translate the past into a work of art, and Gildiner is a gifted writer. Her prose is intensely colorful, like a concentrate, but never overwhelming or laborious in its details. Against a vivid backdrop, she brings into focus those moments when the child's world and the adult world intersect, when illusions are shattered and understanding begins.' Toronto Star

About Catherine Gildiner

Catherine McClure Gildiner has her PhD in psychology and is in private practice in Toronto. She writes an advice column for Chatelaine magazine and publishes articles in various newspapers and magazines. She has been married for thirty years and has three sons. Too Close To The Falls is her first book.

Additional information

GOR002370550
9780007152841
0007152841
Too Close to the Falls: A Memoir by Catherine Gildiner
Used - Very Good
Hardback
HarperCollins Publishers
20030106
368
Short-listed for YoungMinds Book Award 2003
Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in very good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us

Customer Reviews - Too Close to the Falls