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Saturday, April 26, 2014

The Rules of Inheritance review an unflinching account of loss

How a young Claire Bidwell Smith coped with grief is classic Hollywood material

When Claire Bidwell Smith was 14, both her parents were diagnosed with cancer. Her mother died when she was 18, her father when she was 25. This direct and unflinching memoir is Claire's account of how she coped (or didn't cope): alcohol, tattoos, escapist travel, dark romantic relationships, danger. And a lot of loneliness.


Structured according to Elizabeth Kübler-Ross's five stages of grief denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance Bidwell-Smith tells her story according to emotions rather than time. The narrative is thus non-linear, dotting from carefree college days in Vermont far away from her parents' home, and an internship in partying for the LA office of "Big Fancy Magazine" to abortion operation rooms and diving with sharks in the Philippines.


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