In Praise of Inadequate Gifts

Winner of the Wandering Aengus Book Award Tarn Wilsons memoir in essays In Praise of Inadequate Gifts explores the varied ways we cope with trauma and loss-and the miraculous awkward and imperfect process of renewal. Wilson explores a wide range of topics: her obsession with teeth why she doesnt have children the summer she spent soldering keyboards for Chrysler Le Barons. She traces the effects of her mothers rape her confusion after her friends mother is murdered her own divorce and struggle with anxiety and her complex grief after the death of her distant father and mentally ill mother.Wilson considers these difficult experiences with curiosity and gentle humor. Her honesty empathy and lack of self-pity make us feel we are sitting down with a trusted friend inviting us to give voice to our own hard journey. Ultimately this collection is about the redemptive power of kindness and connection. Loves gestures are so unassuming so ordinary so clumsy so imperfect - yet miraculously they hold something larger than themselves big enough to press back against the darkness. Through her experimentation with form Wilsons multifaceted reflections reveal how we come to understand our stories and the choices we make as we construct the narrative of our lives. Dinty W. Moore author of Between Panic and Desire calls these essays honest powerful and necessary. Brenda Miller co-author of the popular guide to creative nonfiction Tell It Slant writes Wilson shows us how we can tell stories that matter even when our hearts have broken. Renowned essayist Scott Russell Sanders says These essays will surely resonate with readers who have faced their own hard questions. Abigail Thomas bestselling author of the memoir What Comes Next and How to Like It says I fell in love on the very first page. Tarn Wilson is an irresistible writer and her new book is a treasure. Buy it read it tell everyone you know.