Depressing, and odd. ( )

Kehoe's memoir of growing up in rural England is a sad and dark one. Throughout her childhood Kehoe was subjected to the whims and abuse of her eccentric and tyrannical father. A gifted arcitecht, Kehoe's father ruled his children and his wife like a dictator. Isolated and miserable, Kehoe has no explanation for her father's behavior. As an adult, she decides to investigate her family's past, to try and better understand her father. Spurred on by an episode of anti-Semitic violence in her youth, Kehoe's search for her past leads her to unexpected places and surprises. It's difficult to say more without giving away the conclusion, except that this memoir explains Kehoe's search for her past, and how she comes to terms with what she finds and what she knows of her father. Well-written, sad, and sometimes shocking, Kehoe's rendering of an elaborate family myth and its unravelling is well-crafted. ( )