“This memoir of growing up as a Christian Scientist (which I did not realize meant primarily growing up without access to medical care) was interesting and compelling, but there were some areas that wanted more insight. The book really became interesting when Lucia was describing her mother's decline and her suspicion that her father's life work was causing him to dissuade her mother from seeking medical care. Early on in the book, Lucia's mother takes two children who are coming down with chicken pox to their grandparents' house, where, it is hinted, they are served applesauce laced with aspirin. This plants the seed of doubt that persists throughout the book, and flourishes with the strength of the ugliest garden weed when Lucia's mother is later quite obviously dying. Perhaps as the daughter, Lucia will never really know whether or not her mother was denied medical treatment by her father, or if the mother's religious commitment was primarily for her father's benefit. It is in this area that a reader really wants more information. Other than that, the book is compelling and interesting. I do wonder if a Christian Scientist would feel that the book portrayed the religion primarily as a religion that refuses medical care. Surely there must be more to it, but only the passages related to medicine were quoted and requoted throughout the book.”
Jeninlb wrote this review Thursday, August 11, 2011.
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