The Blessings by Elise Juska

It is Easter Sunday and I am reflecting on family gatherings and memories of special foods, Easter baskets and fancy hats. For me, it was the perfect day to read a soon-to be published (5/6/14) book called The Blessings by Elise Juska.  Set in Northeast Philadelphia, the novel tells the stories of an Irish-Catholic family over the past 20 or 25 years. Each chapter (almost like inter-connected short stories) is told from a different Blessing family member’s perspective – rebellions teens, newly marrieds, a middle-age man and a Grandmother included.

I loved how the author captures each character’s feelings and the way she explores the idea of being part of a close extended family and how that shapes us; how those closest to us sometimes fail to see us clearly as separate individuals. I especially liked the several sections on going to college, becoming a young adult, and seeing your family from a distance (maybe for the first time).  In addition to love and support, Juska deftly handles universal feelings of fear, sadness and anger in families – whether it has to do with death at a young age, an eating disorder, divorce or growing old. Fans of the TV show Parenthood will enjoy this novel as it has a similar vignette-type feel. I truly cared about members of the Blessing family, felt connected and enjoyed sharing their traditions and memories as they looked back in later chapters.

For our students’ Junior research projects, there has been a shift towards looking at questions of American identity.  Students often focus on the relevance of a chosen book both in terms of the time when it was written or its setting and today.  I honestly cannot wait to add The Blessings by Elise Juska to my booktalk with others like The Joy Luck Club (Amy Tan) and The Namesake (Jhumpa Lahiri) – there will be much for our students to explore and to comment upon with this cultural group, too.