Tracy Ross

This book shouldn't have been published as it is. Too often it reads like a bad diary. The narcissism can be unrelenting. Yes, what happened to her is horrible but that doesn't mean that every half-baked thought that floats through her head or flat, awkward sentence that drifts onto the page has been forged in the big fiery kiln of burning importance. This needed to sit on the shelf for however long the author needed to be able to craft it.

Why did I read this book? I dunno. Prurient interest. Why did I keep reading? Some neurotic inability to not finish?

Many pages seem motivated solely by an interest to let guys she didn't hook up with know that they should've gone for it or guys she did hook up with know she was only with them because she was screwed up. There's a strange lack of self-awareness to these passages that is almost disturbing.

To be fair, though, and very much othe other hand, the passages describing the land, the feel of the raw, wide world, can be riveting. It's funny--description of trees and mountains is harder to write than narrative action, especially narrative action filled with juicy prurient details, but she really only shines and opens up into her skills as a writer when she's writing about nature. I don't think she was ready to write this, and in the end, reading this feels like pushing someone wounded to keep talking about the worst parts of her life.

So Exhibit 208754 for What's Wrong with the Publishing Industry's Obsession with Memoir… (más)

Tracy Ross has written a powerful memoir that will resound with many, assuredly staying with the reader. Her story is open, honest and painfully true.

Losing her father when she was a very young child, Tracy felt blessed in gaining a doting stepfather not long thereafter. They become very close throughout her childhood, and all seemed right in her world. Her family was close; camping trips were commonplace. Her stepfather taught Tracy many things about the Idaho nature, wildlife, and living life to the fullest on these family outings. However, his love and affection for Tracy turned very wrong when on a camping trip her stepfather began to sexually abuse her. Tracy was eight years old.

Eventually, Tracy fights back. Leaving home as a teen, she reveals the truth. This tears the family apart, finally forcing them all to face buried secrets and carefully hidden flaws. As Tracy was betrayed as a child, the family felt she now betrayed them. It takes years for them all to admit the truth.

Growing up fast, Tracy goes through many changes, and encounters many situations. She learns hard-earned lessons. Tracy's lifelong love for nature and the outdoors takes her from her native Idaho to Alaska, and eventually to Colorado. It was nature that always held Tracy together, and ultimately helped her to heal.

There finally comes a point where Tracy is able to confront her stepfather, as an adult. This takes immense courage, for which I admire her. In doing so, Tracy is able to come to terms with what happened to her, and that she survived.

Tracy Ross's story is full of raw emotion, vulnerability, and ultimately real survival and forgiveness. This is a memoir not to be missed.… (más)

Forgiveness is often the hardest thing to do, yet it is also one of the most liberating things. Forgiving the man who sexually abused you is almost unheard of. Tracy Ross has written a heart-wrenching story that takes us into the darkest part of her life. Through her eyes we are shown her life, her pain and her survival. Her first outdoor experiences with her step-father are the experiences she retreats to as she begins to explore and try to understand the situation. The outdoors is her safe haven. This is a recommended read for anyone and everyone concerned with the abuses that go on around them.… (más)