Michelle Theall

Michelle Theall makes a frustrating protagonist of her memoir. Plagued by her mother's cruelty and lack of acceptance her entire life, she devotes herself to being the perfect Catholic daughter to pay penance for being a lesbian. It's difficult to see how she drags her partner, Jill, and their adopted son, Connor, through uncomfortable situation after situation, whether it's ongoing battles with the Church to have Connor baptized despite the priest's clear homophobia, or brushing off Jill's complaints about being at Theall family gatherings where Jill is explicitly and intentionally shunned. I kept reading, eager to find out how the author's life progressed, whether she eventually realized the futility of living for a woman who had never shown true love for her. No such luck. Although she makes some growth and does occasionally reflect on her extreme internalized homophobia, Theall is never able to cut herself off from her callous parents — a mother who refused to talk to her after Michelle came out to her, after years of suffering in the closet as an adult, and declared her daughter dead, and a father who said, "You must have done something to provoke it" when Michelle finally tells her parents about being raped as a child. Instead, she continuously makes excuses for her parents' behavior, claims that her mother acts out of love, and strives to live her life to please them. While Michelle Theall's story is engaging, with a mix of present and flashbacks, her inability for self-reflection and recognition of her self-destructive tendencies make it an ultimately disappointing read.… (más)