by S. Montiel
“As a parent of three young children under the age of nine, reading the first three pages was like someone grabbing me by the collar, and pulling me into the reality of seeing my role as parent as some kind of emotional black hole. Throughout your book you unveiled the ridiculous notion of our roles as parents; that we must hold our children close while letting go in this spontaneous combustion…anyway, that's how I felt! The photos of Austin add so much value to your letter. Even though not my son, I instantly replaced him with my children … it was an instant connection visually.
In the world of higher education, I have seen so many cases where parents have not passed the ritual and continue to hang on to their child too close, too often, like an anchor. As a result, I see parents being dragged by the perception (real or not) that their child is still dependent on them, leaving them bruised in the end, and leaving the child moving more slowly in their development of who they are in the world. The parent/child relationship is a simple and complex one. You have put it all right there in the book.”
