How does one cope with a world that defines beauty as value when one is clearly damaged? Eventually, Grealy decided that she would become deep. She offers a blow-by-blow recounting of her medical trials, accompanied by the emotional turmoil that inevitably resulted.
One benefit to Grealy of her many hospitalizations was that she got to skip so much school-time, so much taunting-time.Īutobiography of a Face is Grealy’s memoir of her experience, inner and outer. Then add to it a severe facial disfigurement. Consider the garden-variety cruelty of middle-schoolers. Each time her body would eventually absorb transplanted material and sag back in on itself. In addition, she had literally dozens of surgeries attempting to restore her face. She endured two and a half years of chemotherapy and many subsequent years of radiation treatments. A third of her jawbone was removed to try to stem the spread of this cancer. This doesn't make them false it makes her more real.At an early age, Lucy Grealy was found to have a rare form of cancer. Sometimes they were contradictory to her own thoughts at different times.
Sometimes they were contradictory to Patchett's. Grealy shared with us her thoughts and feelings, not Ann Patchett's. I don't think that is the point, however. Some reviewers seemed to find this troublesome. Ann's book talked about many things that Grealy's left out. Her memoir reads like poetry and the words she chooses to use serve her well.Īfter reading this, I read Ann Patchett's "Truth and Beauty" to get a fuller picture of Grealy. Lucy Grealy considered herself a poet first, then a memoirist. Grealy learned everything through such negative experiences, also. And, she had to relearn things the rest of us take for granted when she grew up. She grew up terribly obese, taunted and teased also. The criticism of that book was similar to this. I'm reminded, now, of Frances Kuffel's "Passing for Thin". I think anyone who went through that would be the same. At such a young age, her self-image was distorted. It is easy to see, with what she went through, why she became so needy. That said, even if she was a selfish and spoiled woman, this book is STILL good. In Grealy's case, though, she left behind so many people who really had bad personal experiences with her, that there are a lot of people to dispute or criticize her, as well.
Most memoirs most likely leave certain elements out or elaborate others. Although it is true, according to so many who knew Lucy Grealy, that she is spoiled and selfish, it is also true that this book is excellent and thoughtfully written.
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