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About
Meet Mimi Malloy: A daughter of the Great Depression, Mimi was born into an Irish-Catholic brood of seven, and she has done her best to raise six beautiful daughters of her own. Now they're grown, and Mimi, a divorcée, is unexpectedly retired. But, she takes solace in the comforts of her new life: her apartment in the heart of Quincy, the occasional True Blue cigarette, and evenings with Frank Sinatra on the stereo and a highball in her hand.
Yet her phone is arguably the busiest in greater Boston-it rings "Day In, Day Out," as Ol' Blue Eyes would say. Her surviving sisters love to gab about their girlhood, while her eldest daughter, Cassandra, calls every morning to preach the gospel of assisted living. And when an MRI reveals that Mimi's brain is filled with black spots-areas of atrophy, her doctor says-it looks like she's destined to spend her days in "one of those storage facilities for unwanted antiques."
Mimi knows her mind is (more or less) as sharp as ever, and she won't go down without a fight. Yet as she prepares to take her stand, she stumbles upon an old pendant of her mother's and, slowly, her memory starts to return-specifically, recollections of a shocking and painful childhood, including her sister who was sent away to Ireland and the wicked stepmother she swore to forget.
Out of the ashes of Mimi's deeply troubled history, Julia MacDonnell gives us a redemptive story of the family bonds that break us and remake us.
Yet her phone is arguably the busiest in greater Boston-it rings "Day In, Day Out," as Ol' Blue Eyes would say. Her surviving sisters love to gab about their girlhood, while her eldest daughter, Cassandra, calls every morning to preach the gospel of assisted living. And when an MRI reveals that Mimi's brain is filled with black spots-areas of atrophy, her doctor says-it looks like she's destined to spend her days in "one of those storage facilities for unwanted antiques."
Mimi knows her mind is (more or less) as sharp as ever, and she won't go down without a fight. Yet as she prepares to take her stand, she stumbles upon an old pendant of her mother's and, slowly, her memory starts to return-specifically, recollections of a shocking and painful childhood, including her sister who was sent away to Ireland and the wicked stepmother she swore to forget.
Out of the ashes of Mimi's deeply troubled history, Julia MacDonnell gives us a redemptive story of the family bonds that break us and remake us.
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Reviews
"MacDonnell's multifaceted novel unspools via flashbacks. Mimi's no-nonsense narrative voice and a cast of well-drawn characters take readers on a humbling journey that explores the past and present; the bonds between parents, children and sisters; the power of secrets; and heroic acts of love."
Shelf Awareness
"Cathartic, suspenseful and droll, Mimi offers a hopeful take on both old age and bad blood."
Joanna Powell, People
"It has been 20 years since Julia MacDonnell wrote her first novel, A Year of Favor. But readers will find her highly entertaining and heartfelt second novel, Mimi Malloy, At Last!, well worth the wait….MacDonnell truly shines in creating a cast of unforgettable characters who struggle to forgive each other, spinning a story that recalls The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, though with a bi
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