The Family on Beartown Road: A Memoir of Love and Courage

A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK * [A] touching memoir … What makes the book so sympathetic is Cohen’s lack of self-pity and the straightforward tone… . [A] superb chronicle. -People

The Family on Beartown Road is Elizabeth Cohen’s true
and moving portrait of love and courage.

Elizabeth, a member of the sandwich
generation -those caught in the middle, simultaneously caring for their children
and for their aging parents-is the mother of baby Ava and the daughter of Daddy,
and responsible for both. In this story full of everyday triumphs, first steps, and
an elder’s confusion, Ava finds each new picture, each new word, each new song, something
to learn greedily, joyfully. Daddy is a man in his twilight years, for whom time
moves slowly and lessons are not learned but quietly, frustratingly forgotten. Elizabeth,
a suddenly single mother with a career and a mortgage and a hamperful of laundry,
finds her world spiraling out of control. Faced with mounting disasters, she chooses
to confront life head-on, and to see the unique beauty in each and every moment.

Imbued with an unquenchable spirit, The Family on Beartown Road takes us on a journey
through the remarkable landscape that is family.

Originally published as The House on Beartown Road