Having loved Sandwich by this author, I was eager to read this. While this one had more distressing matters at its core, it was an appealing read. The narrator is Rocky writing about herself, her husband, her two grown children, and her 90-something father who lives with her.
For me the wreck referred in the title was painful because it was a car-train wreck that ended the life of a contemporary of Rocky’s son Jamie. The possible culpability of the railroad is a matter of consideration, especially when the family learns that Jamie’s job involves evaluation of risk management in safety decisions of that railroad. The question of possible suicide by the driver comes up. In 1952 my mother had a similar wreck which was catastrophic for her and of course changed the lives of all in our family. In her case the railroad did make a settlement which I know did not cover the medical and other costs of her accident. As an adult, I did wonder whether she had a suicidal moment; she had no memory of the day of the accident so we don’t know.
The other difficult matter was Rocky’s persistent rash that resisted diagnosis, but included the possibility of an autoimmune disease that would end her life early. So, two topics that do not lend themselves to a funny, light-hearted book for me. Nevertheless, I did enjoy it and have lots I want to remember about it.
On a walk Rocky and Willa encountered a patch of jewelweed: “The jewelweed is covered in plump seedpods, like miniature sugar snap peas; you can hold one in your closed fist and feel it explode gently into a chaos of green coils and tiny walnut-flavored seeds, which we pick out of each other’s palms and eat.” I did not know about this plant with its brightly colored sensuous flowers and exploding seed pods, and I was charmed to see videos of the seed-expelling explosions online.
I enjoyed reading what the author writes about food. Jamie declares to the family that it turns out he does like lamb, despite the family seeing itself as “a people who don’t like lamb.” He tells about eating delicious braised lamb shank that was garlicky and lemony and Rocky admits that it sounds very good. Nick, though, remains adamant, “It tastes like barn.”
Jamie was described as a lovable person who charmed everyone. Rocky tells us, “He chose not to write a thesis in college—those bong hits were not going to smoke themselves, was the vibe we got—but the economics department awarded him a prize anyway.”
Catherine Newman, Wreck, Harper, 2025, 215 pages (I read the kindle version). Available in the public library.