How to Lose Your Mother

The New York Times Bestseller An honest, heartbreaking and brutally funny memoir about losing a mother you never really had – and a comfort to anyone who knows that love can be complicated. 'I was just bowled over by this book' – Nigella Lawson ‘Often rancorous, sometimes furious, never self-indulgent’ – Financial Times 'Brisk and funny and beautifully done' – The Times 'Unsparing . . . but also a loving elegy' – The New York Times 'By turns hilarious and heartbreaking' – Oprah Daily 'Punchy . . . with moments of deep sadness leavened by a sardonic humour ' – The Guardian 'A gripping memoir . . . exquisitely relatable' – Lori Gottlieb, author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone 'Lines so good you won't just want to underline them, you will want to cut them out to share' – The Washington Post Molly Jong-Fast is the daughter of acclaimed writer Erica Jong. Raw, moving and seriously funny, How to Lose Your Mother is her account of a sometimes chaotic upbringing and how that can really mess you up. But with her mother’s heartbreaking descent into dementia, and Molly’s realization that she is going to lose this remarkable woman, it is also a story of love, loss, confusion and deep grief. Taking us behind the scenes of a fascinating and sometimes tumultuous family dynamic, it leaves us with a better understanding of our own most precious relationships.

The New York Times Bestseller An honest, heartbreaking and brutally funny memoir about losing a mother you never really had – and a comfort to anyone who knows that love can be complicated. 'I was just bowled over by this book' – Nigella Lawson ‘Often rancorous, sometimes furious, never self-indulgent’ – Financial Times 'Brisk and funny and beautifully done' – The Times 'Unsparing . . . but also a loving elegy' – The New York Times 'By turns hilarious and heartbreaking' – Oprah Daily 'Punchy . . . with moments of deep sadness leavened by a sardonic humour ' – The Guardian 'A gripping memoir . . . exquisitely relatable' – Lori Gottlieb, author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone 'Lines so good you won't just want to underline them, you will want to cut them out to share' – The Washington Post Molly Jong-Fast is the daughter of acclaimed writer Erica Jong. Raw, moving and seriously funny, How to Lose Your Mother is her account of a sometimes chaotic upbringing and how that can really mess you up. But with her mother’s heartbreaking descent into dementia, and Molly’s realization that she is going to lose this remarkable woman, it is also a story of love, loss, confusion and deep grief. Taking us behind the scenes of a fascinating and sometimes tumultuous family dynamic, it leaves us with a better understanding of our own most precious relationships.

'I was just bowled over by this book' - Nigella Lawson 'A gripping memoir about mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, loss and healing . . . exquisitely relatable' - Lori Gottlieb, author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone 'Conveys the mess, terror, loneliness and glory of familial love, in all its riveting complexity' - Claire Messud, author of This Strange Eventful History ______ Molly Jong-Fast is the daughter of acclaimed writer Erica Jong. How to Lose Your Mother is Molly’s delicious and despairing memoir about that intense mother–daughter relationship, a sometimes chaotic upbringing with a fame-hungry parent, and how that can really mess you up. But with her mother’s heartbreaking descent into dementia, and Molly’s realization that she is going to lose this remarkable woman, it is also a story of love, loss, confusion and deep grief. Honest, moving and brutally funny, How to Lose Your Mother takes us behind the scenes of a fascinating and sometimes tumultuous family dynamic, revels in the gossipy details of Erica’s famous friends and enemies, and leaves us with a better understanding of our own most precious relationships.

The New York Times bestseller. Molly Jong-Fast's honest, heartbreaking and brutally funny memoir about losing a mother you never really had – and a comfort to anyone who knows that love can be complicated. 'I was just bowled over by this book' – Nigella Lawson 'A gripping memoir about mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, loss and healing . . . exquisitely relatable' – Lori Gottlieb, author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone ______ Molly Jong-Fast is the daughter of acclaimed writer Erica Jong. How to Lose Your Mother is Molly’s despairing memoir about that intense mother–daughter relationship, a sometimes chaotic upbringing with a fame-hungry parent, and how that can really mess you up. But with her mother’s heartbreaking descent into dementia, and Molly’s realization that she is going to lose this remarkable woman, it is also a story of love, loss, confusion and deep grief. How to Lose Your Mother takes us behind the scenes of a fascinating and sometimes tumultuous family dynamic, revels in the gossipy details of Erica’s famous friends and enemies, and leaves us with a better understanding of our own most precious relationships. 'Conveys the mess, terror, loneliness and glory of familial love, in all its riveting complexity' – Claire Messud, author of This Strange Eventful History

The New York Times bestseller. Molly Jong-Fast's honest, heartbreaking and brutally funny memoir about losing a mother you never really had – and a comfort to anyone who knows that love can be complicated. 'I was just bowled over by this book' – Nigella Lawson 'A gripping memoir about mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, loss and healing . . . exquisitely relatable' – Lori Gottlieb, author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone ______ Molly Jong-Fast is the daughter of acclaimed writer Erica Jong. How to Lose Your Mother is Molly’s despairing memoir about that intense mother–daughter relationship, a sometimes chaotic upbringing with a fame-hungry parent, and how that can really mess you up. But with her mother’s heartbreaking descent into dementia, and Molly’s realization that she is going to lose this remarkable woman, it is also a story of love, loss, confusion and deep grief. How to Lose Your Mother takes us behind the scenes of a fascinating and sometimes tumultuous family dynamic, revels in the gossipy details of Erica’s famous friends and enemies, and leaves us with a better understanding of our own most precious relationships. 'Conveys the mess, terror, loneliness and glory of familial love, in all its riveting complexity' – Claire Messud, author of This Strange Eventful History

'I was just bowled over by this book' - Nigella Lawson 'A gripping memoir about mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, loss and healing . . . exquisitely relatable' - Lori Gottlieb, author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone 'Conveys the mess, terror, loneliness and glory of familial love, in all its riveting complexity' - Claire Messud, author of This Strange Eventful History ______ Molly Jong-Fast is the daughter of acclaimed writer Erica Jong. How to Lose Your Mother is Molly’s delicious and despairing memoir about that intense mother–daughter relationship, a sometimes chaotic upbringing with a fame-hungry parent, and how that can really mess you up. But with her mother’s heartbreaking descent into dementia, and Molly’s realization that she is going to lose this remarkable woman, it is also a story of love, loss, confusion and deep grief. Honest, moving and brutally funny, How to Lose Your Mother takes us behind the scenes of a fascinating and sometimes tumultuous family dynamic, revels in the gossipy details of Erica’s famous friends and enemies, and leaves us with a better understanding of our own most precious relationships.

"Beautiful and painful at the same time, just like real life." - Anne Lamott From the political writer and podcaster, a ferociously honest and disarmingly funny memoir about her elusive mother's encroaching dementia and a reckoning with her complicated childhood Molly Jong-Fast is the only child of a famous woman, writer Erica Jong, whose sensational book Fear of Flying launched her into second-wave feminist stardom. She grew up yearning for a connection with her dreamy, glamorous, just out of reach mother, who always seemed to be heading somewhere that wasn't with Molly. When, in 2023, Erica was diagnosed with dementia just as Molly's husband discovered he had a rare cancer, Jong-Fast was catapulted into a transformative year. How to Lose Your Mother is a compulsively readable memoir about an intense mother-daughter relationship, a sometimes chaotic upbringing with a fame-hungry parent, and the upheavals that challenge our hard-won adulthood. A pitch-perfect balance of acceptance and rage, humor and heart, How to Lose Your Mother tells a universal story of loss alongside a singular story of a literary life. This is a memoir that will stand alongside the classics of the genre.

"Beautiful and painful at the same time, just like real life." - Anne Lamott From the political writer and podcaster, a ferociously honest and disarmingly funny memoir about her elusive mother's encroaching dementia and a reckoning with her complicated childhood Molly Jong-Fast is the only child of a famous woman, writer Erica Jong, whose sensational book Fear of Flying launched her into second-wave feminist stardom. She grew up yearning for a connection with her dreamy, glamorous, just out of reach mother, who always seemed to be heading somewhere that wasn't with Molly. When, in 2023, Erica was diagnosed with dementia just as Molly's husband discovered he had a rare cancer, Jong-Fast was catapulted into a transformative year. How to Lose Your Mother is a compulsively readable memoir about an intense mother-daughter relationship, a sometimes chaotic upbringing with a fame-hungry parent, and the upheavals that challenge our hard-won adulthood. A pitch-perfect balance of acceptance and rage, humor and heart, How to Lose Your Mother tells a universal story of loss alongside a singular story of a literary life. This is a memoir that will stand alongside the classics of the genre.