{"product_id":"dont-say-a-word-a-daughters-two-cents-9781647420529","title":"Don't Say a Word: A Daughter's Two Cents","description":"Edna and Leo, a perpetually warring, tyrannical pair in their 80s, begin\u003cbr\u003e wintering In Mexico, where they abandon their usual prudence to embrace\u003cbr\u003e adventure and a bevy of sketchy new friends. Soon, Edna adopts a pair \u003cbr\u003eof shyster builders whom she trusts over her own architect-daughter \u003cbr\u003eElizabeth, and a farcical house results. Blithely indifferent to the \u003cbr\u003ecalamities that result, the pair refuse all help from their \u003cbr\u003etoo-compliant only child. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eLater, following her mother's sudden death, Elizabeth's wise, principled\u003cbr\u003e father attempts to fill his late wife's shoes with a string of loopy, \u003cbr\u003elive-in housekeepers--with privileges, he hopes. Before it is over the \u003cbr\u003eMexican escapade will bring down the kind of disasters commonly found in\u003cbr\u003e pulp fiction. Why can't Elizabeth stop any of this from happening? No \u003cbr\u003ematter the madness, she cannot confront her parents any more than she \u003cbr\u003eever could. In the end, the surprising way in which they come undone \u003cbr\u003ereveals just what they spent their lives trying to hide, thereby setting\u003cbr\u003e her free. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThough unique in its loony details, \u003ci\u003eDon't Say A Word!\u003c\/i\u003e will \u003cbr\u003eresonate with beleaguered adult-children everywhere who will recognize \u003cbr\u003ethe special misery of watching, helpless, as stubborn, diminished \u003cbr\u003eparents careen precariously toward the end of life.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eMarcus, Elizabeth Roper:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - Elizabeth Marcus grew up in Manhattan, the only child of a dentist and a Macy's dress buyer, the Zeus and Hera of Apartment 2B. After escaping to Boston, she ran a small architectural office for 20 years, when she wasn't traveling to far-flung places with her psychiatrist husband and rambunctious children. Eventually, she decided to concentrate on writing, which allows her to pursue the many, quirky questions that fascinate her: Why are butterflies called 'butterflies'? Why can't she recall the taste of wines? Why are first-love memories so potent? Her essays have appeared in The New York Times and Boston Globe, on online sites like Cognoscenti, and in essay anthologies like Travelers' Tales. \"Don't Say A Word!\" A Daughter's Two Cents, in 90,571 Words is her first book. She posts essays related to the book at www.eLizWrites.com; she posts essays about everything else at www.archive.eLizWrites.com. She lives in Boston.","brand":"She Writes Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50377618620690,"sku":"9781647420529","price":12.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_019062f1-7216-4901-aa2a-1754ec2bc3d8.jpg?v=1728627763","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/dont-say-a-word-a-daughters-two-cents-9781647420529","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}