Review: Riptide

Title: Riptide: struggling with and resurfacing from a daughter's eating disorder
Author: Barbara hale-Seubert
Source: personal copy

Synopsis:
 A young girl’s fatal, decade-long struggle with anorexia and bulimia is chronicled from her mother’s perspective in this heartbreaking memoir. Barbara Hale-Seubert tried to cope with grief, fear, and powerlessness as her daughter suffered through these diseases, and she kept a journal of their experiences as a form of therapy. These entries are the basis for a raw and revealing narrative, meant to offer other parents the comfort that comes with knowing they are not alone, the strength to help their children through the agony of eating disorders, and the grace to learn to surrender what is out of their control.

My review:
This was a difficult book to read because of the emotional content.  It is written by a mother who lost her oldest daughter to anorexia and bulimia.  The book chronicled the author's struggles as her daughter suffers from and slowly dies from the diseases.  She talks about her guilt about not being able to save her daughter and that she didn't do enough to help her.  I have not read very much about eating disorders, but I thought this was a unique view on the subject.  It is definitely worth reading, especially if you or someone you know is suffering from the same illnesses.

Rating: 4 stars