The Almost Moon

Alice Sebold
Little, Brown and Company (2007)
ISBN 9780316677462
Reviewed by Cherie Fisher for Reader Views (11/07)


I was excited to read the new novel by the acclaimed author of “Lovely Bones,” but quickly realized that this was going to be a completely different experience.  “The Almost Moon” is a story about a middle-aged woman whose life completely spirals out of control in a very short period of time.  While it is very well written, the story itself is so disturbing that I would recommend it only to people who enjoy dark stories.  I found myself having a hard time getting through the book at times because I was torn between wanting to smack some sense into the main character and feeling horrified at the things she did. 

Helen Knightly is a middle-aged woman who has devoted her life to marriage, children and family. Now divorced with grown children she is frustrated by her mother’s frailties.  Helen knows that it is time for her mother to go into assisted living and while she is helping her get ready for the move, her mother does not make it to the bathroom in time.  Helen completely loses it while trying to clean her mother up and kills her mother.  This leads to one bad decision after another.  Helen spends the next twenty-four hours doing many irrational things including having sex with her best friend’s son. 

As she faces the consequences of what she has done and tries to decide what to do about it, Helen also takes a look at her past and the impact that her parents had on her life.  As Helen’s life spirals she also feels a strange sense of liberation at stepping outside the box of what her life had become. 

“The Almost Moon” is definitely for readers who enjoy stories about the mental illness, depravity and weaknesses of the human condition.   As a middle-aged divorcee with aging parents I found it way too disturbing to enjoy.

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