Delia Ephron’s Memoir Could Be Called ‘Love, Loss and Love Again’

Within the early days of their romance, Delia and Peter take journeys (she to his coast, he to hers), trade essentially the most romantic of texts and emails, purchase a Ping-Pong desk they will match into their residence solely by transferring out the eating room desk. Ephron’s story is inspiring for all of us on the market whose romantic lives or longings won’t ever be the stuff of a big-box-office romantic comedy. The AARP crowd.

Then comes her analysis.

Delia’s oncologist treats her with a brand new experimental drug that places her into remission. When the remission fails, the one remaining choice is a brutally painful stem cell transplant that has her begging to die.

Right here’s the place the memoir veers, considerably problematically, into the realm of medical procedural — a paean to heroic medical doctors, medical miracles. Peter stays, all through, essentially the most stalwart and devoted accomplice, a lot so that each nurse writes “husband on responsibility” in her notes.

“You aren’t your sister” is a chorus of Delia’s story — as it might have been all through her life. She reminds herself that Nora’s demise from leukemia doesn’t guarantee the identical end result for her. For one factor, Nora Ephron stored her lengthy sickness a secret from nearly everybody however her closest associates, nearly to the top, the place Delia ultimately invitations her legions of associates into her world.

If I’ve a difficulty with the memoir, it arises from the identical high quality that makes Delia Ephron come throughout as a singularly likable and bighearted particular person. Each web page accommodates recent accounts of great, sort acts by a protracted solid of characters — hat tricks to her hairdresser, outdated associates visited in Wales, neighbors of their residence constructing, the girl behind the counter on the bakery, the stem cell donor — whose names and tales I had a tough time protecting straight. Ephron fills the latter half of her guide with their loving however not significantly memorable notes to her, reprinted of their entirety.

The character who shines by in Ephron’s story is Peter, after all. Because the couple’s story attracts to an in depth, with Ephron’s well being restored, she leaves us with an important film second: Peter strolling a lovable new pet on West tenth Road. Didion — who gave us “Play It as It Lays” — may need pointed her lens towards a darker, extra caustic picture. However let’s not overlook, Delia Ephron is a part of the staff who created “You’ve Bought Mail.” If there’s such a factor as a feel-good memoir, that is it.