A review by nordstina
Truth & Beauty: A Friendship by Ann Patchett

emotional medium-paced

3.75

I am continuing reading through Ann Patchett's backlog and I was particularly interested in her memoir about her friendship with Lucy Grealy, as she writes about this relationship in bits and pieces in her two essay collections. I actually found it quite helpful reading those collections beforehand, even though they were published after Truth & Beauty because I think they provide much needed context and a fuller background on Ann's life during the years of their friendship. Ann and Lucy went to undergrad together, but really became close while they were both in graduate school at Iowa (Lucy a poet, Ann a short story writer). Lucy was a fascinating person and complex. She went through so much trauma both physical and emotional growing up with her cancer journey and the many reconstructive surgeries, one wonders how those contributed to her ultimate interactions with others. She was such a magnet for others- both because of how she looked and how she drew people in through friendships. Ann does a wonderful job providing a rich portrait into their friendship, but as the book progressed, I found Ann fading more and more into the background as Lucy became more unstable. Ann's (and many of Lucy's other friends) life really revolved around Lucy and she would drop everything at the drop of a hat to be with her. It all seemed incredibly exhausting. While Lucy was surrounded by others, she sought constant validation from others while also despairing that she would never be loved. It is a lot, and while there are clear shades of this neediness when Ann and her first become friends, it becomes more and more pathologic as Lucy falls into despair. Even with the heavy subject matter, Ann is such a fabulous chronicler of relationships and I continue to adore her.
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