Unraveled

The True Story of a Woman, Who Dared to Become a Different Kind of Mother

By: Maria Housden

Narrated by: Staci Snell

As a 12-year-old girl, Maria Housden's vision of a happy future included everything that society expects girls to yearn for: a home, a husband, and, of course, children. Life had other plans.

Unraveled is Housden's riveting and thoughtful story of how, after the death of her young daughter, she found the courage to break away from her role as a wife and stay-at-home mom and strike out on her own in search of a more fulfilling life. Leaving her three surviving children in the primary custody of her husband, Housden faced down the disbelief of friends and family and began a journey that would ultimately lead her not only to the truth about herself, but also to a deeper and more loving connection with her children.

Housden writes about the emotional reckoning that led to her decision and the ways in which she has become the best mother she can be while no longer living with her children full-time. With fierce honesty and the same gift for poignantly beautiful writing that she demonstrated in the best-selling Hannah's Gift, Housden makes a valuable contribution to our collective conversation about mothering, marriage, and the assumptions we make about the way life is supposed to be. Unraveled is the remarkable story of one woman's choice not to live every girl's dream...and instead to find her own.

©2005 Maria Housden (P)2005 Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Housden's poignant, raw book has no easy answers for life's difficult moments, but her bravery will soothe those enduring similar trials." (Publishers Weekly)

“Maria Housden gives the rest of us permission to live lives of truth. Unraveled once again proves that hers is a voice to be reckoned with. She brilliantly and with subtle lyricism negotiates the shoals of love and loss, but it’s more than that....Housden consistently leaves her readers wiser, less alone, and cradling a palpable sense of the very good possibility of triumph.” (Suzanne Finnamore, author of Otherwise Engaged and The Zygote Chronicles)

“Maria Housden probes the rewarding/maddening underside of what it means to be a wife and mother. In her brave quest for self-fulfillment, she empowers others to challenge expectations. Her gentle wisdom is a gift to us all.” (Suzy Farbman, author of Back from Betrayal)

So, who am I?

I was deeply touched by this story. We all have stories but this one touched me deeply. I know that at some time in the future I will listen to it again.

The reader was so sensitive and gentle that she carried me along perfectly.

My life has been so different to the portrayed yet so the same.

Thought-Provoking

While this story didn't "play out" exactly as I had expected, Maria's story is full of thought-provoking ideas about finally stepping out into one's own life. You may not agree with or even like everything this woman did in her own life, but her story will make you think "out of the box" about what we each much ultimately decide for ourselves.

LOVE. LOVE. LOVE.

This book was beyond amazing. Having gone through a very similar experience, I was able to really feel her ride. This book will forever be close to my heart ♡

You've Got To Be Kidding.....

In a nutshell, for anyone who may be wrongfully misguided as to what the mysterious and unique method of parenting this author is wanting to reveal, this book is nothing more than the author's guilty feelings of abandoning her children and husband after going to a retreat to "find herself". Welcome to adulthood, parenthood and real life! This book was such a waste of time and energy as it will only have any responsible mother and wife cringing in disbelief and exasperation at this selfish woman who throws out excuse after excuse for not wanting to raise her children.

Intersting Perspective, but No Female Role-Model

This book was a rare look into the emotions and reasoning of a mother who, defining social & familial norms, choose to walk away from her own children. It does have a heart-wrenching recap of the loss of her youngest daughter; however, this author already published a best-selling book exclusive to this horrible loss ("Hannah's Gift"). What remained, quite frankly was the self-told story of a woman's adultery and (in my opinion) selfish abandonment of her children in order to pursue the "artist" inside her.
Overall ... "interesting perspective, but difficult to look beyond her actions & choices--tough call"