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Ghosts of Fourth Street: My Family, a Death, and the Hills of Duluth
An open, frank rumination on a brother’s death and its reverberations throughout a family
Every family has its stories and secrets. Laurie Hertzel’s family had more than its share. At an early age, Laurie, the seventh of the ten Hertzel children, took on the challenge of sorting them out. Not old enough to be one of the Big Kids, yet too old to be with the Three Little Kids, she spent most of her time alone, reading, wandering, and observing her family as they moved around her in their house in Duluth. Though her parents were not warm, there were moments of closeness in those years—gifts of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books and special trips to the dairy for a sundae—but everything shattered after the sudden death of Laurie’s oldest sibling, eighteen-year-old Bobby, when she was just nine years old.
Moving back and forth in time, Laurie reflects on Bobby’s death and what happens to a family’s story when no one can talk about a tragedy and its toll. In Ghosts of Fourth Street, readers witness how the apparition of memories, the shadow of needs unmet, and the spirit of a family once whole all linger long after the death of a child and brother. As Laurie shares her experiences, we see the emergence of her fascination with story and truth as she teaches herself to read and finds solace and inspiration in books amid the tensions and competing agendas within her big, complicated family.
With keen attention, candor, and grace, Laurie paints a vivid portrait of 1960s Duluth as she poignantly examines a family contending with grief and the fact that life steadily goes on—snow and school buses, Christmases and Thanksgivings, ice skating and tobogganing and climbing trees, with ghosts always lingering at the edges.
Every family has its stories and secrets. Laurie Hertzel’s family had more than its share. At an early age, Laurie, the seventh of the ten Hertzel children, took on the challenge of sorting them out. Not old enough to be one of the Big Kids, yet too old to be with the Three Little Kids, she spent most of her time alone, reading, wandering, and observing her family as they moved around her in their house in Duluth. Though her parents were not warm, there were moments of closeness in those years—gifts of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books and special trips to the dairy for a sundae—but everything shattered after the sudden death of Laurie’s oldest sibling, eighteen-year-old Bobby, when she was just nine years old.
Moving back and forth in time, Laurie reflects on Bobby’s death and what happens to a family’s story when no one can talk about a tragedy and its toll. In Ghosts of Fourth Street, readers witness how the apparition of memories, the shadow of needs unmet, and the spirit of a family once whole all linger long after the death of a child and brother. As Laurie shares her experiences, we see the emergence of her fascination with story and truth as she teaches herself to read and finds solace and inspiration in books amid the tensions and competing agendas within her big, complicated family.
With keen attention, candor, and grace, Laurie paints a vivid portrait of 1960s Duluth as she poignantly examines a family contending with grief and the fact that life steadily goes on—snow and school buses, Christmases and Thanksgivings, ice skating and tobogganing and climbing trees, with ghosts always lingering at the edges.
163 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 31, 2026
About the author
Laurie Hertzel
6 books50 followersHertzel was a longtime journalist at the Minneapolis Star Tribune and now teaches in the Low Residence MFA program in Narrative Nonfiction at the University of Georgia. She is the author of three books, including two memoirs: "News to Me: Adventures of an Accidental Journalist," which won a 2011 Minnesota Book Award, and "Ghosts of Fourth Street," published March 31, 2026.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
November 9, 2025
I received a free copy of, Ghosts of Fourth Street, by Laurie Hertzel, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This is Laurie Hertzel story about growing up in the 1960's, and losing her older brother at a tender age. This was a good read, sad at times, I always wanted a big family, like Laurie had, but never had one.
January 11, 2026
(3.50*)
“I don’t know a family that isn’t somehow haunted. By memories, by the stories we tell and those we don’t tell, by the empty spaces where someone once was — the lost friend, the estranged sibling, the loved one slipping away. Those empty spaces we fill with stories; those spaces where ghosts live.”
Laurie Hertzel does a great job in writing a reflective memoir that feels very intimate and heartfelt when detailing the tragic death of her older brother Bobby. Instead of just reporting this case in factual police-style files & details, Laurie illustrates how the family truly felt at that time — disrupted routines, emotional struggles, family secrets, etc.
What I found intriguing for this book is how the author offers a mirror for my own experience. For example, as the reader, I realize that my family fails to handle / process grief properly, as well as, silence in your bloodline can be protective and good for us or secretive and damaging, and most of all that when you tell stories whether in writing, reading, or memory — you’re allowing yourself to process that trauma.
I learned here from Hertzel that memories turn to “ghosts” that can inhabit our everyday lives. I started the review off with a quote that reminds us that those empty spaces we fill with stories are the spaces where ghosts live — that’s the area in which needs to be processed.
Overall, I enjoyed this memoir a ton, as it did not focus on factual event details, but rather emotional truth. It was a powerful read and written beautifully from the eye’s of a first-hand experienced family member. Thank you NetGalley and University of Minnesota Press for the ARC!
“I don’t know a family that isn’t somehow haunted. By memories, by the stories we tell and those we don’t tell, by the empty spaces where someone once was — the lost friend, the estranged sibling, the loved one slipping away. Those empty spaces we fill with stories; those spaces where ghosts live.”
Laurie Hertzel does a great job in writing a reflective memoir that feels very intimate and heartfelt when detailing the tragic death of her older brother Bobby. Instead of just reporting this case in factual police-style files & details, Laurie illustrates how the family truly felt at that time — disrupted routines, emotional struggles, family secrets, etc.
What I found intriguing for this book is how the author offers a mirror for my own experience. For example, as the reader, I realize that my family fails to handle / process grief properly, as well as, silence in your bloodline can be protective and good for us or secretive and damaging, and most of all that when you tell stories whether in writing, reading, or memory — you’re allowing yourself to process that trauma.
I learned here from Hertzel that memories turn to “ghosts” that can inhabit our everyday lives. I started the review off with a quote that reminds us that those empty spaces we fill with stories are the spaces where ghosts live — that’s the area in which needs to be processed.
Overall, I enjoyed this memoir a ton, as it did not focus on factual event details, but rather emotional truth. It was a powerful read and written beautifully from the eye’s of a first-hand experienced family member. Thank you NetGalley and University of Minnesota Press for the ARC!
April 20, 2026
This could very well have been my childhood, or virtually any late-baby-boomer's childhood. It tells of an America that no longer exists, really. What a sweet and beautiful memoir. Interestingly, the tragedy around which the entire tale pivots doesn't happen till chapter 12 of 14. But it's hinted at throughout the narrative and,in retrospect, its placement fits. All families have ghosts of some kind or another, don't they? I read a book review for it in my local Ohio paper and was instantly intrigued. Brilliant little book...I highly recommend.
May 13, 2026
I confess to being a little disappointed, because I initially thought the book would be focused on the uniqueness of life in Duluth. It is instead a recounting of memories of growing up in a family of ten children, an authoritative father and submissive mother, and most importantly the death of the oldest brother at age 18. As the author points out, memories are flexible things, often more the effect of having heard stories from others rather than remembering the actual experience. And the stories often vary depending on who is telling them. This is a very sad childhood story, not only the central tragedy, but the difficulty of competing for attention within a very large household, and not really knowing when the attention will be positive or negative. But the book does generate hope, based on the fact that the author has created a very positive adult life as a well-known author and literary critic.
March 15, 2026
An emotional memoir about growing up in the fifties and early sixties in a large family in Duluth, MN. I enjoyed the emotions and child reasoning, much of it familiar. Recommended for those who enjoy memoirs.
October 8, 2025
This was a truly enjoyable read. I finished it in a few hours because I enjoyed it so much. Loved the way the author puts us in her shoes viewing life through her eyes as a girl. There are so many relatable parts to this book and the people it’s about. The theme of not talking about the hard stuff is still so relevant today just as it was in the 60s. This is a book that will make you feel the author’s nostalgia and transport you into someone else’s shoes for a bit. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
May 13, 2026
Sadness radiates from this little book. The reader knows from the beginning there will be a very big tragic event, but the details and family dynamics that lead up to it are not just tragic but beautifully crystal clear. I’m amazed at the author’s memory and sense of time and place. Who else can smell the turkey in the Hertzel oven or feel the skinned knees? How about the joy of a little one-on-one time with a parent in a busy family? This could be inspiration to write a memoir.
May 4, 2026
I enjoyed this memoir, but at the same time wanted to see more and maybe more will be forthcoming in a future work. What we did get was very intricately detailed as to the family life of an interesting, and in many ways highly repressed, family. Was it just because 'that's the way it was' for certain kinds of families, or was this family unique in what it did and did not talk about? There are hints and signs, but it is left more to the imagination than to the narrative.
December 1, 2025
This memoir is misleading. I assumed it was going to be about Hertzel's brother's death (as that is what the memoir is marketed as) but instead it was only about focusing on tiny details, the beauty of those details, and her brother was almost never mentioned until the last three chapters.
If you enjoy reading about someone describing details coated with beauty of life, then I'd recommend this book. But if you came for a story about how grief affects a family and to relate to this family on a deeper level, you won't find it here.
If you enjoy reading about someone describing details coated with beauty of life, then I'd recommend this book. But if you came for a story about how grief affects a family and to relate to this family on a deeper level, you won't find it here.
April 18, 2026
You will fall in love with the smart, observant, plucky little narrator whose observations and memories block by block, build a towering, complex family that come tumbling down at the death of her oldest brother.
April 5, 2026
Growing up in humid southern Minnesota, I always looked forward to summer trips to the cooler and breezier North Shore. One of my favorite parts of the drive north was a stop in Duluth. There, we got a first real glimpse of the massive (and freezing cold, even in August) Lake Superior, marveled at the huge cargo ships and the aerial lift bridge that could accommodate them, toured the eerie Glensheen Mansion, and inevitably ate ice cream cones.
In short, Duluth was a road trip highlight, a wayside stop that signaled summer vacation time. I can't say I ever really gave more than a passing thought to the people who actually lived there.
Journalist Laurie Hertzel's memoir, GHOSTS OF FOURTH STREET, brings one of those families to vivid life. The opportunity to revisit a city that I both knew well and not at all also offered a welcome chance to reflect on my own early memories. The book focuses primarily on Laurie’s childhood after her family relocated in 1959 from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Duluth, where her father had gotten a teaching job at the Duluth campus of the University of Minnesota. Laurie's father, who insisted that the children call him "Guv," is a larger-than-life figure in these pages. He imposes a big, and sometimes menacing, personality that's even larger than his family.
Laurie was stuck in the middle of her nine siblings --- not quite in step with the six older Big Kids (the eldest was her beloved brother, Bobby) and too old to be lumped in with the three Little Kids. Often borderline forgotten about or overlooked in such a big family (she slept on a mattress on the floor at the foot of her older sister's bed in the girls' room), Laurie became an astute observer of her loved ones. It’s a skill that serves her well here, as she colorfully recounts stories of pranks and mishaps, bad behavior and small kindnesses by big and little siblings alike.
Laurie also was keen on trying to understand her family history, and decoding the sometimes strained dynamics she witnessed between her parents and grandparents --- and between her older siblings (particularly Bobby) and Guv's disciplinarian tendencies. In many ways, Laurie felt Bobby to be closest to her in spirit despite the 10-year age gap. Like Laurie, Bobby loved to read and especially to write. They often would be found working side by side in the Duluth house's basement, where he kept his precious typewriter and she worked her way through Guv's extensive library of books.
GHOSTS OF FOURTH STREET is a chronicle of Laurie's large family and the tragic loss that came to define them, but it's also a memoir of her own development as a reader and writer. Many of the book's most vivid moments describe Laurie's proficiency and love of reading. She taught herself to read at the age of three. When she started school, she wrote her teacher a note at a time when her classmates were still learning the alphabet. She writes amusingly of using the bathroom as a sort of reading refuge, one of the few places where she could be afforded a smidge of privacy, and the way she sought to make sense of her own family through the models she encountered in books.
Laurie Hertzel's memoir excels by letting us into the secrets and stories that make up a family's history --- and by sharing alongside us in the pain of a loss that alters that history forever. It's both a commonplace tale and a remarkable one --- and certainly will prompt readers' reflections on the "empty spaces we fill with stories" in our own lives and those of our families.
Reviewed by Norah Piehl
In short, Duluth was a road trip highlight, a wayside stop that signaled summer vacation time. I can't say I ever really gave more than a passing thought to the people who actually lived there.
Journalist Laurie Hertzel's memoir, GHOSTS OF FOURTH STREET, brings one of those families to vivid life. The opportunity to revisit a city that I both knew well and not at all also offered a welcome chance to reflect on my own early memories. The book focuses primarily on Laurie’s childhood after her family relocated in 1959 from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Duluth, where her father had gotten a teaching job at the Duluth campus of the University of Minnesota. Laurie's father, who insisted that the children call him "Guv," is a larger-than-life figure in these pages. He imposes a big, and sometimes menacing, personality that's even larger than his family.
Laurie was stuck in the middle of her nine siblings --- not quite in step with the six older Big Kids (the eldest was her beloved brother, Bobby) and too old to be lumped in with the three Little Kids. Often borderline forgotten about or overlooked in such a big family (she slept on a mattress on the floor at the foot of her older sister's bed in the girls' room), Laurie became an astute observer of her loved ones. It’s a skill that serves her well here, as she colorfully recounts stories of pranks and mishaps, bad behavior and small kindnesses by big and little siblings alike.
Laurie also was keen on trying to understand her family history, and decoding the sometimes strained dynamics she witnessed between her parents and grandparents --- and between her older siblings (particularly Bobby) and Guv's disciplinarian tendencies. In many ways, Laurie felt Bobby to be closest to her in spirit despite the 10-year age gap. Like Laurie, Bobby loved to read and especially to write. They often would be found working side by side in the Duluth house's basement, where he kept his precious typewriter and she worked her way through Guv's extensive library of books.
GHOSTS OF FOURTH STREET is a chronicle of Laurie's large family and the tragic loss that came to define them, but it's also a memoir of her own development as a reader and writer. Many of the book's most vivid moments describe Laurie's proficiency and love of reading. She taught herself to read at the age of three. When she started school, she wrote her teacher a note at a time when her classmates were still learning the alphabet. She writes amusingly of using the bathroom as a sort of reading refuge, one of the few places where she could be afforded a smidge of privacy, and the way she sought to make sense of her own family through the models she encountered in books.
Laurie Hertzel's memoir excels by letting us into the secrets and stories that make up a family's history --- and by sharing alongside us in the pain of a loss that alters that history forever. It's both a commonplace tale and a remarkable one --- and certainly will prompt readers' reflections on the "empty spaces we fill with stories" in our own lives and those of our families.
Reviewed by Norah Piehl
April 20, 2026
I read "Ghosts of Fourth Street" with eager anticipation, drawn by the chance to revisit a neighborhood I, too, cherished in my youth. While the setting was immediately familiar and a pleasure to reconnect with, it was the story of the Hertzel family that truly captivated me, particularly the family's response to the death of the oldest son, Bobby. From the very first pages, their lives unfold in a way that is not just engaging, but deeply compelling in its detail.
The characters reflect the rhythms and expectations of their time, yet the blending of two distinct family backgrounds through marriage creates a dynamic that feels both unique and fascinating. Laurie’s storytelling—especially through the eyes of a young girl—is strikingly authentic. She captures the voice, curiosity, and emotional landscape of a nine-year-old with remarkable precision, evoking memories and truths that feel familiar even when they aren’t personally shared.
Through vivid detail, she paints a portrait of childhood shaped by wonder, observation, and the complexities of belonging—particularly as a child situated between different groups of siblings, lonely but rarely alone. The family itself is richly drawn, filled with colorful individuals who embody both strength and vulnerability, shaped by their circumstances, their era, and one another.
At its core, this is a story about what it means to be human: to parent, to grow, to struggle, and to remain forever someone’s child. It’s a beautifully told, deeply human narrative that I didn't want to put down—and one I would wholeheartedly recommend.
The characters reflect the rhythms and expectations of their time, yet the blending of two distinct family backgrounds through marriage creates a dynamic that feels both unique and fascinating. Laurie’s storytelling—especially through the eyes of a young girl—is strikingly authentic. She captures the voice, curiosity, and emotional landscape of a nine-year-old with remarkable precision, evoking memories and truths that feel familiar even when they aren’t personally shared.
Through vivid detail, she paints a portrait of childhood shaped by wonder, observation, and the complexities of belonging—particularly as a child situated between different groups of siblings, lonely but rarely alone. The family itself is richly drawn, filled with colorful individuals who embody both strength and vulnerability, shaped by their circumstances, their era, and one another.
At its core, this is a story about what it means to be human: to parent, to grow, to struggle, and to remain forever someone’s child. It’s a beautifully told, deeply human narrative that I didn't want to put down—and one I would wholeheartedly recommend.
December 3, 2025
Ghosts of Fourth Street is a memoir about family. Laurie tells about her early childhood growing up with her parents, Trish and Guv, and her large amount of siblings, leading up to and surrounding the death of the oldest child, Bobby.
The book is written in a stream-of-consciousness style, jumping back and forth in time, telling anecdotes about the family; memories that show how realistic a large family could be, living in that era. To me, it read less like a proper book, and more like short memories all pasted together into a book, which unfortunately didn't work for me.
The death of Bobby is mentioned a couple of times, but the book isn't about him. It's about the entire family. Laurie was much younger than Bobby, so her childhood focus is more on her parents and the siblings closer to her age, so readers don't actually get to know much about Bobby until the chapter that covers his death, in which the book then focuses on.
I wanted to enjoy this. I love memoirs, especially about family, but this felt too personal, like I should only be reading if I knew the family and wanted to read about them specifically. It feels like an afternoon sitting with Laurie as she recounts her childhood to me, but not something I should be reading somewhere across the other side of the world. Well written, but unfortunately didn't hit the mark for me.
The book is written in a stream-of-consciousness style, jumping back and forth in time, telling anecdotes about the family; memories that show how realistic a large family could be, living in that era. To me, it read less like a proper book, and more like short memories all pasted together into a book, which unfortunately didn't work for me.
The death of Bobby is mentioned a couple of times, but the book isn't about him. It's about the entire family. Laurie was much younger than Bobby, so her childhood focus is more on her parents and the siblings closer to her age, so readers don't actually get to know much about Bobby until the chapter that covers his death, in which the book then focuses on.
I wanted to enjoy this. I love memoirs, especially about family, but this felt too personal, like I should only be reading if I knew the family and wanted to read about them specifically. It feels like an afternoon sitting with Laurie as she recounts her childhood to me, but not something I should be reading somewhere across the other side of the world. Well written, but unfortunately didn't hit the mark for me.
November 9, 2025
I gobbled this book up in two days. As someone who grew up in the Midwest, one of five children, I felt almost as if I were reading about my own life.
I remembered playing outside until dinnertime, even in the cold winters, having nightly dinners where everyone had to be sitting at the table — no excuses — sleeping in cramped bedrooms, sharing beds, and occasionally hiding from overwrought, angry parents. Hertzel writes honestly of growing up in a family of 10 kids, where, despite the daily chaos, they had a pretty normal upbringing. That is, until the dynamics changed forever.
Ghosts of Fourth Street is engaging and entertaining. Hertzel's heartfelt, emotional, and honest writing grips readers from the very beginning. If you enjoy reading about families and their idiosyncrasies, I highly recommend this book.
Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for this ARC.
I remembered playing outside until dinnertime, even in the cold winters, having nightly dinners where everyone had to be sitting at the table — no excuses — sleeping in cramped bedrooms, sharing beds, and occasionally hiding from overwrought, angry parents. Hertzel writes honestly of growing up in a family of 10 kids, where, despite the daily chaos, they had a pretty normal upbringing. That is, until the dynamics changed forever.
Ghosts of Fourth Street is engaging and entertaining. Hertzel's heartfelt, emotional, and honest writing grips readers from the very beginning. If you enjoy reading about families and their idiosyncrasies, I highly recommend this book.
Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for this ARC.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
Although I am older than her, and did not know her, I grew up in the same neighborhood Laurie Hertzel did in the marvelous city of Duluth Minnesota. (I just read that Duluth is the 6th coldest city in the US. Oh, the stories I could tell.)
There were ten children in Laurie’s family and she was #7. The subtitle tells a lot: “My Family, a Death, and the Hills of Duluth. What I liked best about the book is how I was able to relate to the city and its charms.
Hertzel eloquently explains the dynamics of a large family, already slightly dysfunctional, when the death of the oldest brother changes the family dynamics completely. These are the “ghosts” that haunted—and still haunt—the Hertzel family.
I will be buying copies of the book for my siblings when it comes out in March. A poignant read.
There were ten children in Laurie’s family and she was #7. The subtitle tells a lot: “My Family, a Death, and the Hills of Duluth. What I liked best about the book is how I was able to relate to the city and its charms.
Hertzel eloquently explains the dynamics of a large family, already slightly dysfunctional, when the death of the oldest brother changes the family dynamics completely. These are the “ghosts” that haunted—and still haunt—the Hertzel family.
I will be buying copies of the book for my siblings when it comes out in March. A poignant read.
April 23, 2026
Hertzel captures with precision and spectacular detail what it was like to grow up in a mid-size city in the Midwest in the 1960s. Her home in Duluth, Minnesota, was bustling--two parents and ten children. Her parents functioned in a somewhat hands-off manner. Hertzel was left to entertain herself, which she did by observing the chaos around her. When tragedy strikes the family, each of them retreat even further into themselves.
If you want to remember (or learn about) a bygone time that involved walks to school, trips to the ice-cream shop, and lots of unstructured time to play and be a kid, this book is for you. As cozy as that sounds, though, a hint of darkness runs through the book. This is an honest account of days that were the good ol' days in some respects but in other respects, left a lot to be desired.
If you want to remember (or learn about) a bygone time that involved walks to school, trips to the ice-cream shop, and lots of unstructured time to play and be a kid, this book is for you. As cozy as that sounds, though, a hint of darkness runs through the book. This is an honest account of days that were the good ol' days in some respects but in other respects, left a lot to be desired.
May 24, 2026
I read this book because I appreciated Laurie Hertzel's work as books editor for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. After reading this account of her childhood, I think it's amazing she's able to function as a productive and competent adult. This harrowing account of life in a family with 10 children and a tyrannical father explains why she sought solace in reading and tried to keep out of everyone's way so maybe that partially explains her own career. However, you know right from the start that her oldest brother is going to die while she was still a child so that event hangs over the entire narrative. If the book had been any longer, I would have quit, but I just kept hoping for a few kernels of compassion and positivity.
April 6, 2026
As a Duluth resident my entire adult life, I really enjoyed this book and could identify with many of the places and situations Laurie described.
She had a challenging upbringing with nine siblings and quirky parents, which she describes in an easily readable way. Raising only one child tested my limits at times, so I can’t imagine what it would be like for parents of ten.
Laurie shares her unique observations of everyday life woven together with stories of heartwarming family traditions.
Although I knew it was coming, I was still brought to tears by the unspeakable tragedy of her brother’s death and how it changed her family forever.
I highly recommend this book.
She had a challenging upbringing with nine siblings and quirky parents, which she describes in an easily readable way. Raising only one child tested my limits at times, so I can’t imagine what it would be like for parents of ten.
Laurie shares her unique observations of everyday life woven together with stories of heartwarming family traditions.
Although I knew it was coming, I was still brought to tears by the unspeakable tragedy of her brother’s death and how it changed her family forever.
I highly recommend this book.
April 18, 2026
One of the best memoirs I've read in a very long time. In her account of a large and chaotic family which suffers unimaginable loss, the author accomplishes something that can be difficult to do in a memoir: she is clear-eyed and unflinching but also generous, particularly in her portrayal of her parents, capturing their complexity and their humanity. Through her meticulous eye for detail, she vividly captures not only the day to life of the household but also the community and the neighborhood. Just her descriptions of the logistics of orchestrating dinners for a family of 12 make the memoir worth reading. A terrific read that was hard to put down. Highly recommended!
April 5, 2026
Beautifully written memoir about the complexities of family. Hertzel's unsentimental style makes for a raw rendering of a large family living on the financial edge in Duluth during the '60s. The structure of this memoir makes for a taut page-turner. As we become more familiar with each family member, we increasingly dread what we know is coming. Hertzel deftly weaves certain elements throughout the book -- a minor incident or object on one page becomes important or meaningful two pages later. I highly recommend this wonderful book.
May 29, 2026
Laurie Hertzel, former book editor of the Minnesota Star Tribune, paints an evocative portrait of growing up in a large family in Duluth. Lost between the big kids and the littles, as well as dealing with undemonstrative parents, Hertzel soldiers through in an effort to understand her own path. Unfortunately, the death referred to in the title (her 19 year old brother) only occurs in the final chapters, too late to adequately explore what is promised in the sub-title. Still, it's an interesting look at a family quite unlike my own. Actual rating: 3.5
May 14, 2026
I was sent this book, and therefore wanted to give it an honest reading. It is a memoir of a family which has many different issues that are present, exasperated by a large number of children. The book was easy enough to read, but the title on ghosts seemed a bit misleading. I would have given it a 3.5.
Review of advance copy received from Author
I received this book from the author, my sister-in-law Laurie. She’s a great writer and here tells a compelling story about her childhood in Duluth.
May 28, 2026
lovely memoir. Beautifully written.
May 28, 2026
There were parts of this I really loved and parts I was kinda “meh.” I would have liked the ending to be less abrupt. Great story, but kinda all over the place.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews