YOU DON'T HAVE TO SAY YOU LOVE ME. A Memoir

New York: Little, Brown & Co, 2017. First edition. Hardcover. A near fine copy in a near fine dust jacket. Signed by Alexie on a sheet tipped in by the publisher. Family relationships are never simple. But Sherman Alexie's bond with his mother, Lillian, was more complex than most. She plunged her family into chaos with a drinking habit but shed her addiction when it was on the brink of costing her everything. She survived a violent past but created an elaborate facade to hide the truth. She selflessly cared for strangers but was often incapable of showering (truncated) her children with the affection they so desperately craved. She wanted a better life for her son, but it was only by leaving her behind that he could hope to achieve it. It's these contraditions that made Lillian Alexie a beautiful, mercurial, abusive, intelligent, complex, and very human woman. 457 pages. (Inventory #: 14509)