North of Normal: A Memoir of My Wilderness Childhood, My Unusual Family, and How I Survived Both by Cea Sunrise Person
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Inspite of this memoir being a salacious story of the author's growing up years in the counter-culture of the late 1960s-1990s, I caution anyone against judging the narrator and her writing gifts before reading at least a good portion of her book. I found it difficult to pick up sometimes, so triggering some of the stories of parental neglect were. But the fact is that the abuse and neglect that Cea experienced--often both personally and vicariously, through her parent-child role with young mother-- is balanced with unexpected courage and resourcefulness that makes for a great desire of the reader to see how things work out. So, stick with the book.

Most of us chuckled our way through the comedy-series "Schitz Creek" with its fuzzy, uncertain parental-offspring roles. Some of the same narcissism shows up in "North of Normal." And the child's reaction to a narc parent (in the case of North of Normal, a narc grandparent), is initially as you would expect: hero-worship, love, enjoying the time together. But the growing sensitivity of the author as she becomes a teen who has experienced extreme neglect, and observed the way others are treated, results in a pretty amazing set of mature choices and a happily-ever-after conclusion.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who believes there is no way their life will turn around, that they can achieve 'normalcy' after the impact of extreme childhood poverty, abuse, neglect, etc.