This is a tragic story about the author’s upbringing in the 1950’s; an only child of Jewish refugees who had escaped from Nazi Germany to England. For virtually all of her childhood, Ruth Joseph’s mother had anorexia and with her father always ‘away on business’ she became the sole carer to her mother, Judith, whose illness spiralled ever downwards until her untimely death aged 46. It is a harrowing read; as Judith starves and withers away, she forces her daughter Ruth to eat, who is then herself, filled with self-loathing for her own bloated body. The relationship between mother and daughter is intense and it is heart-rending to see that despite all the love that existed between them, there was so much unhappiness, pain and deception. It is a relief to the reader that Ruth finally escapes the claustrophobia of this terrible family situation and moves on but the anguish of her choices is only too apparent. Very moving.
Remembering Judith tells the harrowing story of a young Jewish girl growing up as the full time carer to a mother ravaged by anorexia. Ruth battles with prejudice and ignorance in 1950’s Cardiff as she struggles to live a normal life outside her own house of horror. A house where food is celebrated and reviled, where it is a weapon and a weakness. Roles are reversed in this unique tale of an obese child trying to tempt her mother to eat while coping with an abusive father. Sadly her battle is lost and her mother dies in her 40’s leaving Ruth to struggle with her own demons. Does the disease also affect her? Can she lead a balanced life and find resolution?
After gaining an M.Phil in Writing from Glamorgan University, Ruth Joseph was approached by Accent Press, to publish Red Stilettos. It includes ‘Patchwork’ – a Rhys Davies prize winner and ‘Stealing Baby’ which won the Lichfield Short Story Prize. Other work has been published in New Welsh Review, Parthian, Honno, Loki, Cambrensis, and The Western Mail Magazine. Her memoir Remembering Judith which chronicles her life as a child-carer to an anorexic mother has been published by Accent Press and was featured in the Guardian She lives in Cardiff and adores her husband Mervyn, family and rescue-Labrador Bobbi.
