The Memory of Flight by Debra Bowling

The Memory of Flight by Debra Bowling

Marilyn’s quiet, mysterious beauty belies the turmoil inside her head.

In 1962, after her alcoholic husband becomes increasingly violent, she attempts to jump off the bridge in Guntersville, Alabama. Six months later, she moves with her children to her parents’ farm to escape her marriage and to quiet the voices growing louder inside her head. But soon her makeshift house becomes both retreat and prison when hostile feelings begin to erupt from past family conflicts and her husband’s recurring visits.

At six years old, Marilyn’s daughter Ginny is close to her father and puzzled by her mother’s cold, harsh behavior. She seeks comfort in her grandmother’s company and the discovery of her father’s old Brownie camera. As Marilyn’s mental health declines, Ginny becomes increasingly obsessed with photography and the solace it provides her in a world that seems determined to isolate and ostracize her.

After high school, Ginny leaves for college with the belief that she is breaking free from her difficult childhood and starting her own life. But her obsession for shooting photographs of people in moments of raw emotion ultimately leads her to expose details of a murder as Marilyn faces a new crisis that throws both of their lives out of control.

The Memory of Flight is about finding a way forward with a broken spirit while learning to unearth and face great loss and pain. It is about remembering the earlier flights, healing the wounds of the past, and learning how to soar once more.

"Debra Bowling's debut novel resonates wit achingly insightful portrayals of daughter and mother in the slowly changing Alabama of the 1960s and '70s...[It] takes the reader deep into the anguished terrain of two women struggling for equilibrium in a harsh and unforgiving world...Told with astonishingly tender intimacy, The Memory of Flight is an exquisite portrait of women enduring the unendurable. A deep and profound read." Elizabeth Bruce, author of And Silent Left the Place

Debra Bowling grew up in North Alabama and currently lives inAtlanta, Georgia. For years, she divided her time between creative writing and working with nonprofits, including domestic violence, arts, children's issues and civil rights. Other interests include photography, video production, spirituality, and Jung Psychology.