Jessica Hendry Nelson is an award-winning author and Assistant Professor in higher ed. Readers may recognize her from her debut novel and other work. She has been featured in The Threepenny Review, Prairie Schooner,  North American Review, Tin House, The Los Angeles Review of Books, and more. Now she’s back with another memoir. Joy Rides Through the Tunnel of Grief by Jessica Hendry Nelson is another well-written, revealing piece in which the author invites readers to navigate her exploration of love and loss, and how to reconcile with both. 

Nelson had an alcoholic father who died from an accident while under the influence. She also had a brother Eric who was a new father and also a drug addict – also deceased from the disease. And her husband of 15 years, Jack, revealed that he never wanted children, something that Nelson desperately wants for herself. With all of this loss piling up, she takes readers along as she recounts memories of the men who were once the closest to her. She reflects on her encounters with the women in her gym/fitness group, whom she’s never interacted with. She shares details about her relationship with her best friend, who ends up becoming a mother. And yet through all the struggle and complicated relationships, she still holds hope for her future. And she wonders where her desires to be a mother will take her. 

Nelson’s poetic writing style captures readers from the very start. Her stories are entertaining, engaging, and written in a way that makes readers feel like they are in the moment with her. She builds up her marriage that eventually transforms into a single deal-breaking moment. And while I couldn’t relate, I could definitely empathize. She struggles to reconcile with her family history and what it means to pass down certain traits. And among it all, she shows us that she still desires to create something. And the line between art and the human experience becomes more murky. But either way, readers will enjoy their Joy Rides Through the Tunnel of Grief. 

Jessica Hendry Nelson joins us for a Cantina Conversation to talk about how she navigated the difficult subject matter and what she learned the most about her experiences. Check out an upcoming episode of The Nerd Cantina Show podcast and preorder Joy Rides Through the Tunnel of Grief, available September 1.