Are you close to your mother? Sadly, not many of us are.Sometimes it takes an illness or tragedy to realize how muchwe love or depend on our mothers. In One True Thing, EllenGulden and her mother, Kate, are forced out of their ownseparate worlds to live together when Kate is diagnosed withcancer.

Ellen is a journalist for the New York Timesand consumed by her job and herself. Ellen's father is acollege professor and Ellen's role model and hero. Ellenalways believed she and her father were alike in all ways; sheand her mother were never close. So when her father asks herto move in to help take care of her mother, she doesn't givein without a fight. With time Ellen realizes that her mother'sjob (being a Martha Stewart-like homemaker) is not asbrainless as she always thought.

As Kate's conditionworsens, she becomes depressed and begins to lose her will tolive. Her family always depended on her, but when Kate getssick she has to depend on others. Ellen begins to feeloverwhelmed and very depressed. She turns to her father butfinds he isn't the man she thought as she learns of hisaffairs and lack of support for his family.

Finally,Kate dies. Her autopsy reveals she died of an overdose ofmedication and, since Ellen took care of her, she is blamedfor her mother's death. Ellen is arrested and goes through alengthy trial. I'll leave the ending for you to findout.

It takes a tragedy to bring Ellen and Katetogether. In the end each is better and wiser because of theother. If this book doesn't make you want to get to know yourmother better, I don't know what will. Everyone can learn somuch from mothers if they just listen.

Even though itstarts slowly, One True Thing is a great book. It was verytouching and heartfelt. In my opinion the book is a lot betterthan the movie. Even if you have seen the movie, read the bookalso.