White Walls: A Memoir About Motherhood, Daughterhood, and the Mess in Between

Written by Judy Batalion

Narrated by Rachel Botchan

A memoir of mothers and daughters, hoarding, and healing. Judy Batalion grew up in a house filled with endless piles of junk and layers of crumbs and dust; suffocated by tuna fish cans, old papers and magazines, swivel chairs, tea bags, clocks, cameras, printers, VHS tapes, ballpoint pens . obsessively gathered and stored by her hoarder mother. The first chance she had, she escaped the clutter to create a new identity-one made of order, regimen, and clean white walls. Until, one day, she found herself enmeshed in life's biggest chaos: motherhood. Confronted with the daunting task of raising a daughter after her own dysfunctional childhood, Judy reflected on not only her own upbringing but the lives of her mother and grandmother, Jewish Polish immigrants who had escaped the Holocaust. What she discovered astonished her. The women in her family, despite their differences, were even more closely connected than she ever knew-from her grandmother Zelda to her daughter of the same name. And, despite the hardships of her own mother-daughter relationship, it was that bond that was slowly healing her old wounds. Told with heartbreaking honesty and humor, this is Judy's poignant account of her trials negotiating the messiness of motherhood and the indelible marks that mothers and daughters make on each other's lives.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Jan 5, 2016
• ISBN: 9781490699387

Judy Batalion

Judy Batalion is the New York Times bestselling author of the highly-acclaimed THE LIGHT OF DAYS: The Untold Story of Women Resistance Fighters in Hitler’s Ghettos, published by William Morrow in April 2021. THE LIGHT OF DAYS has been published in a young readers’ edition, will be translated into nineteen languages, and has been optioned by Steven Spielberg for a major motion picture for which Judy is co-writing the screenplay. Judy is also the author of White Walls: A Memoir About Motherhood, Daughterhood and the Mess in Between, optioned by Warner Brothers, and her essays have appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Forward, Vogue, and many other publications. Judy has a BA in the History of Science from Harvard, and a PhD in the History of Art from the Courtauld Institute, University of London, and has worked as a museum curator and university lecturer. Born in Montreal, where she grew up speaking English, French, Hebrew, and Yiddish, she lives in New York with her husband and three children.  https://www.judybatalion.com/

Reviews for White Walls

[nyiper · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Batalion's amazing memory provided an incredible picture of her life from early childhood to her almost current life---showing the difficulty of growing up in an extremely dysfunctional family, which made her basically raise herself. How she managed to become the woman she is today is a powerful story of strength.

[lynnb_64 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Judy Batalion grew up with a mother who was a hoarder and suffered from paranoia. Her father chose to accept her mother the way she was and did almost nothing about the growing accumulation of canned tuna, furniture and clothing. Nonetheless, he was a positive presence in Judy's young life, spending time with her and helping her with her education. This autobiography looks at how her home life affected Judy's choices as a young adult, and how it influenced her behaviour and feelings after she became a mother herself.This book made me think about how to support people who have mental health issues, as well as how to best support their family members who, themselves, face challenges. It was touching and (I'm somewhat ashamed to admit) surprising to see how much Judy's father loved her mother, despite her hoarding and other compulsions. It was interesting to see how Judy and her husband, Jon, reacted so differently to living with hoarders. Judy had an interesting life with her parents and grandparents in Montreal, attending Harvard University, moving to work and study in London, England, dating various disasters and great guys, even working as a stand-up comedian. Through it all, her mother exerts an influence on her...sometimes powerfully, other times more subtly. The book is well written, often funny, and very honest.