Meredith Maran has finally told the truth. Just don't be surprised if you don't like her very much.
After years reporting on child sexual abuse as a journalist, the author grew increasingly convinced that her aging father was guilty of molesting her when she was a child.
As the title telegraphs, many years later Maran realizes her claims were nothing but a hoax, a false memory. While the author's punchy prose style is far from boring, her stomach-tightening story will nauseate readers whose hearts go out to the wrongly accused man, suddenly deprived of the daughter -- and young grandsons -- whom he loves.
Survivors of true sexual abuse will no doubt find it difficult to empathize with Maran's shenanigans, and although she apologizes to her father repeatedly, it's clear she wrote the book as a salve to her aching conscience. She treads into particularly dangerous ground when she asserts that "incest is the perfect false accusation for the victimhood seeker," a theory sure to be deeply unpopular with real survivors on a path to healing.
If anything, "My Lie" proves that a little misapplied civilian knowledge of psychology can be a dangerous thing. In spite of the havoc and heartbreak Maran caused for so many years, her family is surprisingly forgiving when she comes clean about her lie. Readers may not be so generous.
