Dear Martha, WTF?: What I Found in My Search for Why

By: Tricia LaVoice

Narrated by: Julie Kelly

Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins

Publisher's summary

The Giving Tree meets Eat, Pray, Love in a brazenly honest, refreshingly irreverent, and even hilarious look at going “through” versus going “down”.

Tricia LaVoice’s life turned upside down when her parents were tragically killed in an automobile accident. Her close relationships with her mother and father made everyday life afterward a challenge.

Happily married and with a beautiful baby girl, Tricia had no time to fall apart. Over the years, as her family grew, Tricia met two strong, dynamic women, both survivors of their own life challenges, whose wonderful friendships and unconditional maternal love and strength guided her to trust in life.

But tragedy struck Tricia’s family again, shaking her faith in life once more. It was during this time of suffering and loneliness that she found an unexpected respite in nature, in the form of a beautiful pine tree Tricia named Martha. This rare bond inspired Tricia, who literally talked to Martha daily as she healed the hurt in her heart. Tricia learned to listen to her inner voice and healed herself by finding her source of courage and strength is within her.

©2018 Tricia LaVoice (P)2018 Post Hill Press

Sad and wonderful. Life.

I started and stopped this listen several times. The subject matter dealt with the loss of parents and I was just not in the mental space to handle it. Well, neither was Tricia. We felt every single anguishing step along her journey to live after her parents deaths.

I had to listen to this book in baby steps!!!

The narration was exceptionally well-down. The emotional swings and the circumstances dictated quite a range of emotion. The narrator handled them very well.

This is not a light listen but should be required reading for anyone going through the loss of a parent. All of the crazy that comes with that is dealt with. Just like Tricia, you find support where you can get it.

Honest, Heartfelt, Courageous...

I am very grateful for the gift of this story. Tricia’s healing journey inspires me to continue on my own spiritual path towards finding peace in my life. It takes courage to speak our truth but the healing power it provides others is a gift that helps free us. Thank you. I am grateful.
Julie Kelly delivered this story just beautifully and with great heart. I felt as though a dear friend was sharing with me some of the most intimate moments of her life. The loss, grief, anger, sadness, love and humor—everything—was presented with authenticity and realness. Much gratitude to Tricia, Julie and Martha for their blessings :)

Absolutely Wonderful!

Great book! Julie Kelly's narration was absolutely perfect! Her narration coupled with Tricia's words had me totally involved in the story. Great job to both Tricia and Julie!

Life Between the Latte and Chardonnay

The narrator, brought this story to life, which just made this story. This story sounds is if it is a true story of a young lady, Tricia (the author), who's parents are radically were killed by a driver who never slowed down and hit them while at a red light. The journey sounded like it is/was a difficult one and one that really should have had therapy sessions for her grief vs sharing all of her problems on her friends and becoming "that girl who lost her parents" and who's friends get sick of hearing her complain....this is also evident when her friend is going through a divorce and is trying to relay her stress and grief only to be interrupted by Tricia talking again about herself-basically as if she is more important than anyone else. I think too, the need for adult communication was also needed, although there where lunches and yoga days...it is so important just to have those to hang out with, vs 4 kids all the time.

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBoom

Heartwarming

Very interesting book about grief and loss, and recovery in the form of "telling it to the tree."
Very courageous journey, and was greatly moved by this story. I lost both of my parents (although not suddenly) and know how awful it can be to recover.

Very well done, narration was amazing. Excellent job :)

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
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Tears

I was gifted this book with the understanding that I would leave an honest review.
I didn't hate this book but I also didn't love it. I did love the narrator Julie Kelly though. Julie is the reason I made it to the end of this book.
The book is very emotional and so it should be as Tricia losses both her parents suddenly along with other tragic family happenings. I speak from experience that losing a parent in my 20's was really hard and it still has an impact on my life 30 years later. Maybe that is why this book was so hard for me to read, it hit close to home. So I guess I would recommend giving the book a chance. It just was the wrong fit for me.

Cathartic

I lost my mother suddenly and without warning. I forever find myself talking about her. Missing her and grieving for all the things left unsaid. The parts of my life she did not touch my last 2 children. Just the everyday conversations we had. Her laugh. Her quick wit! I found this book both cathartic and in many ways beneficial to my grieving soul. I received this book at my own request at no charge.

I Only Rooted for Healing so the Book Would End 😐

This book started off very high although it embarks on the trauma immediately.

For a published book by a House, it’s deeply disappointing. Time sequence is scattered and goes back and forth. There is no sequence but seems like incoherent thoughts in a diary. If that was the case, it should remain private. But to be shared with others, it definitely needed a thorough edit and timeline.

Also, the only other focus was her sex life with her husband. Which was trashy for a memoir about her struggle to find a normalcy again. I’m also confused why her family did not encourage her to seek help. Or help for themselves while dealing with her melancholy. (Maybe Mr didn’t know since he was getting sex all of the time.) She wanted to complain how often he wanted it and how tired she was... from doing what? The kids were at school and she was doing who knows what for eight hours a day. She didn’t even go to work when she didn’t have babies at home. Unless you count yoga class.

Her dips into yoga to find solace was the first thing to make sense. But then even that became boring.

I understand this was a hard time for this Mrs LaVoice. But I didn’t find it earth shattering or healing or encouragement for others dealing with loss.

Julie Kelly delivered this book rather well. Which was the ONLY way I completed it to write this review.

"I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review."
Language, Sex warning