A Reunion of Ghosts

by Judith Claire Mitchell

reviewed by Suzann Kale

Must the sisters live with the spirits of their elders? Is it a choice? Or is it already written.

So, like for geese it’s a gaggle; for horses it’s a herd; for bees it’s a swarm. For ghosts it’s a reunion.

Lives pass through a rent-controlled New York City apartment in A Reunion of Ghosts by Judith Claire Mitchell. Three sisters, and then an aunt. Their lives are directly affected by previous generations – I can’t give too many details for spoiler reasons – and the sisters, burdened by what came before them, give it their best try.

Generations pass stuff down to generations, and how the new generations absorb the history, how they work it – or are unable to work it - into their own lives, is the crux of this incredible story.

As the apartment hosts the lives that pass through it, the stories and traumas that pass through it come to life. Linear time doesn’t exist, even when you put together a detailed family tree – because a grandfather’s choices affect the sisters directly. A mother’s coping skills affect the sisters’ coping skills. We pass emotional and spiritual DNA along, without realizing the impact we have on people not yet born.

And the sisters must live with the spirits of their elders. Or must they? Is it a choice? Or is it already written.

This is an engrossing book about the impermanence and subjectivity of our choices. I couldn't put it down!