“Texbook Amy Krouse Rosenthal” by Amy Krause Rosenthal

On March 3, 2017 the New York Times published Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s Modern Love column, “You May Want to Marry My Husband” in which she outlined her husband Jason’s qualifications and her plan to find him a new partner because she was dying. Jeff and I both cried when I read it aloud on a recent road trip. Ten days later, on March 13, Amy died of ovarian cancer at 51. More than 4.5 million people have read that column. If you have not read her Modern Love column, go there because it is heartbreaking but also so bold and brave at the same time that it will make you pause (for a long time) with admiration and awe. (And it turns out that Amy and I both shared the same Bay Area book agent, Amy Rennert, which made me laugh through my tears.) Amy K-R was a prolific author who wrote both children’s books and memoirs, so I am now trying to celebrate her life by reading all of these books. Published in August, 2016, “Texbook Amy Krouse Rosenthal” is a non-linear book that NPR called, “a noisy activity book for adults that is more Mad Libs than a memoir.” But the truth is that now that Amy is gone, this is a memoir in the richest sense of the word. The book is organized into academic chapter heads such as Math, Social Studies and Language Arts. She fills those chapters with whimsical musings on her life and the way words matter, though sometimes are confusing, too. Maria Modugno, editor at Random House said, “Amy ran at life full speed and heart first. Her writing was who she was.” There is a moment in this book when she ponders what her 80-year-old self will be like. It is sad that she will never know, but also hopeful, that she has left behind a legacy of inspiring and creative work. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.