Reviewing the memoir of a professional book reviewer is a bit daunting. Fortunately, I unreservedly enjoyed veteran reviewer Claire Dederer's first book, Poser: My Life In Twenty-Three Yoga Poses.
Using the twenty-three yoga poses as a springboard, Dederer moves easily through her life story, leading with the time when, as a new mother, she discovered yoga. She carries us along as she negotiates the pitfalls of attachment parenting, the difficulty of her marriage to her brilliant, yet depressive, husband, and her evolving feelings about her career after motherhood. Running as an undercurrent throughout are unresolved issues from her unconventional upbringing as the child of separated, but never divorced, parents.
As it has been for so many of us, yoga proves to be the catalyst for Dederer's transformation, as she is able to let go of maintaining a facade of perfection, both in yoga and in life. Poser is really a pleasure to read. Dederer's writing is poignant, yet funny in the right places. A lot of her adult experience rang very true to me, and I suspect that other mothers of young children and yoga skeptics-turned-converts will agree. Having a relatable story is a great start, but it takes an exceptional writer to parlay that into a real page-turner. Poser is the best yoga book I've read in a long time.
Disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.
