Post by Graveyardbride on Mar 8, 2015 7:51:17 GMT -5
American Ghost: The True Story of a Family's Haunted Past
Hannah Nordhaus had known since she was a child that her great-great-grandmother, Julia Staab, haunted La Posada, a hotel in Sante Fe, New Mexico, that once was Staab’s home. But it wasn’t until Nordhaus discovered a booklet of her family’s history, written by a great-aunt, that she became interested in finding out the truth about Staab’s life. American Ghost: The True Story of a Family’s Haunted Past, is the nonfiction account of Nordhaus’ research into the life and death (and after-death) of her great-great-grandmother.
There were many stories that swirled about Staab’s life: that she went insane, was chained to a radiator at one point, or was murdered by her husband or committed suicide. Because Nordhaus is not just uncovering family history, but also researching a ghost, she combines the typical approach with the atypical, digging through dusty archives, newspaper clippings and diaries; interviewing family members, and searching online genealogy. But she also visits psychics and eventually sleeps in Julia Staab’s bedroom at La Posada. Her research takes her from Santa Fe to Staab’s native Germany. In places, she fills in gaps through speculation, making educated guesses based on her extensive research of life in New Mexico during the late 1800s.
Through her journey, Nordhaus concludes the true ghost is one’s own history, even though she does see spheres of light while staying in Julia’s room. Despite this personal connection, the book comes across as unbiased. Many of the people Nordhaus speaks with project their own lives onto Staab’s, assuming Julia Staab’s husband was an abusive husband because of their own failed marriages, for example. Such projections are natural, and acknowledging them – as the author does – is a powerful way to recognize one’s own strengths and weaknesses.
American Ghost is beautifully written and self-aware, a memoir that tells a story and searches for broader lessons. It addresses sexism and mental illness, connection to place, motherhood and anti-Semitism (the Staabs were Jewish). It’s not just a story of one woman, but the story of a family through generations. Ultimately, American Ghost is not just the story of a haunting, but a story that will haunt readers.
Source: Anne Mayhew, The Star-Tribune, March 7, 2015.