Does one horrific action \u2014 whether small or accidental, physically or emotionally damaging \u2013 make a horrible person?<\/p>\n
Behind every tragedy, one can find horrific grief, a freeing sense of relief \u2014 even a healing joy.<\/p>\n
Karen F. Uhlmann\u2019s \u201cIntersections,\u201d released May 6, implores readers to contemplate the concept that humans \u2014 regardless of the mistakes they make \u2014 have the capability to positively impact one another.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The novel, Uhlmann\u2019s debut, is set in Chicago. Based on a true story, \u201cIntersections\u201d focuses on a Lincoln Park hit-and-run which resulted in the death of a four year old girl.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Two key witnesses to the tragedy \u2014 a police officer with a traumatic past and an influencer with a troubled home life \u2014 cross paths and, due to their unique forms of grief, develop a bond that alters their lives and relationships.<\/p>\n
Uhlmann\u2019s writing is complex, but intriguingly simplistic. Everyday interactions, such as parked car conversations or weekly coffee dates between main characters Charlotte and Ed provide integral views into the power of human connection. Readers are able to glean subtle insights into emotions only uncovered through human connections in the midst of tragedy.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe wondered if the world had become more brutal, or if it only seemed that way because they were privy to every tragedy,\u201d Uhlmann wrote.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The brilliance of \u201cIntersections\u201d is demonstrated through these lines, as they emphasize the notion that humanity is still humane despite overexposure to humans\u2019 barbaric actions. Radiating with such impactful societal concepts, it\u2019s a battle not to annotate every page of Uhlmann\u2019s work.<\/p>\n
Themes of grief, chosen family and shame are exemplified through Charlotte\u2019s daughter Libby \u2014\u00a0 a young woman struggling with mental health, an eating disorder and substance abuse. It\u2019s through heated conversations between the mother and daughter and Libby\u2019s involved therapy schedule the prominence of familial shame \u2014 whether blatant or hidden \u2014 throughout human experience is exposed.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s through the direct effect of such tragedy that \u201cIntersections\u201d articulates how this shame can be reshaped into something wholesome and positively new.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Charlotte\u2019s conversations with Ed give her an outlet to express concern for Libby\u2019s mental state, allowing her to understand the personal shame she inhabits and inspiring her to change her perspective on the strained relationship.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chicago settings like Sheridan Road, Adams Street and Zoolights at the Lincoln Park Zoo live in each chapter. True Chicagoan details add a sense of realness to the book which may resonate with those that call the city home.<\/p>\n
\u201cIntersections will always be a Chicago story,\u201d Uhlmann wrote in the novel\u2019s acknowledgments.<\/p>\n
As a former Chicago resident, Uhlmann didn\u2019t miss the opportunity to feature her hometown. The good, bad and ugly are cut open throughout the novel, exposing Chicago as the place it truly is \u2014 a community full of people who do good and bad things and keep pushing onto tomorrow, trying to do better the next day.\u00a0<\/p>\n
While presented in a comprehensible manner, Uhlmann\u2019s deftness through monumental themes and philosophical ideas leaves readers with much to reflect on.<\/p>\n
Perhaps one person\u2019s actions do have the power to impact hundreds of others, \u201cIntersections\u201d proposes. Perhaps tragedy can be the key leading to true happiness. Perhaps an intersection can be the place where one life is taken and new life begins.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIntersections\u201d is available wherever books are sold.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Does one horrific action \u2014 whether small or accidental, physically or emotionally damaging \u2013 make a horrible person?…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":40991,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[288,93,61,60],"class_list":{"0":"post-40990","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-books","8":"tag-books","9":"tag-entertainment","10":"tag-ie","11":"tag-ireland"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40990","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40990"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40990\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/40991"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40990"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40990"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40990"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}