We’ve all played the game, the one where you consider what you would grab if your house was on fire and you had no time to pack. When your life literally depended on your getting out of there ASAP.
Risa Nye and her family faced that decision, but it was no game.
It was less than a month before Nye’s 40th birthday. She was musing over the passage of time and her lost youth when the unthinkable occurred.
There Was a Fire Here
In her beautifully told but wrenching new memoir, There Was a Fire Here, Nye recounts the trauma and the aftermath of the devastating fire that destroyed her home.
It happened on October 19, 1991. A grass fire was reported and quickly contained by fire crews. Or so they thought. The next day gusts of wind quickly spread pockets of fire still burning in the grass. Within a short time flames destroyed the local power station, obliterating eight pumping plants. Water pressure dropped. The smoke and fluttering ash were heavy enough to cause residents’ eyes to sting.
And the fire spread like … wildfire.
Nye and her husband Bruce told their two young children that they would wait out the firestorm at the home of Bruce’s parents nearby. They gathered what they thought was important at the time: changes of clothing, jewelry, photo albums.
In fact, they never returned to their beautiful home. It was the Great Oakland Fire that destroyed thousands of homes and killed 25 people.
Their home was leveled to its foundation. It would take two years to rebuild.
Nye skillfully builds the tension and horror, the feeling of surrealism, as she and her husband absorb the extent of the destruction. Belongings and keepsakes that remained in the house were gone forever. Articles of clothing, photos of great-grandparents, children’s toys, were never to be seen again. The blue baseball glove Nye’s father had given her; a gorgeous pink party dress — a consignment shop steal — she had worn just twice; a baby blanket. She grieves their loss. In chapters titled “Artifacts,” Nye shares the sentimental significance of these items, and it is heartbreaking.
She writes, “There was a fire here that wiped out not only things, not only people, but memories–a past with nothing left to mark its presence.”
Haunting and sobering, yes, but inspirational with dashes of humor as well, There Was a Fire Here is one woman’s story of catastrophic loss and the will to move on.
I received a copy of There Was a Fire Here from She Writes Press for an honest review,
which is the only kind of review I write.
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2016 Helene Cohen Bludman
What a gripping tale and I know what a good writer Risa is so I look forward to reading this book. What a nightmare she survived and one none of us want to live through.
Thanks for another wonderful book review, Helene!
Cathy Chester recently posted…What Is A Rehabilitation Therapist And How Can They Help You? #CMSC2016
I can’t imagine losing everything. I’m looking forward to reading Risa’s memoir.
I so remember the Oakland fire and the enormity of the loss via the news. Looks like a wonderfully poignant and gripping read.
Living in Australia means fire is a real risk and it is devastating – even the cover of the book made me shiver!
Leanne recently posted…Life Lesson from my Cat #8 ~ be Self-Contained
Such a devastating loss, I can’t even imagine. Looking forward with anticipation (and, knowing what happens, a bit of dread) to reading Risa’s book.
It’s a great book. Risa did a wonderful job with it. my memories of the fire are very vivid, even though it was about 40 miles from me.
Carol Cassara recently posted…Sonoma in the sunshine
I look forward to reading this. Bring on summer vacation, so I can indulge.
Pat recently posted…Happy Father’s Day Coach – Thanks for the Legacy
I did not know that Risa had written this! It is now on my ever-growing list of women writers sharing their trial by fire, literally in this case, memoirs.
Nancy Hill recently posted…Gun Violence – A Women’s Issue
It is powerful, Nancy. I know you would like it.
It is a horror that I since I know they all survived I look forward to read. I remember that time in Oakland well and viewing the aftermath was devastating.
Haralee recently posted…The 5 Best and Worst Things to Say to an Entrepreneur
I’m glad you mentioned her family is all safe. I was worried about reading it if they weren’t. I lost everything in a fire when I was 13. I’m sure this book will stir up emotions…
Doreen McGettigan recently posted…Completely Fragmented…
I can’t wait to read this. We were evacuated from our home during the Southern California wildfires a few years ago and it was so scary. We took very little with us and, thankfully, we returned home a few days later. I can’t even imagine what Risa and her family went through, and am glad everyone was safe.
I just love Risa, and her book sounds absolutely haunting, harrowing, intriguing, inspiring. You’ve added to the list of kudos that have confirmed I must get this book (and will buy it if I don’t win it from another spot I’ve entered for such).
Every adjective you used is spot on, Lisa.
I’ve never lost a house in a fire, but my brother did and I can still remember the devastation. To start again after so many years and he said that decades later he still went to look for things that had been lost that day.
Rena McDaniel recently posted…SOMETIMES CAREGIVING LIFE IS A BI*CH
Wow. How terrible. And it could happen to any of us. Things are just things but to those of us who are sentimental, they link us to our past.
Jamie@southmainmuse recently posted…Antiques Roadshow Tickets. Trash or treasure?
Absolutely. Thanks, Jamie.
This seems like a poignant read.. I need to get my hands on this..
Milton Garcia recently posted…Get Mean Muscle
Thanks for your comment, Milton.
Oh I so adore Risa’s posts so I can’t wait to read this. Perhaps my book club would like to discuss our attachment to “things.”
Cathy Sikorski recently posted…You might be a Caregiver….Part One
It is a great book for a book group discussion, Cathy!