I first heard about the “Driving Miss Norma” Facebook page a few months ago and was excited to see that a book was in the works. At first glance, I thought the book might be too sentimental for my tastes, but I ended up loving it and its message, and I would really recommend it to anyone.
At 90 years old, Norma Bauerschmidt lost her husband of 67 years and within days received a diagnosis of stage 4 uterine cancer. Faced with a future of surgery, chemo and radiation, she decides instead to “hit the road” in an RV with her son and daughter-in-law and try to enjoy the time she has left. In August 2015 the three of them, with their dog, Ringo, set off on an adventure across the US that none of them imagined. The story is funny, heart-warming and thought-provoking.
The authors recommend Being Mortal by Atul Gawande as a book that helped shape their thoughts and feelings about end-of-life issues, and it's a book I highly recommend as well. If you like Driving Miss Norma, another multigenerational road trip story that reminds me of Miss Norma’s adventures is The Ride of Our Lives by Mike Leonard.