When Madeline Was Young

When Aaron Macivers wife, Madeline, suffers brain damage in a bike accident, she is left with the intellectual powers of a seven-year-old. In the years that follow, Aaron and his second wife care for her, in this exquisite portrait of how a family tragedy forever shapes and alters the boundaries of love.

Jane Hamilton, award-winning author of "The Book of Ruth "and "A Map of the World "brings us a rich and loving novel about a non-traditional family in the aftermath of a terrible accident.
When Aaron Maciver's beautiful young wife, Madeline, suffers a head injury in a bicycle crash, she is left with the mental capabilities of a six-year-old. In the years that follow, Aaron and his second wife care for Madeline with deep tenderness and devotion as they raise two children of their own. Inspired in part by Elizabeth Spencer's "Light in the Piazza," Hamilton offers an honest and exquisite portrait of how a family tragedy forever shapes the boundaries of love.