FI

In this memoir of the unexpected death of her son, Fi, Alexandra Fuller pulls off quite a feat by simultaneously filling her voice with both life and loss. Fuller grew up in Zimbabwe (DON'T LET'S GO TO THE DOGS TONIGHT), and her rich, warm voice contains appealing traces of that accent. Fi died at age 21 despite having no real health problems, and grief and incomprehension are clear in every word Fuller utters. But she is acerbically funny, too. One of her attempts to recover a sense of equilibrium is attending a silent retreat in Canada. The experience is odd enough, but the guard she encounters upon reentering the U.S. at an out-of-the-way border post is hilariously bonkers. Fuller is often bursting with rage and physical pain, and her voice quickening into a near-rant with a raw edge translates both word and feeling perfectly. A.B. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine [Published: MAY 2024]