Before the Light Fades

From the acclaimed writer and thinker, a moving memoir about losing her mother as well as honouring the legacy of a family whose members struggled bravely against some of the worst crises of the twentieth century. 'A fascinating story of courage, doubt and defiance across three generations' SARAH WATERS'Heartfelt and upfront... A grieving daughter rediscovers her mother's political past' BLAKE MORRISON, Guardian'A compelling reconstruction of her mother's life as a young anti-nuclear activist defying her suburban parents' CATHERINE TAYLOR, Financial Times'Grief and loss sit alongside hope, in this affecting family story that also reckons with some of humanity's greatest challenges' SUSIE ORBACH After the sudden suicide of her mother at age 75, Natasha Walter is thrown into bewilderment and sadness. In trying to understand why her mother took such a shocking decision, she explores Ruth's complicated, courageous life. She traces Ruth's rebellious actions in the nuclear disarmament movement, and the legacy of Ruth's father Georg, whose involvement in the anti-Nazi resistance of the 1930s in Germany led to his imprisonment and torture. Walter looks deeply into the shadows around both lives, and also finds the hope and joy, and remembers the determination that they showed to hold on to justice and truth. And so she finds herself stepping back into life once more. This is a story of ordinary people facing extraordinary challenges, that reminds how we can all stand up for what we believe before the light fades. 'A fascinating story of courage, doubt and defiance across three generations' SARAH WATERS'A fierce and beautiful book' EDMUND DE WAAL'Heartfelt and upfront... A grieving daughter rediscovers her mother's political past' BLAKE MORRISON, Guardian'A compelling reconstruction of her mother's life as a young anti-nuclear activist defying her suburban parents' CATHERINE TAYLOR, Financial Times'Eloquent, piercing, gloriously humane' PHILIPPE SANDSAfter the sudden death of her mother at age 75, Natasha Walter was thrown into a time of bewilderment and sadness. It was only when she began to search back through Ruth's history, that she began to understand how her life led to death by her own hand. She learns that Ruth had been brought up to be a conventional young woman, but chose to take huge risks and even break the law for her beliefs in the nuclear disarmament movement of the 1960s. Reaching further back she explores the history of Ruth's parents, and the story of her grandfather who, as part of the anti-Nazi resistance in the 1930s in Germany, was imprisoned for three years and then went on the run across Europe, finally finding safety in England.Honest about loss, this memoir also searches for what is valuable in the legacy of a family who lived through some of the great crises of the twentieth century. Without false hope, and with honest passion, Natasha Walter shows us why, even when success is far from assured, it is always important to stand up for what you believe.