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INTRODUCTION

Izzy and Ellie's mother, Mimi, danced in the rain, gave them midnight baths, and invented exotic maladies for herself as a ploy for sympathy and attention. Mimi's crazy stunts and bold lies were the source of both shame and pride for Izzy and Ellie, who knew that something was terribly wrong even before Mimi's suicide on her 41st birthday.

Now, on the eve of her own 41st birthday, Izzy must confront the idea of entering "virgin time, the second half of a life unlived"—a life her mother never knew. As memories of her past—a childhood of both thrills and terrors—flood back, she wonders about her future, her unsteady marriage, and her rapidly dwindling chances of become a mother. Further complicating matters, her father, sister, and seven-year-old niece are flying in to Colorado to help her get through the dreaded birthday—even though she never asked for help. In fact, her family may be the ones who need help...

From an author known for her "unblinking honesty" (Kansas City Star) comes this "surprisingly upbeat tale of a ruinously dysfunctional family" (Kirkus Reviews). With humor and drama, Crazy as Chocolate follows the volatile relationship between two sisters who must come to terms with their mother's heartbreaking legacy.

ABOUT ELISABETH HYDE

Born and raised in New Hampshire, Elisabeth Hyde briefly practiced law for the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. In 1982 she took time off to write her first novel, Her Native Colors, and never looked back. She has been awarded working scholarships to the Bread Loaf Writers Conference, teaches creative writing through artist-in-residence programs, and is also the author of Monsook Valley.
 

Praise

"A remarkably lucid and authoritative novelist."—John Irving

"More than a simple tale of familial madness...a compelling, involving story of remembrance, understanding, and acceptance."—Boston Globe

"Like Anne Tyler, Hyde captures the quirky, heartbreaking core of a character and puts it on the page with shining prose...a novel full of originality and sparkle."—Publishers Weekly

"An engrossing read."—Library Journal

"Stand[s] out from a sea of other novels...Isabel is the sort of woman you would want to join for a cup of coffee and a nice long chat..."—Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. After Mimi sinks the family car, she tells Izzy, "You're my conscience...You're my moral compass." What does Mimi mean by this? How does her comment affect her daughter at that moment? How does it affect Izzy later in life?
    
2. Izzy observes that "All good mothers love, and try their best." Do you think she sees Ellie as a good mother? What about Mimi? Does Izzy ever come to appreciate Mimi's statement that it's "better to have a mother like me than June Cleaver"?
    
3. Compare Ellie's childhood competence as an older sister of Izzy to her competence as a mother of Rachel. How is Ellie's mothering similar to Mimi's? How is it different?
    
4. Isabel is disturbed by the way her sister "worries the little issues to death" while ignoring bigger problems. For example, Ellie obsesses about whether or not the seatbelts in Isabel's backseat are secure enough for her daughter, Rachel, but discounts Rachel's concern about her parents' impending divorce. What are some other examples of Ellie's disproportionate worries? How do Ellie's irrational fears compare to Mimi's? How do Isabels's responses to her mother and her sister differ, if at all? What do you make of Ellie's unwillingness, as a child, to challenge Mimi's strange fears?
    
5. Wilma, Isabel's client, tells her that her granddaughter is the only thing that keeps her daughter, Tracy, going "with all that crazy worrying she does about poisoning everyone." Tracy is hyper-aware of her own potential to harm her child. How does Tracy's mental illness compare to Mimi's? How aware is Mimi of the effect her illness has on her daughters? What is Isabel's reaction to Wilma's comment?
    
6. Mimi often ridicules her husband for his steady, cautious ways. She places herself in opposition to him by playing up her role as the free spirit of the family. Do you think she actually resents him for his different approach to life? What are some of the positive and negative affects of Mimi's carefree ways on Ellie and Isabel? How do Isabel and Ellie feel about their father's constant attempts to "make things normal" for them?
    
7. When Isabel asks why their father never scheduled a party for Ellie's 41st birthday, Ellie responds, "because you're the nice one." This bothers Isabel. Why? What negative connotations does the word "nice" have for Isabel? How did she come to occupy this particular role in her family? How do you reconcile the calm adult with the teenage Izzy, who was "angry most of the time" and often took out her aggression on her passive mother?
    
8. After her quarrel with Ellie in front of their father, Isabel thinks, for the first time, of her father's reasons for visiting her on her birthday, asking herself, "Am I forever just a daughter?" What does she mean by this? If she were to ask her father this question, how do you think he would answer?
    
9. Isabel recalls feeling "happy and safe" as a child when her family was together. Yet it was at these times that Mimi's dark moods "always deepened." Later on, Isabel observes that her mother truly began to fall apart when she "lost [her] ability to deny, or lie...sometimes all of us have to keep on deceiving ourselves." What connection, if any, would you draw between Isabel's and Mimi's different brands of self-deception?
    
10. As adults, Isabel and Ellie each feel they have come to some kind of understanding—however flawed—of why their mother committed suicide. How does each interpret Mimi's act? How do their interpretations differ? Who does each blame, if anyone, for sending their mother over the edge?
     
11. "Even crazy, I'm as nice as a chocolate bar."—Anne Sexton
    Anne Sexton was a respected, prolific poet who spent periods of her life in asylums and eventually committed suicide. Discuss the significance of the novel's epigraph. Why do you think the author chose it? How does it relate to the story and its characters?