Ayelet Waldman ( he, איילת ולדמן, born December 11, 1964) is an
Israeli-American
, native_name_lang =
, image =
, caption =
, population = 110,000–150,000
, popplace = New York metropolitan area, Los Angeles metropolitan area, Miami metropolitan area, and other large metropolitan ar ...
novelist and essayist. She has written seven mystery novels in the series ''The Mommy-Track Mysteries'' and four other novels. She has also written autobiographical essays about motherhood. Waldman spent three years working as a federal public defender and her fiction draws on her experience as a lawyer.
Biography
Ayelet Waldman was born in
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
, Israel. Her grandparents on both sides were
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...
, Canada, but was living in
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
when he met her mother, Ricki. After they married, they moved to
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
.Espinoza, Galin "Author, Author" ''People'', December 16, 2002. Retrieved August 25, 2010. After the
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab states (primarily Egypt, Syria, and Jordan) from 5 to 10 Ju ...
in 1967, the family moved back to Montreal, then
Rhode Island
Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but it ...
,"Profile: Ayelet Waldman" ''San Francisco Chronicle'', October 22, 2003. Retrieved August 25, 2010. finally settling in
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
family, attended Hebrew school and Jewish summer camps, and lived on a kibbutz in Israel for a year while in the tenth grade. She has said that her parents were atheists, but very Jewish,Cantor, Danielle "Successful women: Ayelet Waldman" ''Jewish Woman'', Fall 2009. Retrieved August 25, 2010. and that her "whole life was immersed in Judaism, but in a very specific kind of Labor–Zionist Judaism."Irwin, Rachel "Israel, and other impossible questions" , ''The Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle'', February 9, 2007. Retrieved August 25, 2010. Despite this, she did not celebrate becoming a bat mitzvah.
Waldman attended
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University ( ) is a private liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut. Founded in 1831 as a men's college under the auspices of the Methodist Episcopal Church and with the support of prominent residents of Middletown, the col ...
, where she studied psychology and government, and studied in Israel in her junior year, graduating in 1986. She returned to Israel after college to again live on a kibbutz, but found it too sexist for her taste. She then entered Harvard Law School and graduated with a J.D. in 1991.
Waldman has been married to fellow author
Michael Chabon
Michael Chabon ( ;
born May 24, 1963) is an American novelist, screenwriter, columnist, and short story writer. Born in Washington, DC, he spent a year studying at Carnegie Mellon University before transferring to the University of Pittsburgh, gr ...
since 1993.Duin, Stev "Lunch with Michael Chabon and Ayelet Waldman" ''Oregon Live'', February 5, 2009. Retrieved August 25, 2010. They live in a 1907 Craftsman houseYbarra, Michael ''Los Angeles Times'', October 5, 2003. Retrieved August 25, 2010. in the Elmwood district of
Berkeley, California
Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and E ...
.
The couple work from the same office in the backyard of their home.Wollan, Malia ''New York Times'', October 16, 2009. Retrieved August 27, 2010. They edit each other's work,Barnes&Noble "Meet the writers: Ayelet Waldman" . Retrieved August 27, 2010.Lapriore, Elaine Retrieved August 25, 2010.Seligman, Katherine "Ayelet, Unfiltered" ''San Francisco Chronicle'', July 24, 2005. Retrieved August 25, 2010. and offer each other advice on writing, sometimes going on "plot walks" to discuss issues.Memmot, Carol ''USA Today'', February 23, 2006. Retrieved August 25, 2010.Rufus, Anneli "Truth or dare: Ayelet Waldman makes love – and enemies" ''East Bay Express''. Retrieved August 25, 2010.
Many characters in her fiction are Jewish.Kaplan Sommer, Allison "Ayelet Waldman on writing Jewish characters and raising daughters" , ''The Sisterhood'', August 5, 2010. Retrieved August 25, 2010. Her novel '' Love and Treasure '' is about the Holocaust.
Waldman has written several times about her 2002 diagnosis of
bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder, previously known as manic depression, is a mental disorder characterized by periods of depression and periods of abnormally elevated mood that last from days to weeks each. If the elevated mood is severe or associated with ...
After graduating from law school, Waldman clerked for a federal judge, worked in a large corporate law firm in New York for a year, and then moved to California with
Michael Chabon
Michael Chabon ( ;
born May 24, 1963) is an American novelist, screenwriter, columnist, and short story writer. Born in Washington, DC, he spent a year studying at Carnegie Mellon University before transferring to the University of Pittsburgh, gr ...
, where she became a criminal defense lawyer. Waldman was a federal public defender for three years in the Central District of California. Chabon mentioned on their first date that it was his intention to care for his children so his wife could pursue her career, which he did after the birth of their first and second children.Thompson, Bob "Bad Mother's Day: Ayelet Waldman takes on the cultural disquiet over parenting", ''Washington Post'', May 5, 2009 Retrieved August 25, 2010. After the birth of her first child, she tried juggling legal work with mothering,Salter Reynolds, Susan "Bad mother? Good writer" , ''Jakarta Globe'', June 22, 2009. Retrieved August 25, 2010. then left her job to be with her husband and child. This was short-lived.
Waldman was an adjunct professor at the
Boalt Hall School of Law
The University of California, Berkeley, School of Law (commonly known as Berkeley Law or UC Berkeley School of Law) is the law school of the University of California, Berkeley, a public research university in Berkeley, California. It is one of 1 ...
at the
University of California
The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Franci ...
, Berkeley from 1997 to 2003.Edelstein, Wendy "Boalt lecturer's first novel blends maternal fears with a hard-nosed view of America's drug war" ''UC Berkeley News'', October 29, 2003. Retrieved August 25, 2010. She also worked as a consultant to the Drug Policy Alliance, a resource center advocating a drug policy based on harm reduction. While working as an adjunct professor, she found writing scholarly articles uninteresting and intimidating,Gruner, Libby , Literary momma.(Retrieved on August 27, 2010.) so she began writing fiction instead."Ayelet Waldman" . Lyceum Agency. (Retrieved on August 25, 2010.) According to Waldman, her fiction is "all about being a bad mother." Waldman said she would not return to the legal profession.Bokma, Cindy , Conversations with famous writers, August 2, 2005. Retrieved August 25, 2010. In her fiction Waldman has drawn extensively on her legal experience.
Literary career
Waldman has written various online and print articles about mothering while at home on maternity leave after the birth of her first child and again after she left her job as a public defender. She has at various times said that she chose to write because it was not as time-consuming a career as the law,Kasriel, Alex "Interview: Ayelet Waldman" ''The Jewish Chronicle Online'', July 16, 2009. Retrieved August 25, 2010. because it gave her something to do during naptimes, it kept her entertained, because she was starved of someone to laugh at her jokesKinsella, Bridget December 30, 2005.(Retrieved on August 27, 2010.) and because it gave her a way of putting off going back to work.
"Mommy-Track Mysteries"
In 1997, Waldman started writing mystery novels, thinking they would be "easy . . . light and fluffy." At first she wrote in secret, then with her husband's encouragement. She has said that she chose mysteries because they are primarily about plot.Behe, Regis , Tribune Review, February 12, 2006.(Retrieved August 27, 2010.) Waldman has said that her first mystery work, eventually published as ''Nursery Crimes'', was her first attempt at creative writing, describing it as her first piece of fiction "aside from my legal briefs."
Waldman wrote seven novels about the "part-time sleuth and full-time mother" Juliet Applebaum. Waldman has said of Juliet, "She is me, well, she was me," and "They say to write what you know . . . so I wrote exactly what I knew." Like Waldman, Juliet is a , red-headed former public defender with a nocturnal writer for a husband, who has become a stay-at-home mother but finds it boring. To relieve her boredom, Juliet works as a part-time detective. The collective title of the series is ''The Mommy-Track Mysteries''. The novels are humorous and Waldman has said of her criminals, "My villains aren't villains. They're people whose crime you understand." Waldman has previously said that '' Bye-Bye, Black Sheep'' is likely to be the last, but her agent's website notes that she is working on more mysteries.
Novels
In addition to the mystery genre, Waldman has published three other novels. ''Daughter's Keeper'', published in 2003, drew on Waldman's experience as a criminal defense lawyer and representation of drug offenders. The first manuscript was rejected thirty-one times. It features a young woman, Olivia, who inadvertently becomes involved in the trafficking of drugs and her relationship with her emotionally reserved mother. The book is also about the impact of federal drug policy, particularly mandatory minimum sentencing, on the criminal justice system. The novel was inspired by a case Waldman handled. The book was generally well received and was a finalist for the 2003 Northern California Book Award.
''Love and Other Impossible Pursuits'', published in 2006, is about a Harvard-educated lawyer with a precocious stepson who loses a newborn child to SIDS.Gaines, Luan "Curled up with a good book" Retrieved on August 27, 2010.) The impetus was the loss of her own unborn child diagnosed with a genetic abnormality. The book also deals with how mothers criticize each other's mothering, a theme in Waldman's nonfiction too.Salter Reynolds, Susan "At the intersection of grief and destiny" Los Angeles Times, August 15, 2010. (Retrieved August 25, 2010.) It explores negative feelings towards one's own children. The novel was also reviewed well in places,Nussbaum, Emily "Report from stroller central" New York Magazine, January 28, 2006. although some reviews were negative.
Don Roos wrote and directed a film based on the novel, starring
Natalie Portman
Natalie Portman (born Natalie Hershlag, he, נטע-לי הרשלג, ) is an Israeli-born American actress. She has had a prolific film career since her teenage years and has starred in various blockbusters and independent films, receiving mu ...
,
Lisa Kudrow
Lisa Valerie Kudrow ( ; born July 30, 1963) is an American actress, producer, and screenwriter. She rose to fame for her role as Phoebe Buffay in the sitcom ''Friends'' (1994–2004), which has since been named one of the greatest television cha ...
and Scott Cohen. The film premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in August 2009.
Waldman's ''Red Hook Road'', published in 2010, is about two bereaved families in a small village in Maine and the effect of a family tragedy and class differences on marriage, styles of motherhood (including the domineering), and family life. It is also about boxing and boat building.
Short stories
Waldman has contributed short stories to the anthologies ''McSweeney's Stories of Love and Neuroses '' (2003) and ''McSweeney's Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories '' (2004), the latter of which was edited by Michael Chabon.
The short story "Minnow," which appeared in ''McSweeney's Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories'', is about a woman who is haunted by her dead baby. Again, she regards this as related to the loss of her own child."Bad Mother's day" May 9, 2009. (Retrieved on August 25, 2010.) A horror film is being developed, based on the short story.
Nonfiction
Waldman has written many personal essays for online and print publications aspects of motherhood, such as how women criticize each other's mothering (that is, the "mommy wars"),"Too much at stake to be nice" New York Times, March 12, 2010]. (Retrieved on August 25, 2010.) combining paid work with motherhood, and how the upbringing of those raised in a postfeminist era clashed with the reality of having to make professional sacrifices. Her essays have also explored the sexuality of mothersWaldman, Ayelet "Truly, Madly, Deeply" New York Times, March 27, 2005. (Retrieved on August 25, 2010.) and of young people, homework, extended family life, body image, aging, literary hoaxes, and Jewish life. Although most of her nonfiction is personal, she has also written on aspects of the criminal justice system.
In 2016, Waldman and her husband Michael Chabon, in collaboration with the " Breaking the Silence (organization), Breaking the Silence" organization, initiated the production of an anthology that includes articles written by writers from around the world about the Israeli occupation, to mark the 50th anniversary of the
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab states (primarily Egypt, Syria, and Jordan) from 5 to 10 Ju ...
. As part of the project, about 50 writers visited Israel, including
Dave Eggers
Dave Eggers (born March 12, 1970) is an American writer, editor, and publisher. He wrote the 2000 best-selling memoir ''A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius''. Eggers is also the founder of ''Timothy McSweeney's Quarterly Concern'', a lite ...
,
Colm Tóibín
Colm Tóibín (, approximately ; born 30 May 1955) is an Irish novelist, short story writer, essayist, journalist, critic, playwright and poet.
His first novel, '' The South'', was published in 1990. '' The Blackwater Lightship'' was shortlis ...
and
Mario Vargas Llosa
Jorge Mario Pedro Vargas Llosa, 1st Marquess of Vargas Llosa (born 28 March 1936), more commonly known as Mario Vargas Llosa (, ), is a Peruvian novelist, journalist, essayist and former politician, who also holds Spanish citizenship. Vargas Ll ...
. The book was published under the title "Kingdom of Olives and Ash: Writers Confront the Occupation", in June 2017.
''Motherlove''
Her 2005 essay "Motherlove" was first published in the anthology ''Because I Said So: 33 Mothers Write About Children, Sex, Men, Aging, Faith, Race and Themselves'', where she thought it would have only a small readership. However, it was reprinted in the Modern Love section of the ''New York Times'' in March 2005 under the headline "Truly, Madly, Guiltily." It can be read onlin here Waldman's essay led to extensive and vitriolic debate, on television shows like '' The View'', on internet blogs, in coffee shops, and elsewhere. Some people even threatened to report Waldman to the Department of Social Services in relation to the perceived mistreatment of her family.Oprah Winfrey, who said she was "very brave" for speaking out, invited Waldman onto her television show to discuss her views on love, marriage, and motherhood.
''Bad Mother''
After Waldman complained about the response to her essay, a friend suggested she write a book about it. In 2009, Waldman published a collection of her personal essays, ''Bad Mother: A Chronicle of Maternal Crimes, Minor Calamities, and Occasional Moments of Grace''. The book argues that no woman can be a perfect mother, that, in fact, competitive, neurotic parenting and having unrealistic expectations may be damaging to children. Waldman contends that society (particularly women, in what she calls the "Bad Mother police") are too hard on other women's parenting skills. The book includes chapters on women's criticism of the mothering by other women, feminism, motherhood, and associated anxieties, including anxieties about breastfeeding, marriage, sexuality of mothers and teenagers, homework, mental illness, the loss of her unborn child, and her relationship with her mother-in-law. The book was a ''New York Times'' bestseller, and generally it received favorable reviews.
''A Really Good Day''
''A Really Good Day'' was published in January 2017 and documents Waldman's taking microdoses of
LSD
Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), also known colloquially as acid, is a potent psychedelic drug. Effects typically include intensified thoughts, emotions, and sensory perception. At sufficiently high dosages LSD manifests primarily mental, vi ...
to help cope with her debilitating mood and anxiety disorders. She learned about this practice from a 2011 book by psychedelic researcher
James Fadiman
James Fadiman (born May 27, 1939) is an American writer known for his research on microdosing psychedelics. He co-founded the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, which later became Sofia University.
Early years
Fadiman was born in New York ...
. ''A Really Good Day'' was called "an engaging and deeply researched primer on a taboo subject and a strong case for more research on it" by Nora Krug for the Washington Post. Jennifer Senior of the New York Times noted that Waldman "is wielding her powers of provocation to goad us into an uncomfortable but necessary conversation. Quibble with her style, her methods, her desire to attract attention. In normalizing the conversation about LSD, she may one day help others feel normal."
Blogs
For a short time in 2004 and 2005, Waldman wrote a blog under the title "Bad Mother." Her topics included sexuality, gay rights, motherhood, and her bipolar disorder. She said “A blog like this is
narcissism
Narcissism is a self-centered personality style characterized as having an excessive interest in one's physical appearance or image and an excessive preoccupation with one's own needs, often at the expense of others.
Narcissism exists on a co ...
in its most obscene flowering. But it's necessary. As a parent your days are consumed by other people's needs. This is payback for driving back and forth to gymnastics all week long.” On her reaction to the criticism that her blogging engendered, she has said "It's ridiculous to be so willing to expose myself and at the same time be so hypersensitive. Those are two contradictory impulses no one person should have." After an incident where she hinted at suicidal thoughts, she decided to discontinue the blog. Although she found it a therapeutic way to channel frustrations – likening the experience to "slashing my wrists and haemorrhaging all over the computer screen" – she found it was having a deleterious effect on her writing. Waldman blogged on the 2008 Democratic National Convention"Ayelet Waldman's blog relating to the 2008 Presidential Election at New York Magazine (2008)" (Retrieved on August 25, 2010.) and had a blog on her own website from 2008 to 2009 on a variety of subjects.
Television
Between 2015 and 2019, Waldman worked on the development of the acclaimed Netflix television show '' Unbelievable''. She created it with her spouse
Michael Chabon
Michael Chabon ( ;
born May 24, 1963) is an American novelist, screenwriter, columnist, and short story writer. Born in Washington, DC, he spent a year studying at Carnegie Mellon University before transferring to the University of Pittsburgh, gr ...
and veteran writer
Susannah Grant
Susannah Grant (born January 4, 1963) is an American screenwriter, director, and producer.
Life and career
Grant was born in New York City. She studied at Amherst College and attended the AFI Conservatory. From 1994 to 1997 she worked on televi ...
. She had the original idea for the show after reading the Pulitzer winning article it is based on : "
An Unbelievable Story of Rape
"An Unbelievable Story of Rape" is a 2015 article about a series of rapes in the American states of Washington and Colorado that occurred between 2008 and 2011, and the subsequent police investigations. It was a collaboration between two American ...
".
She co-wrote with
Michael Chabon
Michael Chabon ( ;
born May 24, 1963) is an American novelist, screenwriter, columnist, and short story writer. Born in Washington, DC, he spent a year studying at Carnegie Mellon University before transferring to the University of Pittsburgh, gr ...
an episode of '' Star Trek: Picard'', and is credited as a co-executive producer on five episodes. Her husband was the showrunner on the first season.
Political activism
During the 2008
Presidential primaries
The presidential primary elections and caucuses held in the various states, the District of Columbia, and territories of the United States form part of the nominating process of candidates for United States presidential elections. The United S ...
and general election campaign, Waldman campaigned and raised funds in support of
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...
, acting as a full-time volunteer, speaking at fundraisers;Brostoff, Marissa "Chabon and Waldman: The Couple That Kvells Together" Forward.com, September 4, 2008. (Retrieved on August 25, 2010.) she was appointed as a delegate to the
2008 Democratic National Convention
The 2008 Democratic National Convention was a quadrennial presidential nominating convention of the Democratic Party where it adopted its national platform and officially nominated its candidates for president and vice president. The convent ...
.
Published works
"Mommy-Track" mystery novels
* ''Nursery Crimes'' (2000)
* ''The Big Nap'' (2001)
* ''Playdate With Death'' (2002)
* ''Death Gets a Time-Out'' (2003)
* ''Murder Plays House'' (2004)
* ''The Cradle Robbers'' (2005)
* ''Bye-Bye, Black Sheep'' (2006)
Other novels
* ''Daughter's Keeper'' (2003)
* ''
Love and Other Impossible Pursuits
''Love and Other Impossible Pursuits'' is a novel by Israeli-American author Ayelet Waldman and released in 2006.
Plot summary
Emilia Greenleaf is an attorney living in New York city with her husband, Jack Woolf. Emilia is the stepmother to Jack' ...
* ''Bad Mother: A Chronicle of Maternal Crimes, Minor Calamities, and Occasional Moments of Grace'' (2009)
* ''A Really Good Day: How Microdosing Made a Mega Difference in My Mood, My Marriage, and My Life'' (2017)
Fresh Air with Terry Gross
''Fresh Air'' is an American radio talk show broadcast on National Public Radio stations across the United States since 1985. It is produced by WHYY-FM in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The show's host is Terry Gross. , the show was syndicated to ...
NPR
National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...
To the Best of Our Knowledge
''To the Best of Our Knowledge'' (also known by the acronym TTBOOK) is a weekly public-radio interview program produced by Wisconsin Public Radio and distributed by PRX. It is broadcast on 180+ public radio stations in the U.S. and is also availa ...
,
Wisconsin Public Radio
Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR) is a network of 34 public radio stations in the state of Wisconsin. WPR's network is divided into two distinct analog services, the ''Ideas Network'' and the '' NPR News & Music Network,'' as well as the ''All Classic ...
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...