As a novelist, I mined my history, my family and my memory, but in a very specific way. Writing fiction, I never made use of experiences immediately as they happened. I needed to let things fester in my memory, mature and transmogrify into something meaningful. Ayelet Waldman experiencefamilyfester share on social
I pity the young woman who will attempt to insinuate herself between my mama's boy and me. I sympathize with the monumental nature of her task. It will take a crowbar, two bulldozers and half a dozen Molotov cocktails to pry my Oedipus and me loose from one another. Ayelet Waldman attemptboybulldozer share on social
Yes, I have four children. Four children with whom I spend a good part of every day: bathing them, combing their hair, sitting with them while they do their homework, holding them while they weep their tragic tears. But I'm not in love with any of them. I am in love with my husband. Ayelet Waldman bthechildcomb share on social
There are times as a parent when you realize that your job is not to be the parent you always imagined you'd be, the parent you always wished you had. Your job is to be the parent your child needs, given the particulars of his or her own life and nature. Ayelet Waldman childimaginejob share on social
So many women today have become so focused on their children, they've developed these romantic entanglements with their children's lives, and the husbands are secondary. They're left out. And the romantic focus is on the children. Ayelet Waldman childdevelopentanglement share on social
I mean, I do actually think there is a qualitative difference between aborting in the early part of the first trimester and in, you know, the middle or later part of the second trimester, in a way that you feel about it in that you grow attached. Ayelet Waldman abortattachdifference share on social
In a perfect world, probably we'd never yell, we'd just be firm and dispassionate. But of course, everyone yells at their children. Ayelet Waldman childdispassionatefirm Change image and share on social
Is Valentine's Day a day to make cupcakes with your children? No, Valentine's is supposed to be a day about romantic love. Ayelet Waldman childcupcakeday Change image and share on social
I was born in Israel, to Canadian parents. My father immigrated in 1948, part of a wave of young men and women who came as pioneers, to fight for a Jewish homeland. Their motive was in large part a reaction to the Holocaust, and their slogan was 'Never Again.' Ayelet Waldman bearcanadianfather share on social
I was a lesbian for a semester at Wesleyan - it was a graduation requirement. Ayelet Waldman graduationlesbianrequirement Change image and share on social