<blockquote> <p> From <i>O</i> magazine to the <i>New York Times</i>, from authors such as E. L. Doctorow to Ann Beattie, critics and writers across the country have hailed Roger Rosenblatt's <i>Making Toast</i> as an evocative, moving testament to the enduring power of a parent's love and the bonds of family. </p> </blockquote> <p> When Roger's daughter, Amy?a gifted doctor, mother, and wife?collapses and dies from an asymptomatic heart condition at age thirty-eight, Roger and his wife, Ginny, leave their home on the South Shore of Long Island to move in with their son-in-law, Harris, and their three young grandchildren: six-year-old Jessica, four-year-old Sammy, and one-year-old James, known as Bubbies. </p> <p> Long past the years of diapers, homework, and recitals, Roger and Ginny?Boppo and Mimi to the kids?quickly reaccustom themselves to the world of small children: bedtime stories, talking toys, play-dates, nonstop questions, and nonsequential thought. Though reeling from Amy's death, they carry on, reconstructing a family, sustaining one another, and guiding three lively, alert, and tenderhearted children through the pains and confusions of grief. As he marvels at the strength of his son-in-law and the tenacity and skill of his wife, Roger attends each day to "the one household duty I have mastered"?preparing the morning toast perfectly to each child's liking. </p> <p> Luminous, precise, and utterly unsentimental, <i>Making Toast</i> is both a tribute to the singular Amy and a brave exploration of the human capacity to move through and live with grief. </p>