The Mother of All Decisions : A Memoir of Mother Loss, Legacy, and Adopting Kids in Midlife - Betsy Armstrong

The Mother of All Decisions

A Memoir of Mother Loss, Legacy, and Adopting Kids in Midlife

By: Betsy Armstrong

Paperback | 18 June 2025

At a Glance

Paperback


RRP $35.00

$31.75

or 4 interest-free payments of $7.94 with

 or 

Available: 18th June 2025

Preorder. Will ship when available.

In the blink of an eye life can become a reminder of the dreams and goals you let go of. When Betsy Armstrong’s mother unexpectedly dies, she makes the choice to be better than the mistakes of her family’s past and build anew in the life she wants and dreams of.

What is legacy, and how will I leave one?

Betsy Armstrong asks herself this question after her forty-six-year-old mother dies with a list of regrets and her stepfather completely disinherits her. Alone, Betsy sets about building a life of no regrets: becoming a marathon runner and Ironman triathlete, quitting a cushy corporate job to lead a life of service, and overcoming a crippling fear of commitment to marry. Still, she’s always running from the grief she can’t escape. As Betsy’s forty-seventh birthday approaches, she finally confronts her losses and begins reflecting on the one thing she’d never considered: children.

Inspired by a friend’s adoption, Betsy and her husband, Doug, choose that path but face daunting obstacles—a failed adoption, a Russian courtroom drama, and a medical crisis in a tiny Russian town seven time zones away from Moscow. As the outcome of the adoption waxes and wanes, Betsy is forced to make the biggest decision of her life: How far will she go to become a mother?

More in Memoirs

Source Code : My Beginnings - Bill Gates

RRP $55.00

$35.00

36%
OFF
Sociopath : A Memoir - Patric Gagne

RRP $24.99

$23.75

Memorial Days - Geraldine Brooks

Hardcover

RRP $32.99

$21.95

33%
OFF
Iron Hope : Lessons Learned from Conquering the Impossible - James Lawrence
Misfit : The unravelling of Samantha X - Amanda Goff

RRP $34.99

$33.25

Uses for Obsession : A Chef's Memoir - Ben Shewry

RRP $34.99

$33.25

Educated : The international bestselling memoir - Tara Westover
Wifedom : Mrs Orwell's Invisible Life : Our July Book of the Month - Anna Funder
Mrs D is Not on a Diet - Lotta Dann

RRP $34.99

$33.25

The Whole Truth - Jackie O

SIGNED COPY

RRP $49.99

$38.75

22%
OFF
Three Wild Dogs and the Truth - Markus Zusak

RRP $36.99

$34.50

Brainstorm - Richard Scolyer

Paperback

RRP $34.99

$33.25

What I Ate in One Year : (And related thoughts) - Stanley Tucci

RRP $45.00

$37.25

17%
OFF
Cactus Pear For My Beloved : A Family Story from Gaza - Samah Sabawi
Melania : A Memoir - Melania Trump

RRP $69.99

$52.25

25%
OFF