What causes two sisters who share a whimsical yet calamitous upbringing to become estranged adults? In her debut autobiography, A Family Divided: A Memoir, Jackson leaps brilliantly into the literary scene and candidly guides readers through a witty read as she searches for an answer to this very personal question. Clues are unearthed in a series of life events that combine sibling alcoholism, a secret life as a lesbian, a career in deaf education, and ever-faithful canine companions.

She begins with a loving chronicle of her parents’ unlikely meeting and takes...