What if your childhood home still existed, but you were no longer welcome in it? What if the streets that once felt like an extension of your own body were suddenly unfamiliar, occupied by people who don’t know what stood there before them? This is the quiet tragedy at the heart of It Was Her New York—a book about losing a mother, a city, and the certainty that anything can last.
The human brain reconstructs memories every time they are recalled, meaning each time we tell a story, we slightly alter its details. Moed’s storytelling embraces this, creating a memoir that feels like a mosaic of memories rather than a straightforward retelling of the past. Each vignette is a fragment, some sharp and clear, others softened by time. The result is a book that doesn’t just tell a story—it mimics the way memory works, shifting, reshaping, holding on even as pieces fade.
Florence, Moed’s mother, is unforgettable. A Juilliard-trained pianist, a woman who could be both exasperating and brilliant, she is the force that anchors the book. Even as she loses her grip on reality, she remains fierce, demanding, and unwilling to be erased. In a moment of perfect contradiction, she refuses to get out of bed but still insists on correcting her daughter’s grammar. These moments of humor make the book’s weight bearable, just as laughter often sneaks into grief in real life.
Beyond the personal, It Was Her New York is an unflinching look at gentrification—not as an abstract concept, but as a deeply personal betrayal. The author does not need to spell out what is lost when old neighborhoods are reshaped for the wealthy; she shows it through the disappearance of familiar storefronts, the silence of once-bustling streets, the feeling of being a stranger in your own home. This is the kind of book that makes you wonder about the history of the places you walk past every day. Who lived there before? Who was pushed out? What stories will never be told?
This memoir is not sentimental, but it is deeply human. It is for anyone who has stood in front of a place they once knew and felt the ache of change. It is for those who have watched a loved one fade, grasping at small moments of clarity like lifelines. It is for anyone who understands that love—for a person, for a city—is often a fight against forgetting.
Some books invite you to read them; this one dares you to feel it.
Voyages of Verses Book Award
This book is a winner of the Voyages of Verses Book Award, a recognition for books that expand the horizon of what literature can achieve. We honor works that challenge preconceived notions, broaden worldviews, and celebrate the rich blend of voices that shape our global narrative. Whether it’s a novel that immerses you in a different culture, a collection of poems that captures the essence of shared humanity, or a nonfiction account that sparks critical thought, the Voyages of Verses Book Award celebrates stories that invite exploration and discovery.
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