Honey, Baby, Mine: A Mother and Daughter Talk Life, Death, Love (and Banana Pudding)

Dern and her mother Ladd, both actresses, reflect on their lives together in this intimate memoir. After Ladd was diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, she was advised to walk to strengthen her lungs. On subsequent daily walks with Dern, the two women had conversations that they share in this book and tell how their revelations fortified their already strong bond. Some remembrances revolve around Ladd’s youth, growing up in Mississippi and Alabama among an assortment of colorful family members, and her early struggles to establish a career on her own in New York City. Ladd later married Bruce Dern and had two daughters, one of whom drowned at the age of two. Ladd and Dern reflect on friendships, the dynamics of family life, motherhood, and their careers; the two have played mother and daughter in several films, including Wild at Heart and Citizen Ruth. The book is also sprinkled with a few of their favorite recipes—banana pudding, chicken and dumplings—which makes for a warm and engaging memoir. Ladd’s good friend and Dern’s godmother, actress Shelley Winters also figures prominently in the stories.