Structure

Memorial Drive consists of two parts made up of 18 chapters, along with a prologue and four short interludes interspersed throughout. The plot of the memoir consists of Trethewey recalling her childhood and teenage years with a focus on the murder of her mother, Gwendolyn Turnbough, by the author's former stepfather, Joel Grimmette. She tells her story in a linear fashion, though she comments throughout on events that happened later or her feelings in the present because she is constantly analyzing the circumstances surrounding the murder, trying to make sense of them. Part I covers the period of time from the author's birth through her teen years, encompassing her move to Atlanta and the progression of her mother's abusive relationship with Joel. Part II begins with an event that happened many years later, Trethewey's visit to the psychic where she hoped to hear something about her mother, then...