This was a well-written account of one young woman’s battle with leukemia, how she got through it, and also a very detailed log of what effects it had on her and her loved ones. In an unusual twist, it also contained a brutally honest look at what she could have done better with her friends and relationships.
In the first part of the book she explains her disease, and all the steps from the beginning to what will hopefully be the end. There is a detailed description of each medical procedure, the decisions to be made along the way, and how these decisions played out later on.
I imagine this kind of detail would be especially useful for people going through a similar ordeal. For people that are not, I thought it was sometimes almost too much. It was admirable to be honest about some of the regrettable things she said or did – even if it put her in a poor light.
But the best writing and storytelling comes in the second part, where she describes her path back to “normality”, and what she had to do to get herself back. Most of this part involves a 100 day trip driving around the United States, seeing new things, meeting people that supported here during her cancer fight, and getting used to some solitude.
This book was ambitious and I am sure was cathartic. I know that the contents will be helpful for other people and that alone makes it a significant piece of work.
Next I am reading Provisions by Michelle Rousseau and Suzanne Rousseau.
