"Tragedy and comedy intimately and movingly mingle in Helene Cixous's The Day I Wasn't There. Its narrator, who resembles Cixous, recounts the birth and death of her first child, a Dawn's syndrome baby she abandons to the care of her midwife mother in an Algerian maternity hospital. She uses this event to probe her family history and her relationship with her mother, a refugee from Nazi Germany; her dead father, after whom the baby is named; her doctor brother, who takes the infant under his wing; and her grandmother Omi. Cixous's elusive writing bears all the trademarks of her poetic and provocative style, vivid with wordplay, intense feeling, and a stream of consciousness that moves freely over time and place. Informed by psychoanalytical theory and always brutally honest, The Day I Wasn't There is above all an intimate study of a woman's inner landscape."--BOOK JACKET.
I Was Healthy Until The Day I Wasn’t chronologues the journey of the author through his cancer treatments, from the initial diagnosis of non-Hodgkins lymphoma through multiple chemo regimens and relapses, a stem cell transplant and finally remission. Written at first as blog entries over a period of 4 months, it also focuses on the people — the caretakers, the physicians and health care workers and mostly the patients — whose lives and experiences became inexorably entwined with his own. The stories of other patients’ circumstances motivated the author to turn the blog entries into a full-length book. So inspiring are their stories, each shedding light on the disease itself, the bravery and courage, the strength and the stamina to continue fighting, sometimes against seemingly insurmountable odds. There are as many books written about cancer and its treatment as there are types of cancer. No two experiences are the same. Each person has to choose his own path. And how he or she proceeds is a very personal choice. Even not choosing is a choice in and of itself. Cancer patients are an elite group, a band of brothers and sisters who share their experiences, who bolster each other in times of need and who lean on each other for support despite those differences. This book highlights their stories and makes clear that while they endure the indignities of this disease, they are not invisible. They exist. They need to be heard.
Traces the story of Tania Head, who falsely claimed to be a September 11 survivor, describing her interviews with the co-author and the discovery that she was not in America at the time of the attacks.
The beloved New York Times bestselling author reflects on home, family, friendships and writing in this deeply personal collection of essays. "The elegance of Patchett’s prose is seductive and inviting: with Patchett as a guide, readers will really get to grips with the power of struggles, failures, and triumphs alike." —Publisher's Weekly “Any story that starts will also end.” As a writer, Ann Patchett knows what the outcome of her fiction will be. Life, however, often takes turns we do not see coming. Patchett ponders this truth in these wise essays that afford a fresh and intimate look into her mind and heart. At the center of These Precious Days is the title essay, a surprising and moving meditation on an unexpected friendship that explores “what it means to be seen, to find someone with whom you can be your best and most complete self.” When Patchett chose an early galley of actor and producer Tom Hanks’ short story collection to read one night before bed, she had no idea that this single choice would be life changing. It would introduce her to a remarkable woman—Tom’s brilliant assistant Sooki—with whom she would form a profound bond that held monumental consequences for them both. A literary alchemist, Patchett plumbs the depths of her experiences to create gold: engaging and moving pieces that are both self-portrait and landscape, each vibrant with emotion and rich in insight. Turning her writer’s eye on her own experiences, she transforms the private into the universal, providing us all a way to look at our own worlds anew, and reminds how fleeting and enigmatic life can be. From the enchantments of Kate DiCamillo’s children’s books (author of The Beatryce Prophecy) to youthful memories of Paris; the cherished life gifts given by her three fathers to the unexpected influence of Charles Schultz’s Snoopy; the expansive vision of Eudora Welty to the importance of knitting, Patchett connects life and art as she illuminates what matters most. Infused with the author’s grace, wit, and warmth, the pieces in These Precious Days resonate deep in the soul, leaving an indelible mark—and demonstrate why Ann Patchett is one of the most celebrated writers of our time.
I hope that if you have Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) (or know someone who has) you will find this book useful. M.E. can affect different people in different ways. Some people are able to carry on with a normal life as long as they pace themselves, others are housebound or even bedridden. This book is about my story, how I developed M.E. and how I have tried to search for an answer and treatment for the symptoms I experience.
After years of caring for her family, author Laura Ruth Ellis finally felt free to pursue a new life purpose. Almost immediately, however, she was pulled back into the role of dutiful daughter when her mother succumbed to dementia. The years she spent as full-time caregiver were stressful and exhausting—but from the fears and challenges came the transformation she had sought all along. In We You Me, Laura recalls from her journal entries the emotional turmoil the caregiver role brought to her and the lessons it taught her. With intimacy and honesty, she recounts the stresses, strains, and shame she endured along the way. As the years went on, a change began; she moved from denying life’s circumstances to accepting life as it comes, eventually gaining an awareness of life’s bigger picture in the process. Her focus shifted from duty to others with love to love of duty to her inner self. Life presented the role she needed to finally find and accept who she most wanted to be and her buried dream was released. This personal narrative presents a journey of acceptance through the realms of caregiving toward true self-knowledge, as one woman’s dream deferred for duty is brought to life.
