Stephanie A. Collins

I'm very glad I read this book. However, it is not for everyone. It is extremely heartbreaking with a lot of medical details. It is the memoir of a woman, primarily focused on the months following the birth of a medically fragile child. On top of it, she had a three year old with special needs and a terrible marriage.

But the book hooked me from the start and I couldn't put it down. I knew the author had somehow survived this ordeal and was able to write about it 20 years later, and I had to know how she got through it. It is also a love story as the strength she found both in herself and with a new man helped her get through it. (FYI, the text itself ends rather abruptly but it sends you to her website where there is an epilogue complete with photos. If I didn't read the online epilogue, I would have been very disappointed as I needed to know what happened with all the characters.) This might be a good book to read if you are going through a challenging time, or if you have a friend dealing with a child with severe medical issues. It definitely gave me better insight to how challenging that type of life can be both physically and emotionally for the family members.… (plus d'informations)

Note : This review is up in my blog - Book And Ink

Laura, our protagonist is a 25 year old new mum whose life turns upside down when her 13 day old second daughter is diagnosed with heart murmurs. Subsequently she is diagnosed with severe disability. Adding to her misery, her first daughter is also diagnosed with learning disabilities. The lack of a proper emotional and financial support system for her Marine husband, Kevin makes life all the more difficult for her until Daniel comes along. The story is an account of how Laura and her kids beat all the odds of survival and finally find peace.

I truly wonder if I could handle even half of what Laura went through. Taking care of one special needs child is mammoth task. Taking care of 2 such kids without a proper support system sounds just impossible. The writer, Stephanie has delivered a tear jerker effortlessly. It might be her real live story but penning it down and reliving all of it in the process is simply painful. There were parts in the book that just left me thinking, why she really chose to struggle. She had the option of euthanasia, but she never really considered that to be an option at all. That is simply inspiring, the choice to give her little girl a chance at life though it would make her own life a struggle No matter how much trouble she faced, she simply kept slogging without deterring.

Needless to say, the writing was powerful, effective and packed quite a punch. Characterization on the other hand, had a lot of room for improvement. Stephanie focused more on the primary characters, as in Emily, Kevin, Daniel, Hannah and her doctor. The high point of characterization would be the differences the writer showed between Kevin and Daniel. I felt she could have given a wee bit more importance to other characters. But then, the book being a memoir, it would be unwise of me judge characterization.

MY SAY: A must read for anyone who thinks their life is miserable. The book taught me to be thankful for life that I live today.

RATING: 10/10

… (plus d'informations)