5 comments about Pretty Is What Changes: Impossible Choices, The Breast Cancer Gene, and How I Defied My Destiny.

1. I highly recommend the book. The author is a cousin of mine. I learned a lot about the family and her mother was one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen in my life. I have recommended the book to a lot of people that have a history of breast cancer in their family. She will be informing people and can save a lot of lives. I commend her for writing the book. I know it had to be a very difficult task.



2. I want to thank Jessica for the refreshing and honest story of her journey. I am dealing with the same issue and her book really talked to me. I would recommend this book to anyone!



3. An absolute must-read. The vivid portrayal of loss and hope is so clear-eyed, so honest and so courageous that I was humbled and grateful to have been allowed this glimpse into Jessica's experience. I have already sent this book to more people than I can count.



4. I throughly enjoyed and learned from this book and think Ms Queller is a gifted writer. The reviewers who criticize her lack of indepth information on BRCA testing and genetic mutations are being unfair. Ms Queller is not a genetics scientist or even a physican. (My stepson is a brilliant genetics biologist and, believe me, the average layman would not understand most of what he says.) Jessica Queller is telling this story as a patient, a patient who bravely poured out her very intensely personal experience to strangers to read. I think she deserves to be admired and even thanked. It is interesting to note how similar the critical reviews sound. Perhaps written by the same person using different names? Or maybe this is such a personal topic it has touched a raw nerve in some readers and upset their peace of mind. I don't know, but I do think the book deserves rave reviews. Many nonfiction books are poorly written and bore me to death. This story never bored me for one minute; I was entertained, enlightened, and impressed. Kudos, Ms Queller. I hope you will continue to write about your ongoing experiences and (best wishes) with your family planning.



5. Interesting memoir, and should be read/considered as such. Writing was average. Someone looking for information on BRCA gene mutations should look elsewhere.

4 comments about It's Only Temporary: The Good News and the Bad News of Being Alive.

1. I first found "Its Only Temporary" in the book review of the L.A. Times
   a couple of weeks ago. After reading I believe it should be front and center. The book(on the surface) is about Evan Handler's life(Harry SxtheCt) after he had beaten leukemia and what it is like to be alive when most including yourself thought you are not going to be. But
   as I say thats just the surface. "IOT" reveals a life that can be understood and appreciated as well as if you were sitting with him in person and he was actually telling you from his heart his story.
   And he tells it with the flair and sensitivity that makes you truly know what makes Evan Handler tick.
   Now for the faint of heart I will warn you that Handler is very descriptive about his life and his feelings but anything that can be considered overdone is completely offset by his honesty and wit.
   I have to say of all the things he got right maybe two of the best were U,S. politicians talk too much about religion and not enough about improving the economy so there are two bidets in every American home.
   I have to say after reading "Its only Temporary" it makes you feel that
   Handler would make an interesting friend for what time and life's fortunes will allow.



2. IT'S ONLY TEMPORARY is a most engaging work. I was impressed by Evan Handler's candor - and charmed by his sense of humor. And I was especially captivated by the story of how he met and then fell passionately in love with his wife. It's a romantic tale - complete with a soaring finish! I found myself exhilarated reading about his discovery of this deeper love - how it transformed his life and what it taught him about past experiences with relationships and his own humanity. Handler writes with great wit and style. Somehow his observations manage to resonate deep insight and entertain at the same time. His approach to storytelling is intimate and universal - philosophical and practical....I believe this book has something important to say about love and being fully alive.



3. I've just finished reading this book, and I think it's wonderful on many levels. On the surface, it's a funny, rollicking good read, filled with entertaining stories, told by a quick-witted author. Additionally, the individual stories add up to one of the most amazing, inspiring, and unabashed love stories I've ever read - particularly interesting coming from a man. Going deeper, the author has attempted something truly interesting in his structuring of the book. In the preface he makes clear his interest in writing a book that allows readers to get to know the book's narrator the way we get to know new friends: via individual stories from his life, often told out of chronological order. While this can occasionally be momentarily disorienting, there's a great deal of satisfaction that comes as the clues and pieces of Mr. Handler's life eventually fit together. Further, he uses this technique as a way to allow himself to look back on and reexamine, during later portions of the book, many of his actions and choices from the earlier portions. It turns out to be a very effective method of first revealing, and then reflecting on, his own life.
   I found this to be a thoroughly enjoyable book. It was fun to read, and surprised me often with the depth of its perceptions - and how easily and entertainingly they were imparted. Bravo.



4. Evan Handler's IT'S ONLY TEMPORARY picks up where is earlier memoir 'Time on Fire' left off. Where the first volume detailed his battle with lukemia this book tells of his attempts to restart his acting career and personal life once he was cured of the illness. He writes of being cast in the Broadway production of 'Six Degrees of Seperation'and of his abortive attempts to commit to one woman. He writes of his attempt to volunteer at the hospital where he once underwent treatment and how the hospital,recalling what he'd written about them in the earlier book, refused his offer. The book ends with the story of how he met his wife. (At a bookstore appearence he read one of the better chapters; the meeting of his in-laws and the cultural differences between his Northern Italian wife and family and Americans.) These chapters are so good that the book concludes on a wonderful note.

5 comments about ADHD & Me: What I Learned from Lighting Fires at the Dinner Table.

1. This is a great book! It is very down to earth and informative. I'm a clinical psychologist and also have ADHD, so I'm always on the lookout for books to give people who are trying to understand and deal with this disorder. I will definitely be recommending this one.



2. Thought this effort was a bit disappointing.......It was trying to be dramatic but fell short of holding my interest.



3. This is the best book on ADHD I have read. I read it cover to cover in one day and felt that I really understood my son so much better after reading the perspective of a now young man who struggled through what my Son is going through now. I have a new appreciation and strength to make sure I am supporting what he needs in every way.



4. It was really nice to read something that was written by someone who understands and has experienced everything that goes along with ADHD. It applies more so to teenagers than my son who is 7. Although it was very informative for me as parent to read. Each chapter addresses a certain characteristic of ADHD and ways to cope with it. Definitely recommend if you have a teenager.



5. I read this book in about two hours because I couldn't stop reading it!! I have a seven year old son who has ADHD. Blake E.S. Taylor gave me a window into my son's life, my son's emotions, and my son's struggles with ADHD. This is a book that everyone who has ADHD and anyone who knows anyone with ADHD should read. It is an easy read -- the words of a boy who really is aware of his emotions. The only thing that I would have liked to learned more about from Mr. Taylor were his experiences with the medications in relation to his appetite, emotional ups and downs, and other side effects that he might have experienced. The information about the tics was great as my son has been "clearing his throat" (a typical tic seen in ADHDers) for months now and I didn't know it was likely a tic until I read Mr. Taylor's book. Anyway, I really enjoyed this book and I highly recommend it. Thank you, Kim (California)

5 comments about Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia (P.S.).

1. Marya Hornbacher is the mediator between the everyday human being and the world's most widely misunderstood creatures of society: the eating-disordered. In "Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia", she explains to readers that eating disorders are not just "phases" that teenage "girls" go through, but rather an intense, passionate desire for power that "strips you of all power" instead.
   Hornbacher, a freelance journalist who is also the author of "The Center of Winter" and "Madness: A Bipolar Life", developed bulimia at age nine, developed alcohol and drug issues at the age of thirteen, and became anorexic at the age of fifteen. After her release from a residential treatment hospital, she attended the University of Minnesota and wrote for the local paper, accepting her scholarship to American University later in 1992. She later developed other physical problems following her continued eating disorders.
   Although a rather sullen story of the highs and lows of her struggle with weight, Hornbacher addresses the point that eating disorders, cultural obsession with weight and body, food, and control have a lot in common. In one section of the book, she writes that an eating disorder is



2. Marya wasn't always the way she is today. She used to be the all American girl eating PB and J's while she watched her cartoons, but when Marya was eight years old something in her brain changed and since then she has never been the same.
   Author Marya Hornbacher beautifully illustrates her struggles with bulimia and anorexia in her autobiography Wasted. She shows a world that people hardly get to see and explains the life and ways of bulimics and anorectics that is both compelling and inspiring.
   Wasted takes you through 10 years of Marya's life as she slowly jumps back and forth between anorexia and bulimia. It depicts the everyday struggles of the disease; how the body slowly stops to care about what is occurring, the constant worries about food, and the fear that someone might find out and God forbid, possibly try to help you! It goes in depth about the psychological factors of the disease and explains it all in a way that is understandable and relevant. This book will both shock and sicken you as you discover what goes behind closed doors of these two heartless diseases.
   My praise is endless for this novel and I thank it for opening my eyes to the mysterious world that is impossible to fully understand unless you've experienced the ordeal first hand. Many people could benefit from taking the time to read Wasted, which will help to clue people in and provide a better understanding to the problems in our society and what goes on to the people who are enduring these struggles daily. However this book is not a constant thriller and amongst the eye opening and realization moments there will be a few parts that are tedious and almost seem to drag on. In spite of the occasional drowsy sections this book offers an incredible insight inside the secret lives of bulimics and anorectics and I would confidently recommend it to anyone who wants a brilliant and inspiring read.



3. The author dives deep into her life and the choices she made. She doesn't hold back. Up front and personal.



4. This book is amazing, it keeps you captavated from the time you start to read it. Im recovered and the things she discribed are so very true. If your looking for a book on eating disorders this is one of very few to read. Dont listen to the negitive reveiws for this one, Its well worth the money.



5. As a mother to a teenage girl with an eating disorder, I was able to identify (sometimes uncomfortably too close to home) with Marya Hornbacher. It was a good insight to see that this horrible illness begins at a very early age, how not to blame ourselves as parents, and how it is a daily battle for the person with the illness.
   I read this book over a period of a week and haven't stopped remarking on it to people I know, especially other parents of children/teenagers with eating disorders.
   This book came from the gut and goes directly into the readers'.
   Adina

5 comments about Cancer on $5 a Day* *(chemo not included): How Humor Got Me Through the Toughest Journey of My Life.

1. CANCER ON $5 A DAY: HOW HUMOR GOT ME THROUGH THE TOUGHEST JOURNEY OF MY LIFE comes from a stand-up comedian who discusses her how humor got him through his battle with cancer. From his banter with nurses to his search for alternative options, CANCER ON $5 A DAY doesn't detract from cancer's seriousness - but it does offer a refreshing alternative to approaching it. Any health collection or general lending library needs this.



2. As an oncology nurse, I would like to thank Robert Schimmel for this book. Just because you have cancer doesn't mean you have to lose your sense of humor. Humor is the best coping mechanism. A lot of "humor and cancer" books are just not funny...very lame and "joke oriented". This is more situational and great for anyone with a "dry", "twisted" or "offbeat" sense of humor (you all know who you are). Robert says what a lot of my patients have been saying all of these years. And...believe it or not, I shared a similar conversation about "merkens" with one of my patients who was a 65 year old woman, and we both howled until we cried.
   I enjoyed Schimmel on Stern in the past, but wasn't a huge fan. I am now a huge fan. This book is funny, extremely poignant and his lessons about cancer and life are right on target. This book is not for everyone, as some would consider it "off color". But it is very real and anyone who has gone through chemotherapy will get some good laughs out of it, as well as hope. I was extremely touched by his relationship with his MD, and loved his comments about oncology nurses and his fellow patients. I was weeping when he described his father's reaction when he felt like "giving up". A quick read, but a good one. I am buying this second copy to share with some of my patients (carefully selected patients). I loved everything about this book. I wish Mr. Schimmel many more years of good health and will definitely buy a ticket to see him when he comes to Boston.



3. I heard this book recommended on the radio as a "must read" for anyone struggling to deal with cancer. I did not find the book to be invaluable and was very put off with all the profanity and crude humor. It was going to be a Mother's Day gift for my mom who's battling cancer, but I think I'll have to find something else. I am glad I decided to read it myself before giving it to her as a gift. I would have been completely embarrassed.



4. "Cancer on $5.00 a Day" is great, especially if you have just come off five months of therapy for Chronic Lymphomocytic Leukemia (CLL). It expresses the feelings of most cancer patients upon diagnosis and during watch and wait. You always have the sword of death in your future.
   I am immpresed with his cander with his oncologist. I have the same relationship to my oncologist. It is the only way to go as far as I am concerned
   You will laugh till you cry at some of the passages as you go through the book. It is a quick read as I am an slow reader and finished it in a few hours.



5. This is a wonderful book to give to anyone fighting cancer. Well written, funny, and uplifting!!!

No comments about Change in the Weather: Life After Stroke.

5 comments about Intern: A Doctor's Initiation.

1. Great book, great writer, great storyteller. I have read some better medical books, such as Kay Redfield Jamison, but this one is very good.



2. There two ways I'd like to review this book.
   As a layman and a resident I would give it 5 stars.
   This is really a well written book,Dr J rarely wastes words. There is no unnecessary eloquence and 'romaticisim'. He does portray what truely goes on inside the hospital as well as in the residents' minds.
   TV soaps like ER and house tend to trivialize the tension and the excitement in the hospitals and ICU. Working in these environments is truely draining and leads to stress (and addiction in residents and physicians). I'M sure a lot of pre meds will identify with him.
   
   As a physician, I feel the book does no justice to the way medicine is practised in our country and in this system. Dr J does make an honest effort to portray the dysfunctional patients( drunks in the ER, Heroin abuser who end up with endocarditis, rude patients etc)but as is the the problem with a 'civilised' world, we tend to be politically correct and refuse to point the finger at an increasing dysfunctional part of the system: the patient, and especially the NY patient or the large metro-inner city patient.
   thats just one part. A lot of the physicians who write books take the high road and refuse to depict why the resident, fellows, nurses and attendings are so cynical and bitter about working in these hospitals. Here the resident works(illegally) long hours, more than 80/week-deals constantly with rude and thankless patients and reluctant nurses( in many NY hospital, nurses do not even draw blood, do EKGs or round with the physicians).
   No credit is given to the fact the inspite of the racial diversity: I'm proud to say the the medical field is least racist of all walks of life: that physicians in large hospitals never consider a patients financial situation before starting treatment.We dont even check if he/she is an illegal alien. Residents give up their lives/hobbies and familes up.forever. Very few draop their pagers at 5 pm and take off.
   The other aspect is the lack of big picture: not taking the time out to explain a DNR to a terminally ill patient( with metastatic cancer)-using bravado instead of logic. Most of his descriptions of his attending phyisicans are like' hard nosed, squat, bouncer-like'-it almost makes me think he has bad memories of most of his attendings.
   I have my doubts as to why he was so aimless even upto his intern year: thats not a good sign( I hate to be judegmental). Most medical students/residents are VERY focused.
   The reason to choose NY( Was he non competative?)
   The reason to do cardiology( my mother wanted...., my family wanted...)whoa!
   I disagree with him om many issues:but these are personal, hence the 3 stars. But a very well written book, one that will stay in my collection and a perfect gift.



3. Dr. Jauhar is a gifted writer who immediately connects with the reader in a very intimate manner. This book is a page-turner... it feels as though you are reading about a very close friend. I definitely identified with his ambiguity, his fears, his doubts throughout his initiation into medicine so much that I am anxiously awaiting others' responses to this brutally honest book. While I am certain that Dr. Jauhar's feelings cannot be generalized to all doctors, I think this account is an immense contribution to those embarking on a career in this conflict-ridden and challenging field. I'm proud of him for not holding back and for not altering certain sides of himself which are not necessarily flattering to see. The best part of this read for me was the satisfaction Dr. Jauhar clearly reaches at the end of his training, despite having hit such extreme and hopeless lows. Overall, this book is as real an account of the turmoils of internship as I have ever come across... I would recommend it as a must-read for every medical student and resident.



4. Working as an Engineer for a year, I had started thinking about switching career paths and going into medicine when I stumbled upon one of Dr. Jauhar's essays in the New York Times.
   
   Intrigued by his essay, I did some reading about Dr. Jauhar himself and after discovering he had a PhD in Physics prior to going to medical school I knew I had to learn more about his path. Much to my surprise, I soon discovered he had actually written a book about it!
   
   But that's not all that you will get out of this book. INTERN is an extremely well written and vivid recount of the decision process that Dr. Jauhuar labored through to go into medicine from a non-traditional educational field followed by a very detailed description of the daily physical and mental hardships endured during the first year of his clinical residency.
   
   Sprinkled throughout this captivating narrative are situations that force Dr. Jauhar into making difficult ethical decisions that blur the line between his professional and personal identities; something that serves as a nice reminder of just how much Dr. Jauhar cares for his patients and profession alike.
   
   Aside from his account of the daily challenges of being an intern, Dr. Jauhar also articulately presents arguments on relevant clinical topics such as how paternalism and informed consent are contemporarily practiced. His insights into these pillars of modern medicine are guaranteed to spark the reader's own internal debates, even if the reader has never heard of these concepts.
   
   The bottom line is that INTERN is an absolute must read for any graduate of medical school about to a residency, or for anyone who is interested in knowing what it takes to become a doctor.



5. As a physician I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was good to see that others had the same doubts and misgivings that I had during my medical training. I'm not sure, however, that someone not in the medical field would understand enough of the behind the scenes goings on to enjoy this writing.

5 comments about Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story.

1. Amazing, this man knew what he wanted to do at an early age, with his Mother's hard work, he was able to fulfill his dream.



2. This book has not only allow me to change my outlook on life, but I have also developed a more positive attitude towards myself. This is a very inspiring book and I wish there were more books on the market like it. These are the books children should be reading in class to help build their self-esteem.



3. Gifted Hands by Ben Carson is an autobiography about a young man from the ghetto who, with the help, the guidance and prayers of his mother, was able to excel in college and medical school and become the Chief Pediatric Neurologist at Johns Hopkins Medical Center in Baltimore, MD. His strong faith is a testament to how we can rely on the Lord.



4. One wouldn't expect someone who came from a poor, single-parent home, and with failing grades in school, to eventually become one of the greatest neurosurgeons in history. Gifted Hands, written by Ben Carson with Cecil Murphey, chronicles that man's journey, the journey of Ben Carson. Throughout the book, his captivating style and amazing story make his determination to be the best contagious.
   
   What stands out most is how he tells his story. He begins by telling narrative of what was happening and what he was thinking, and then switches to dialogue at key moments to allow us to imagine these incidents and characters as if we were really there. This approach to storytelling gives the book an easy-to-read quality that is hard to resist. It is his positive outlook on life, an "I can do anything I set my mind to" attitude, however, that makes his book truly irresistible. To hear the odds he was up against, the determination he had to conquer them, and the vast level of success he achieved inspires one to always do his best in everything, too.
   
   The book Gifted Hands proves that Ben Carson is not only gifted with his hands. He is gifted with his words too. This book captures Ben Carson's humble spirit and attitude as he accomplishes feats no man thought possible, yet never considers himself any more than an ordinary man who uses what he has for God's glory. I highly recommend this book.



5. Dr. Ben Carson came from humble beginnings. The story provides a easy read of Dr. Carson's rise to his position at John Hopkins. He was influenced by role models and discussed in detail how his Mother with a grade school education didn't give up on her sons. She provided the platform for her sons to succeed. Dr. Carson discusses his own struggles as a youth of "fitting-in" with the in crowd and eventually changing his disposition to become the best student he can be.
   
   The book elaborates on the goals he obtained, his med-school experience and his more memorable cases during his tenure at Hopkins. Dr. Carson explains his walk in Christianity and as a faith-based Doctor, prays for direction and understanding through surgical procedures and the healing of his patients. He is a true role model and embraces his position to help others to achieve their goals. You can't help but to feel motivated and move toward your goals and dreams after reading this book.

5 comments about Don't Bet against Me!: Beating the Odds Against Breast Cancer and in Life.

1. In a word? Inspirational. This lady has faith and talks freely about it. I believe this to be an ideal gift to share with someone facing this disease; they may well be comforted.



2. This is an excellent book about a woman's journey with breast cancer. Deanna Favre is the wife of Brett Favre of the Green Bay Packers. She describes her dealing with breast cancer, the aftermath of it and her struggle to survive and live with a deadly disease. Her and her husband have started a foundation dealing with breast cancer and continue to work tirelessly for the foundation. Reading the book brings forth a variety of emotions and I would recommend this book to everyone especially those who have been touched by breast cancer in some way.



3. This book is totally awesome. A great insight by Deanna from her life with Brett to her cancer and beyond. A book worth reading.



4. 1st of all I am a Bears Fan! My husband (a die hard Packers fan) bought me this book for Valentine's day. Not sure where he got the romantic idea! :) I liked hearing Deanna's personal story and she is indeed a very strong woman. I admire her very much. As a Catholic woman I was disappointed she shared very little about her Catholic faith but instead stuck to the Christian basics. Also, felt like most of the faith sharing was someone else's words. If you are a BIG packers fan you will indeed enjoy this book.



5. This is such a heart-warming book. I have borrowed it out and everyone that reads it loves it. A MUST READ!!

5 comments about Autobiography of a Face.

1. I originally had to read this book for a school project, and I wasn't expecting much since I usually don't find non fiction very interesting. But this book wasn't bad, it was pretty good. This girl Lucy, at nine, crashes into another kid's head playing a game during recess, and her face begins to hurt way more than it should and then swells up. She goes to the doctor and she finds out she has a tumor in her jaw, and that its cancerous. However, this book is really not about Lucy's cancer. It's about her life and the effect that the cancer has on it. At first, she really doesn't mind that much. She likes all the special attention that she is getting, and doesn't care what she looks like, even with one whole third of her jaw removed. Later however, she becomes very insecure about her face and becomes obsessed with multiple reconstructive surgeries that never work, convinced that she can never be loved with a face like hers. She finds it easier to spend time with the horses she works with at her high school job than with people. She eventually gets her face fixed (somewhat), but she thinks it's all wrong, that its not really her. I liked this because it was informative without being "whiney" and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys biographies about people overcoming adversity. It is also a good book for high school girls who are insecure about their looks, because it shows them how lucky they really are to be "whole". I suppose something like what happened to Lucy can really mess you up, but she comes out fine in the end because she learns how to deal with her appearance issues. It's a good book.



2. In Autobiography of a Face, Lucy Grealy has written--not remembered-- a story based on her myriad attempts to attain a widely accepted form of physical beauty. (This is noted and emphasized in the book's Afterword by Ann Patchett, a longtime friend of Grealy's.) Why this fact is important to Grealy and, vicariously, to Patchett is explicitly stated: Grealy wanted to be appreciated for her writing, not for surviving what was certainly a hellish ordeal. What Patchett also makes clear in the Afterword (and in Truth & Beauty: A Friendship) is that Grealy's book was not made a bestseller due to her beautiful sentence struture. Nor was it due to some sweeping truth about life evidenced in what I must refer to as Grealy's novel. Instead, Autobiography of a Face sold well because people wanted to read about Grealy's pain. Real, remembered pain; not fictional pain. Real hospital visits, real operations, real life. The questions asked of Grealy at her readings make this obvious. By writing a fictionalized account of what happened, Grealy gave her fans a taste of what they wanted, a taste that they couldn't conceive of as fiction, because without that element of truth, the book falls apart.
   
   Patchett claims that Autobiography should stand as great literature outside its voyeuristic appeal. Indeed, Lucy Grealy was an accomplished poet in her lifetime, a feat that very few can claim without some degree of nepotism or croneyism (although I'm sure the Iowa Writers' Workshop didn't hurt). Unfortunately, the beauty and elegance of form so easily found in her verse does not translate to her prose. Her sentences, while by no means awkward, are not stunning, not moving. She could be sitting with her peers, casually relating the events of her life-- but, as she insisted at the anecdotal reading Patchett describes in the Afterword, Autobiography is not an autobiography. It is fiction. And, as fiction, it is nothing more than a laundry list of voluntary tortures, all in the name of love (or sex, or acceptance, depending on the stage of the narrator's life). The climax, as it were, is but a comfortable murmur after a grotesque surgical storm.
   
   Grealy's life story is phenomenal and heartbreaking, but only because the tale is her own. No fictional character can command our sympathies as readily as flesh and blood. For Grealy to insist that we judge her novel outside of its truth is for her to strip the book of its power-- to render it incomplete, a face struggling desperately to find a body.



3. a little wrinkled, but the text is what matters and it is a great read.... if you are into depressing stories....



4. IMPRESSIONS:
   This was a good book, moving and engaging. Though you would think that it was the battle with cancer itself which would prove troublesome, perhaps because of the young age at which she underwent this struggle, we see that it the resulting effects are what truly impacted Grealy's life.
   
   Her book is insightful even for those who have not had to undergo the extraordinary struggles that she faced. The desire to be loved and feel special, to want to stand out in a singular and unique way and yet not be ridiculed, but rather adored, the simple joy that comes from being able to look at someone and know that they are looking back and see you and know you and understand you, loving you all the while, these emotions run throughout this book and would echo with anyone who has not always felt loved or accepted, who has doubted their worthiness.
   
   CRITICISMS:
   I did find that Grealy's siblings were quite absent throughout her narrative. She had four siblings, one of them a fraternal twin, and I found it quite odd that we don't really see that much of them or are given very clear depictions of them - especially her twin sister, Sarah, since all of the twins I've known have always been extremely close with their sibling.
   
   I also found her father's death kind of glossed over and was unable to understand the detachment with which it was written about. That she only visited her father once in the hospital while he was there for a few months seemed incomprehensible to me, but who am I to judge another's grief or how they display it? Grealy later writes of finally feeling the loss of her father, and the regret with which she writes of that moment when she lay in her hospital bed, pretending sleep, and he walked softly in, was very moving and could be acutely felt.
   
   As some other reviewers have mentioned, however, the book is entitled "Autobiography of a Face," and that is what you are getting.
   
   OF NOTE:
   As I was writing this review, I was doing some research online and found out that Lucy Grealy passed away in 2002. Apparently, the brief drug dependency mentioned in passing in "Autobiography of a Face" reemerged later in life and led to a presumed accidental drug overdose. She was close friends with Ann Patchett, author of "Bel Canto," and there has been some controversy surrounding Patchett's 2004 memoir, "Truth & Beauty," which recounts the friendship of the two authors (apparently Grealy's family objects to Patchett's portrayal of her).
   
   The article "Hijacked by grief," by Grealy's sister Suellen, which appeared in the August 7, 2004 edition of the Guardian (and can be found online) was enlightening not only on the family's reaction to Patchett's depictions of Lucy Grealy, but also on the Lucy Grealy herself, in that in an odd way it seemed to offer a missing piece of anything that might have been lacking in Grealy's own account. It greatly altered my previous opinion of Patchett and it also reminded me, both in regards to Patchett's memoir and Grealy's, that any narrative or autobiography writes of other people and that though what may be written is a truthful depiction of what the author felt and experienced, every person detailed has their own story, that somewhere where all of these accounts intersect is some semblance of accuracy and all we can do is understand the deficiency of our own portrayals and appreciate that which can be told.
   
   OTHER REVIEWS:
   (This is just a wrap-up of what other people seem to commonly find praise or fault with in this book.)
   
   Positive reviews mentioned the following ...
   - Beautifully written and inspiring
   - Difficult to read in its honesty and "heartbreaking words"
   - "As Grealy shows us in her memoir, she was never different from anyone else: she was always just as imperfect, and beautiful, as we are" (J. Babcock)
   - Evokes emotion and empathy, very thought-provoking
   - A candid story of the tragedy of cancer and how one woman was able to deal with it all at such a young age, but overcome it in the end
   - Accurate criticism of our society's obsession with beauty and looks and that these qualify and determine our worth and lovability
   
   Negative reviews mentioned the following ...
   - The book was a long diatribe of self-pity
   - She continually and singularly dwells on her own physical ugliness (disregarding the pain of others, that she should be thankful to be alive, etc.)
   - Not enough details on other aspects of Lucy Grealy's life were included, no outside story or information on her family, too "one-dimensional" etc.



5. Lucy Grealy said it best herself when fans asked her how she remembered everything in such detail. She said, "I didn't remember it. I wrote it." And the result is beautiful, haunting and oddly funny. Grealy delves into the dark with such wit that even descriptions of chemo-induced vomiting and the cruelties of adolescent boys become bearable. The great tragedy is that we lost her so soon...