Monday, October 5, 2009

Perseverance: True Voices of Cancer Survivors by Carolyn Rubenstein

Perseverance: True Voices of Cancer Survivors by Carolyn Rubenstein is a compilation of childhood cancer survival stories of twenty young people. While the topic is daunting, Perseverance is an uplifting and inspirational look at the heroic battles of these young people. It provides an intimate look into their journeys with cancer and their unique trials and triumphs. Their stories can teach us a lot about courage and faith. After you read their stories, you will be encouraged to never take life for granted again and to face life’s obstacles with strength and grace.

I imagine that this might be a good read for someone going through cancer treatment since it is full of practical information and real life experiences. I also think this would be a good read for anyone who has a friend or loved one with cancer. It contains a lot of the survivors’ thoughts on the various reactions to their illness of the people in their lives and how those reactions affected them. However, having recently lost my young niece to brain cancer, this was not an easy read. These stories all have “happy” endings which left me wondering, “Why not Hannah?” I don’t think I would recommend this book to anyone who has lost someone to cancer.



*I was provided a free copy of the book by A. Larry Ross Communications in return for posting a review.

2 comments:

Alison said...

I'd be interested to see how their stories compared to mine. I am a survivor of childhood cancer myself...cancer free for 23 years now. I might like to borrow it from you one day if you don't mind! :-)

Anonymous said...

Hmm. Maybe someday but not right now.