Silver Linings: The Other Side of Cancer

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Summary: 150 people who "have been there" share their experience.
Review: Captures the deepest inner souls of those facing serious illness. Engrossing stories describe a remarkable commonality in multitudinous personal approaches to a deeper realization of self and the relationship of ones own essence to the totality of life and death. Must reading for patients and families coming to grips with a cancer diagnosis.

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Summary: This book will leave you with a profound feeling of hope.
Review: If the issue of cancer has forced its way into your life, you will understand that dispair seems to be inevitable after hearing those terrifying words: that you or a loved one has cancer. However, upon reading the words found in this book, the trying times to come are made less frightening. Because of a lack of knowledge about cancer, we may be intimidated by the idea of bone marrow aspirations, chemotherapy, and the many potentially humiliating aspects of treatment. However, Silver Linings helps put this experience into a more positive light. I know I found them to be incredibly comforting. We all know there are so many people who are battling this disease, but they are often unrepresented, and with this book comes the ability to be encouraged by their successes. Also comes the knowledge that, should the war be lost, there is a way for the survivors to grow and flourish.

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Summary: island of peace
Review: The overly lavish illustrations in this book - angels, radiant suns, hearts, butterflies, bluebirds and endless flowers containing human faces - spill over the pages and threaten to blot out the text. I began to wonder if there was going to be any beef in the sandwich or just lotsa lettuce. But this collection of stories, insights, poetry and advice from cancer survivors and their oncology nurses (put together by two obviously very dedicated oncology nurses) does deliver the goods if you're looking for certain answers. One - does anyone really survive long-term the scarier cancers? -e.g. ovarian, melanoma. Apparently so! The voices of quite a few such survivors are heard in this book. Two - given that one might not be able to join these long-termers, what can be redeemed in the time left? Apparently everything that really matters. One's humanity, one's connectedness to others, one's experience of god. For anyone exhausted by cancer anxiety, this book is a place to retreat, a little island of peace. Will appeal to: Those of the more spiritual-Christian look-on-the-bright-side frame of mind, ready to reach out to others and share their experience.