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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
I wanted to like this book a whole lot more than I actually did. The writing was lovely and the author’s personal story and perspectives were interesting. But, it just didn’t hold my interest and I often found myself falling asleep. So yeah, I may be the a-hole who falls asleep to a story about a strong woman’s personal growth, her thoughts as she overcame difficulties, and her insights on life as a healer. But I stand by my… well, I stand by my pillow. Because I just finished the book and now I’m yawning and am going to go take a quick nap.
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Did not care for this one. It's written well enough, but the author's tone of voice (while I'm sure intended sincerely) comes across as something that isn't quite patronizing or holier-than-thou, but is related to those concepts. Certainly a level of preachy.
I thought I would really enjoy this book because I’m fascinated by doctors and medical practices. On the bright side... I did think some parts were well written and I enjoyed some of the patient stories and how she related them to larger life lessons and healing. However, this was one of the only books I’ve read in a long time where I skimmed the last 40 or so pages and barely paid attention to them because I just was so not in to it enough to really finish it properly. There was a somewhat disturbing sense of her being superior to everyone and really judgmental of some of her patients. I actually caught myself wondering at certain points in the book how she could be writing about patients in the way she was and feel like she was doing her career and desire to “help” people any sort of justice. It bothered me so much I nearly put the book down multiple times. There were also passages that were insufferably “flowery” and over explained, like she had just replaced a bunch of adjectives using a thesaurus. I was engrossed in some parts and utterly bored in others. Disappointing. Wouldn’t recommend, unfortunately.
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
dark
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Harper bears witness and gives voice to how societies failure often brings patients to her as an ER doctor. This book was not only surprisingly hopeful but after everything Harper herself has gone through and then seen you really end up hopeful yourself.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Police brutality, Medical content, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Abortion
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Medical trauma
Moderate: Child abuse, Racism, Sexism
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Abortion
I love medical memoirs. I gravitate toward them by default, so when this one showed up on my radar, it was a no-brainer. Harper's story is poignant and at times heartbreaking: exactly what you'd expect from a memoir written by an ER doctor who spends part of her career working for a VA hospital in Philadelphia.
There's also a deeply spiritual bent in Harper's storytelling that I didn't expect but fully appreciated. Her spirituality is non-traditional (she mentions the goddess a handful of times), but that's exactly that made it so appealing. I hadn't realized how much it would touch my soul to see my own spiritual beliefs reflected back at me in a mainstream book by a highly-respected doctor.
Although the dialogue was at times stilted and Harper's turns of phrase occasionally awkward and convoluted, there's also so much beauty in this book. In the writing, in the storytelling, and in the deeply human stories of love and loss.
There's also a deeply spiritual bent in Harper's storytelling that I didn't expect but fully appreciated. Her spirituality is non-traditional (she mentions the goddess a handful of times), but that's exactly that made it so appealing. I hadn't realized how much it would touch my soul to see my own spiritual beliefs reflected back at me in a mainstream book by a highly-respected doctor.
Although the dialogue was at times stilted and Harper's turns of phrase occasionally awkward and convoluted, there's also so much beauty in this book. In the writing, in the storytelling, and in the deeply human stories of love and loss.