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Strong at the Broken Places: Voices of Illness, a Chorus of Hope
The bestselling author of "Blindsided," Richard M. Cohen spent three years chronicling the lives of five diverse "citizens of sickness": Denise, who suffers from ALS; Buzz, whose Christian faith helps him deal with his non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; Sarah, a determined young woman with Crohn's disease; Ben, a college student with muscular dystrophy; and Larry
...morePaperback, 332 pages
Published
February 1st 2009
by Harper Paperbacks
(first published 2008)
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This is a powerful book about ordinary yet extraordinary people living with chronic illnesses. What they share is an incredible determination to live the best life that they can, not to be defined by their diseases, a commitment to hope and sharing this with others via advocacy and the alienation of the sick in a society that often (if not almost always) marginalizes them.
Now, it's not perfect - some of the sections are overly long without and the author's tendency to inject his own...more
Now, it's not perfect - some of the sections are overly long without and the author's tendency to inject his own...more
This book is the story of 5 people with various medical conditions, and how they deal with their illnesses. The problems are a woman with Lou Gehrig's disease, a man with terminal cancer, man with muscular dystrophy, a woman with Crohn's Disease, and a man with Bi-Polar disorder. This was a tough book for me to get through. The people who's stories are told were brave and tough, but I found the telling to be on the depressing side. There were nuggats here and there that I would like to rememb...more
Strong at The Broken Places – Adalah sebuah buku yang mengisahkan tentang 5 orang penderita penyakit kronis yang tidak dapat disembuhkan. Penulisnya sendiri, Richard M. Cohen adalah seorang jurnalis penderita Multiple Sclerosis yaitu penyakit yang menyerang system saraf pusat yang membuat terganggunya penyampaian ‘pesan’ antara otak dan bagian-bagian tubuh lainnya.
Buku ini diawali dengan berkumpulnya 5 orang penderita sakit di Harvard University untuk berbagi kisah mereka dengan maha...more
Buku ini diawali dengan berkumpulnya 5 orang penderita sakit di Harvard University untuk berbagi kisah mereka dengan maha...more
Wonderful exploration of what it means to live with different types of chronic illness. One chapter is about a social worker in the Shaker area.
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The author, Richard M. Cohen, suffers from multiple schlerosis and has had two bouts of colon cancer. In this book, he highlights the lives of five people who fight personal battles with chronic and/or terminal illness: Denise (ALS - Lou Gehrig's Disease); Buzz (non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma); Sarah (Crohn's disease); Ben (muscular dystrophy); and Larry (bipolar disorder). Different in age, gender, race, and economic status, they are alike in wanting to live life on their own terms. After forming int...more
I think this book would have been much better if the author would have kept his opinions more to himself or strictly in the Reflections section. I found Richard to seem quite bitter and angry that he is sick and then try and push that on the others. Numerous times I found it annoying that he would continuously ask them if they were angry or why they weren't angry or that he would be frustrated, etc.
The stories were interesting and very truthful. Although I do not have an illness it o...more
The stories were interesting and very truthful. Although I do not have an illness it o...more
I read this book not too long ago and was given a new insight into how people who live with illnesses try to cope. I didn't like how he was always giving his input in the stories. I wanted to be able to read the stories without him talking about his own opinions, experiences and how they compared the people in the book. I didn't mind that he was the one who was narrating, and I liked how he approached the people like friends. I didn't agree with everything that they said in the book though. ...more
This is an excellent follow up to Richard Cohen's first book, which focused on his diagnosis of MS and then Cancer. Strong at the Broken Places follows five individuals' stories, interviewing them and their family members with sincere interest in both learning from them and in sharing with readers what was learned. Perseverance, courage, faith ... all of these shone brightly in each story, along with the sobering colors of realism.
Cohen also hosts a website where people with chronic i...more
Cohen also hosts a website where people with chronic i...more
I thought this book was good in the aspect that it gives a very in depth look at the lives of people who have chronic diseases. It goes into detail how those people initially dealt with the understanding that they'd probably never lead normal healthy lives and also how they cope with the constant health issues that their diseases bring. I liked the idea of using 5 different people with 5 unrelated diseases and how in different stages of life they were dealing with everything. The only thing I re...more
This book is about five (to some extent six, if you include the author) people who are living with different chronic, debilitating diseases. This book reminds me that I am not the only person trying to live with a difficult illness, and that there are other people who may not understand exactly what I am going through, but understand what it is to struggle every day.
From these remarkable people, I have been given a gift of renewed gratitude for lives well lived in spite of chronic illness/injury. This is a work that brings honesty and joy to the discussion of the ways we cope individually & collectively with chronic conditions.
This book was a powerful testimony to the struggles of having chronic illness...so often we read about people being stigmatized by race or gender but thr chronically ill is an untouched topic. This book really was inspiring and eye opening,
I really didn't like this much, starting off with disagreeing over the definition of a chronic illness.
pretty depressing book about five people with chronic illnesses and how they handle it.
This book was an easy read -- it helped me to find camaraderie in the painful and difficult world of chronic illness. The 5 people who are a part of this book represent hope and coping in very different ways. What I most appreciated was how real they were.
I believe that this book would be a worthwhile read for anyone; I'm sure most people know someone with a chronic illness. Additionally, I believe this book would help anyone to find hope in their difficult circumstances and perhaps...more
I believe that this book would be a worthwhile read for anyone; I'm sure most people know someone with a chronic illness. Additionally, I believe this book would help anyone to find hope in their difficult circumstances and perhaps...more
I couldn't finish, it was too depressing
A good book for understanding disability experiences and paths to self-advocacy. However, the author's drama and interpretation gets in the way.
This book really wasn't what I expected. The overall tone wasn't inspiring to me at all, but rather pessimistic. The author seemed to be trying to convice people of strong faith to abandon that faith and get angry at God. Still, most of those he interviewed managed to inspire me and the book was very informational, which was part of what I was hoping for. I'd not sorry I read it.
i picked this book up after seeing it talked about on oprah. it was really good...not exactly a happy book but i learned a lot about different people and how they deal with different illnesses...it was sad but at the same time you see these very courageous people just trying to fit into everyday life like you and me....
I don't like Richard Cohen's writing style. It's very difficult to figure out the time-line of events in each person's story (very scattered tenses) or whether some of the statements he gives are his own thoughts or the feelings of the subject. Just frustrating. I would have rather read an autobiography from each person.
it has taken me a long while to commit to any book and finish it. however, i'm glad that i read this book. if you know anyone that suffers from either chronic or mental illness, then you should pick this up. i am constantly in search of understanding of myself and other people... this helped me.
Ok, I didn't read the whole book yet. But I read the chapter that was one of my primary interests in getting the book, and that was disappointing. It didn't resonate with me, and I didn't find it to be "A Chorus of Hope." I might get around to the rest of the book someday, but maybe not.
This book actually changed me--reading honest accounts of real (i.e. non-inspirational)people facing difficult chronic illness made me both more aware and less afraid. It's not the best-written book, but the content is very worthwhile.
An intimate look at five people and their courage in dealing with five life-altering diseases. This is a great read for anyone in need of some sympathy-training or if you just need to remember that some people are worse off than you.
This is an amazing book with insights to several chronic diseases. I loved the way that the people demonstrated their strength of character and truly showed how important is to remember what you have, not what you do not have.
I'm listening to this one on CD in the car. Interesting to find out how five very different dealt with the diagnosis and deal with the ongoing challenges of serious chronic (some terminal) illness.
Not a bad idea just a little slow in getting there. For something I am interested in it dragged
I read this for work. I think the students of the disability awareness course will be assigned to read it.
I didn't like it because it was depressing. Although I don't know what I was expecting.
Increased my understanding and compassion of these disabilities and conditions.
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