While you have probably landed on this blog because you like to read memoirs, or at the very least like to read, I would love to find out a little more about what kind of memoirs you like to read. On the blog, I divide memoirs into the following categories:
Addiction & Abuse – This can include any kind of addiction. As for the abuse part, it includes all types of abuse and tends to include stories of cult-like abuse of power.
Grief & Loss – These are the memoirs about people who have lost spouses, children, siblings, etc. Yet they still find the strength to move on and do great things.
History – These tend to be less “memoirs” and more “biographies,” but I still like to include them for variety. They are the stories of those who lived in a time and culture different than our own.
Hollywood – While these are primarily memoirs about people famous for being in Hollywood (obviously), they may also include people famous for being famous.
Illness & Survival – These memoirs include those who have or have loved those with serious illnesses. They also include those who have survived impossible situations.
Poverty – Memoirs in this category are about those who grew up in or spent time working with those in extreme poverty.
True Crime – These memoirs are about crime, the criminals who commit them, and those who manage to survive their ordeals.
I gravitate toward true crime memoirs. I’m not sure what it is about them, but they’ve always fascinated me. And unless they have some element of another category, Hollywood memoirs tend not to interest me. Whenever I find myself reading one, I find it takes longer to read because of my disinterest.
What type of memoirs do you read? Do you read a little of everything or do you stick to one kind?
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Jody Berger shares her emotional story of being misdiagnosed with MS in her book Misdiagnosed. She writes about the doctor who moved too quickly to diagnose her, the treatments that seemed to do more harm than good, and her search to find the real cause of her health problems.
When Jody Berger received an MRI in an attempt to find out what was causing the tingling in her hands and feet, she did not expect the doctor to come back with a diagnosis of MS. When she began to ask him questions about how he came to the conclusion he did, he told her that it is the diagnosis he gives most women like her: young, athletic, and female. Unsatisfied with a diagnosis based on a short appointment and spinal tumors that could have several causes, she questioned the diagnosis. The diagnosing doctor insisted she start medication right away to prevent permanent damage. Not wanting to make things worse, she began medication that ended up exasperating her symptoms. After a short period of time, she stopped them and began looking for a second opinion.
“I was starting to believe that we all see only what we are looking for.”
Jody Berger
Jody visited about half a dozen doctors and received just as many diagnoses. One thought that she was deficient in certain vitamins. Another thought she had a heavy metal toxicity and started her on a treatment to clear that out. After the treatment made her feel worse, she realized that could not be the answer, either, and continued her search. Finally she found a doctor who worked with her to look at her entire health history to find the root of her health problems. Throughout her childhood she had intestinal distress with unknown causes. As an adult, she had different problems with her stomach. She did not know these issues could be related to the tingling in her hands. After completing an elimination diet, she and her doctor found that she had an extreme sensitivity to gluten. When she eliminated it from her diet, her body returned to normal.
I found myself relating to Jody’s misadventures in healthcare.
While I have not received a misdiagnosis as shocking as MS, I was able to understand some of the suffering that comes with being misunderstood and mistreated by doctors. While they are mostly well-meaning, sometimes they are unable to take the time they need to get to the root of what is wrong with a patient. Other times they are looking at things through a certain lens, biasing their view of their patient and their condition.
Two years ago I began to have terrible pain in my right leg. In addition to the pain, I had swelling and redness. It got to a point where my husband and I went to the hospital. I received tests to rule out blood clots because a medication I am on puts me at increased risk. Although the tests did not show any blood clots, the doctor told me that it was venous thrombosis (which is a blood clot!). He put me on medication to thin my blood and sent me on my way, telling me that if anything changed I should come back to the ER.
When the pain increased and the redness got worse, I went back to the ER. The second doctor who saw me was confused at my worry and the first doctor’s diagnosis, and said that my leg must have some sort of injury or nerve damage. The redness was caused by a skin infection, but the pain and the redness were unrelated.
I ended up seeing a super weird doctor next.
I was referred to my family doctor, who tested me for diabetes and sent me to an acupuncturist to get a nerve conduction study. While the doctor there was putting needles into my legs, he asked me questions. He asked if I had any other conditions. I mentioned that I get migraines, and his entire attitude toward me changed. “I’ve noticed migraine sufferers have a low tolerance toward pain,” he said. Our entire conversation was then colored by his view of what “migraine sufferers” were like. He would comment about how strange it was that my legs were so cold. Whatever his comments, he tied them back to my being a “migraine sufferer.”
Finally, when he asked if I had any trauma in my past, I mentioned that I had been abused by a boyfriend. I wasn’t sure how it was relevant, but why not answer the questions? The test wrapped up and I put my clothes back on. He said the test did not show anything abnormal, but it was his opinion that my leg wasn’t injured. It was my unforgiving spirit that was keeping me in pain. Until I could forgive people, I would be in pain. I guess that’s a medical diagnosis now.
“Throughout my journey, I’d come to realize how many people get locked into misdiagnoses and then have to suffer the consequences.”
Jody Berger
I am not sure what he sent my family doctor, but I still don’t have answers. After a family member got diagnosed with sciatic nerve issues, I began to see the similarities between our problems. Since then, I’ve looked up sleeping positions and stretches to help and the pain has lessened. Still, it has been a very strange adventure.
Quick Review:
This is a bizarre adventure worth taking if you are interested in the world of modern medicine. While some of Jody Berger’s views are not ones that I hold, I believe that her search for answers in the face of a dark diagnosis can be an inspiration to others. Her writing style is excellent, likely because of her journalism experience. She brings to life the emotions and frustrations of her fight against an unfair diagnosis.
Do you have a misdiagnosis story? Share in the comments below!
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In Andi Dorfman’s memoir It’s Not Okay, she writes about her relationships on The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. She wrote this book after breaking off her turbulent engagement with Josh Murray. Dorfman focuses the bulk of the book on how that relationship blossomed and the things that were wrong within it.
Andi Dorfman gained the hearts of Bachelor fans when she broke up with Juan Pablo Galavis near the end of his season. It was because of this that she was eventually chosen to become The Bachelorette. She had the opportunity to choose from twenty-six men to find a relationship that could last. From the beginning of her time on The Bachelorette, she found herself drawn to Josh Murray.
“You’d have thought I’d learned my lesson the first go-round, but an unusual optimism told me this second time was going to be different.”
Andi Dorfman
During filming, she caught one glimpse of his temper. Their fight did not air, but she was worried about what this temper he showed over something as trivial as a date she did not plan could mean for their future. Despite her anxiety about the issue, she decided her love for him was more than her fear of his temper. After the show ended, though, she found that his temper was unbearable. She found herself walking on eggshells to avoid his outbursts. Finally, she left the apartment they shared and began an extended stay with a friend until she could get back on her feet.
I would not recommend this as the self-help book it is trying to be.
Written (presumably) from the first day after her breakup, Dorfman sets this book up as a self-help book for any woman going through a breakup. There is some good advice hidden within the pages of this book: get out and exercise, don’t stoop to his level, compromise is important in relationships, learn from your relationship, and move on. Wrapped within this self-help is the unique story of Dorfman’s experience.
“If you think about your past relationships in the same chronological way, I guarantee you can find at least one valuable lesson that you carried with you to the next relationship, right?”
Andi Dorfman
However, despite some of the good advice, there is some bad advice and too much alcohol. I almost never read the reviews of books I read, but found that the reviews of this book on Amazon were brutal. Several people agreed that you could practically smell the alcohol coming from the pages of this book. Some of the pages seemed like drunken rants about her pain disguised as advice. It was the “don’t ever get engaged to a jerk” type of advice you’d expect to hear from someone drunk and hurt.
Quick Review:
I would never recommend this as a self-help book. Ever. However, for fans of The Bachelor, I think it is a moderately interesting read. There are some things in it about Nick Viall, who is the bachelor for season 21, which airs tonight. However, I still withhold a full recommendation because of the amount of language, alcohol, and the attempt at being a self-help book. For those looking to read a book about The Bachelor, I would recommend I Said Yes as a first read. I would only recommend this as a follow-up to I Said Yes for those who still want more.
Since reading Carrie Fisher’s memoir The Princess Diarist, I have been bothered by Carrie Fisher’s strange writing style. As a casual fan of Star Wars, I may have had an unrealistic expectation of who Carrie Fisher needed to be. Perhaps I expected her to be too much like her iconic character, Princess Leia. Putting my expectations aside, I still found her writing style bizarre and decided to find out if her interviews were just as disconnected or if writing was not her ideal medium.
When searching for videos of interviews with Carrie Fisher, I stumbled upon this interview with the Today Show. Carrie Fisher is asked about her book and its contents. Despite being asked questions that were answered in her book, Fisher appears confused, flustered, and confrontational throughout the entire interview.
What Makes Carrie Fisher’s Writing Strange
Although I briefly mentioned some of strange things about her writing in my previous post, the following are the things that I found strange about Fisher’s writing style:
She went on “rabbit trails” frequently. While I do not mind rabbit trails, her use of them made her train of thought difficult to follow.
Her stories seemed to divert from reality. When reading memoirs, regardless of whose memoir I’m reading, I’ve generally chosen to believe that everything in it is true. However, some of what she wrote was so far from reality that I find it difficult to ignore. While none of those things were related to her affair with Harrison Ford (the main topic of the book), they are still significant. Most notable was one entry in her nineteen-year-old diary about a fish coming to her on a flaming pie, then falling out her window and later going on to show business. Perhaps she was speaking in metaphors, but that whole entry was so strangely written that I read it a few times. Other passages, though not as strange, similarly seem to divert from reality.
The tone of the entire book seems angry. Yet in several places she actually writes things to try to say, “I’m not angry about this,” or “I don’t hate this; I actually love it.”
Carrie Fisher’s Style is Her Own
After watching this interview, I have come to the conclusion that the strange writing style Fisher adopts is not because of her being an actor first and a writing second, but because her writing truly reflects her personality. Throughout the Today Show interview, I saw many of the same things that I saw in the book.
Carrie Fisher appeared very confused by the questions that the ladies were asking her. At one point, they asked her if Harrison Ford made the first move in the affair, and she immediately said no. Getting flustered by the question, she began to protest their questions, and they pointed out that nothing they were asking wasn’t already in the book. Fisher joked that they should read the book, then. They re-worded the question, then, to ask if she made the first move, and she said that she was drunk and surprised, implying that she did not. She answered “no” to both questions, implying that she did not understand at least one of them.
I also saw some of the same angry tone that I saw throughout the book in this interview. Perhaps some of the questions she misunderstood put her on edge, but Fisher appeared to be very aggressive in some places in this interview. While she also tried to keep it lighthearted, it felt to me as if she was just angry about the whole thing. She even mentioned at one point that she was not sure how she felt about having confessed what she did in her memoir. Perhaps the consequences of publishing the book have been upsetting to her, putting her on guard for these interviews.
Finally, I noticed that she was changing topic and getting stuck in the middle of sentences. While that is a perfectly normal thing to do while being interviewed, I believe that it also reflects her writing style well. It is my conclusion that while the whole of her style of writing seems strange to me, it is very authentic to the voice of Carrie Fisher and who she is.
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Carrie Fisher’s The Princess Diarist gives readers a look behind the scenes of the filming of the first Star Wars movie. It also allows fans to get a feel for who the young woman who played Princess Leia really is. Fisher’s quirky (and sometimes plain bizarre) personality shines through the pages of this memoir.
Fisher tells her story as she remembers it, despite having told parts of it in other venues. Fisher grew up the daughter of a famous actress and never wanted to be famous. Despite these wishes, she ended up auditioning for a movie she did not think would amount to much. She ended up being cast as the lead woman, Leia, with the stipulation that she lose ten pounds. She signed away her rights to merchandising, not thinking that it would be much income or that Star Wars would become the phenomenon that it did.
In this memoir, Fisher opens up about one thing she has been too ashamed to admit openly for forty years: her affair with Harrison Ford. For three months of filming, she spent the weekends with him. They did not discuss a future together or the fact he had a wife and kids at home. And at the end of filming, the affair ended and they went their separate ways. Somehow, they managed to remain friends and worked together amicably on future films.
Carrie Fisher shows readers her conflicted feelings over her affair with Harrison Ford.
On one hand, Fisher felt like she wanted the affair. She writes that she had planned to have an affair with someone on the set of this movie because an affair was a very adult thing to do. At the age of nineteen, she wanted so badly to feel like an adult. Despite being intimidated by Harrison, she was also attracted to him.
“My affair with Harrison was a very long one-night stand. I was relieved when it ended. I didn’t approve of myself.”
Carrie Fisher
On the other hand, Fisher was so embarrassed by the affair and did not share what happened with anyone for forty years. She did not want Harrison’s wife to find out about their affair. At times she also realized there was no substance to their relationship. They had a physical attraction, but would sit in silence for hours without having any conversation. Beyond that physical bond, there was nothing to their relationship.
This book was difficult to read because of Carrie Fisher’s scattered thoughts.
While it might be considered part of her charm, I found it difficult to get past her writing style. I frequently found myself engaged in pages of good writing about life behind the scenes of Star Wars, followed by a few paragraphs that were so crazy and scattered that it left me confused about everything else I had just read. Throughout the book, there were passages where Fisher rambled about things completely off topic. Sometimes those things seemed completely outside of reality.
In several passages, Fisher confesses to drinking and having smoked marijuana in her younger years. While these may account for some of her strange ramblings, they may not account for all of them. In one passage from a diary she wrote at the age of nineteen, she writes about a fish that came to her on a flaming pie and sat on her window, laughing at her. While this is by far the strangest example, smaller pieces of her writing seem completely divorced from reality (or even reality within Star Wars). While I could probably stand to lighten up and enjoy her quirkiness, passages like this kept me from believing the more “real” feeling passages.
Quick Review:
Despite her sometimes rude language and seemingly loose grasp on reality, I would still recommend this book to any Star Wars fan. Carrie Fisher shares her insecurities as a young actress starring in a role that became bigger than she ever dreamed. She writes about the struggles of becoming famous. Her humorous stories and wit are found throughout this memoir of the making of Star Wars.
In her memoir unSweetined, Jodie Sweetin writes about her struggle with alcohol and drug addiction. Since the publication of that book in 2009, Sweetin began speaking at events through Keppler Speakers. In the video below from Keppler Speakers, she shares her addiction story.
Just like in her memoir, Sweetin expresses in this video that the pressures of being on set and pretending to be okay all of the time did not help her learn good habits for relating to others. She shares about her high school experience and her first drink at the age of thirteen. Although she was famous, she expresses that it didn’t change her desire to blend in. Drinking helped her feel better in a way she felt she could not do on her own.
The Depth of Sweetin’s Addiction
Sweetin shares throughout this video and her memoir that she did not drink like anyone else her age. While others her age were drinking a little to get buzzed, she was getting completely wasted. Throughout high school, she found ways to get as drunk as she possibly could. When her parents insisted that she come home on the weekends during college, she spent the rest of the week missing class so she could party. She began using drugs in addition to her drinking, taking her addiction to an even more dangerous place.
“I took it to a place that got very dangerous very quickly.”
Jodie Sweetin
Despite having people who cared for her, Sweetin only cared about getting drunk or high. In college, she had a very caring boyfriend who ended up being her first husband. He wanted to help her get sober, but she was uninterested in helping herself. Her roommate and her parents tried to help her, but no one was able to help her because of the depth of her addiction.
“That was all I could think about, was getting out of my own head.”
Jodie Sweetin
Sweetin’s Inspiration for Sobriety
While married to her second husband, Sweetin became pregnant with her daughter and realized that something had to change. She remained sober from the time she found out she was pregnant until she gave birth. After having her daughter, though, she relapsed and began drinking again. When her marriage began to fall apart, however, she realized that she needed to pull herself together if she was going to have custody of her daughter.
In 2016, she competed in Dancing with the Stars. After the competition, she began filming for Fuller House, the reboot of the sitcom Full House which brought Sweetin into the spotlight. Season 2 of Fuller House was released on Netflix on December 9, and a third season is yet to be announced. She continues to share her story of addiction and sobriety through Keppler Speakers. Today she has two daughters to continue to inspire her to stay sober: Zoie and Beatrix.
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In her memoir unSweetined, Jodie Sweetin shares her struggle with alcohol and drug addiction. Known for her time as Stephanie Tanner on Full House and more recently on the Netflix reboot Fuller House, Sweetin opens up about her addictions, despite their ugliness. Although her addiction is not a secret to the public, she uses the pages of her memoir to reveal the emptiness that brought her to these addictions and what gave her the strength to find her way out.
Throughout her years on set, the cast of Full House became like family to her. Sweetin recounts some of the fun times on set, along with some of the pressure she felt to be her best at all times. At one event, fans were pushing and crowding the table where she was signing autographs so much that they had to remove her from the location. Later, people were complaining, saying that they could not believe that she would do that to her fans. It was a struggle for her at that age to balance her desire to please others with her need for rest and safety.
“I was just too young to understand that it was OK to have my own limits and boundaries.”
Jodie Sweetin
After her time on Full House ended, Sweetin felt empty. Although there were some opportunities to visit with the cast, she was forced to move on to the next thing. She made attempts to get other roles, but most directors could not see her as anything but Stephanie Tanner. Frustrated by failed attempts to keep her acting career going, she entered high school feeling like an outsider in both school and Hollywood. At Full House co-star Candace Cameron’s wedding, she was offered a drink. She continued drinking until she was drunk, and ended up vomiting in the bathroom. In the years following that first drink, she found herself in the throes of drug and alcohol addiction.
Jodie Sweetin’s story gives us a glimpse at some of the reasons people turn to addiction.
In exploring the history of her alcohol and drug addictions, Sweetin reflected on some of the reasons for her addictions. While the loss she felt over Full House ending was a major contributor to her addiction, other things led her down that path. Despite knowing she didn’t have much of a reason to drink, she still felt like a shell of a person. Her parents did not tell people that she was adopted for fear that they would think they were exploiting her in Hollywood, but her adoption may have contributed to her addiction. Her biological parents had addictions, and she knew that it could make her more prone to addiction.
“A big chunk that I felt was missing in me had been filled that day by drinking.”
Jodie Sweetin
The biggest reason she felt she was addicted to alcohol and drugs, though, was that she felt she was not enough without them. Without drugs, she wasn’t the funniest or the prettiest girl in the room. With them, she could make people laugh. When she had drugs and alcohol, people wanted to be around her. People wanted to talk to her and to get to know her. The part of her that she felt wasn’t ever good enough was gone when she had that first taste of alcohol.
She also shows us that having something to live for can help someone fight addiction.
When Sweetin was at a low point in her addiction, her first husband helped get her into a rehab facility. It was there that she was able to get clean and sober for a time. She had counseling several times a day and had friends inside who were going through similar things. Because of the idyllic nature of the facility, it was easy to stay sober while inside it. However, once on the outside of this facility, Sweetin quickly found her way back to drugs, despite the fact she was working as a motivational speaker (sharing her story about beating addiction) at the time.
“Love is wanting something more for someone else than you do for yourself.”
Jodie Sweetin
When Sweetin became pregnant, she finally found the motivation to get sober. Once she found out about her pregnancy, she did not use drugs or drink. Now married to her second husband, she realized that he was an unpleasant and emotionally abusive man. After the birth of their child, she began to drink as an escape from her miserable marriage. At one point, she even drove away, drunk, with her daughter in the car. However, she realized that she needed to get clean if she was going to be able to leave the marriage and retain custody of her daughter. She moved in with her parents and worked hard at sobriety.
At the time of the book’s publication (2009) she was still fighting for custody and several months sober. Today, she has a second daughter and is working as a motivational speaker and on the set of Fuller House. She found the strength to get clean by looking outside herself and looking at what was really important: her daughter.
Quick Review:
I found this to be an all-around enjoyable read. While Jodie Sweetin covers a lot of mature material in the book, she writes in a tactful way that conveys her current regret for some of her past mistakes. She explains her past and current feelings, showing readers growth over time and her recovery from addiction. Although this book is significantly dated, it is still worth reading for any Full House or Fuller House fan.
If after reading Wild you feel inspired to go on a long hike, you may find yourself pondering the differences between the Appalachian Trail (AT) and the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). While Cheryl Strayed (the author of Wild) traveled the PCT, the AT is another great option for anyone looking to complete a long hike. In 1968, the National Trails System Act became law and made the AT and PCT its first two trails. While these two trails have a lot in common, they have many things that make them unique.
The Appalachian Trail is 2,190 miles long and goes through fourteen states. Those who choose to hike its length will cross through Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. Thousands attempt a thru-hike each year, but only about one in four complete that journey. A typical hiker takes about five to seven months to hike the entire trail.
The Pacific Crest Trail is the longer of the two trails, spanning 2,650 miles. It runs from the Mexican to the Canadian border, going through California, Oregon, and Washington. Although an especially athletic hiker can make it in 100 days, a more typical hike takes five to six months. Considering all expenses, many find that this journey costs them $4000-$8000, depending on how their money is spent. Some spend even more if medical emergencies arise or if they choose expensive lodging along the way.
Unique Qualities of the Trails
There are many things that makes the Appalachian Trail unique. Although it is nearly as long as the PCT, some of its conditions make it easier to traverse. While a hike of this magnitude still requires training, hikers on the AT will find 250 shelters along the trail. These shelters are available on a first come, first serve basis and allow extra protection from the elements. Hikers on the AT also only need to carry food and supplies for three to six days at a time, since there are towns to get supplies in frequently along the trail. Despite being the older of the two trails, the AT had the more modern website. The website also appeared to have many articles that tried to appeal to a broader audience with the trail’s more modern feel.
The Pacific Crest Trail also has things that make it stand apart from other trails. While many may see the modernity and conveniences of the AT appealing, the design of the PCT is intentional. They have intentionally limited the number of signs to only include signs at junctions and every couple of miles so that hikers will have a true wilderness experience on their thru-hikes. Unlike the AT, which is for walkers only, the PCT allows its visitors to ride the trail on horseback. For some, the highlight of this trail is being able to climb Mt. Whitney, the highest point in the United States. Despite this trail’s rural charm, there are places to restock along the way. Some who have taken their phones with them even claim to have reception along about 70% of the trail.
Similarities between the Trails
The websites for the AT and the PCT (where I got all of my information) make special note of being sure that those who want to do something special for hikers Leave No Trace. When a person does something kind for a hiker, it is called “trail magic” and that person is called a “trail angel.” While these people often set up at trail heads and prepare meals or offer showers and shelter, some have begun to leave coolers with food in them along the trail. Both the AT and PCT websites asked that trail angels not do this, as it leads to litter problems when animals get into them. Those who wish to do something kind for hikers are encouraged to do so in person. Hikers are also encouraged to use judgement when accepting things from strangers.
In addition to this similar culture of kindness with trail magic and trail angels, the two trails have other major similarities. They are both long trails that span multiple states. Despite their different hiking experiences and climates, they also have a similar hiking time for the average person. A hiker who plans to hike either of these two trails will need to plan their hike and prepare by getting their supplies, training their bodies, and making sure loved ones know where they are and when to expect to hear from them. While the AT does not require as many permits as the PCT, some permits are needed for some camping sites. Any hiker planning a trip of this magnitude will likely spend more time planning than hiking.
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In her memoir Wild, Cheryl Strayed shares about the grief that drove her to hike about a thousand miles on the Pacific Crest Trail despite the fact she had no prior backpacking experience. Her words bring to life the pain, adventure, and surprises she experienced during this very difficult time in her life.
Despite the fact Cheryl’s friends and family may have seen her decision to hike the Pacific Crest Trail as a hasty one, the events that led her to doing so had been brewing for a long time. Her mother was diagnosed with lung cancer and died shortly thereafter. Filled with grief, Cheryl did what she could to alleviate the pain, indulging in affairs. After confessing her affairs to her husband, they separated. She moved in with a drug addicted boyfriend, got pregnant, had an abortion, and finalized her divorce from her husband.
“Alone had always felt like an actual place to me, as if it weren’t a state of being, but rather a room where I could retreat to be who I really was.”
Cheryl Strayed
Despite all this, she and her husband parted ways amicably as she left to go hike the Pacific Crest Trail. She began her three month journey realizing her backpack was too heavy for her to lift. Cheryl found many kind strangers along her journey who offered her help and advice. One man helped her lighten her bag, getting rid of unnecessary items, while others provided her with food and shelter. While a few people along they way did not treat her as well, she found an overwhelming amount of kindness on the Pacific Crest Trail. By the end of her journey, Cheryl found that her body was stronger physically and she had some time to process her grief.
Cheryl’s grief drove her to drastic action.
Cheryl was so consumed by the grief she felt from the loss of her mother that it drove her to act out in ways that many of us may only think about acting when faced with grief. She indulged in pleasure and drugs to try to drown the pain. When new relationships did not satisfy her, she tried moving away and getting a fresh start. None of that was enough to dull the grief that engulfed her, so Cheryl decided to get away from everything and hike the Pacific Crest Trail.
Cheryl’s trip to the Pacific Crest Trial was not the day after her mother’s death. But after four years of heavy grieving with seemingly no progress, she knew she needed to do something. She saved money, planned her stops, and decided when she would go. In her imagination, she hoped she would have alone time to look out on the serene landscapes and reflect. In reality, she was focused on survival. Despite this unexpected difference between her imagination and reality, she gained a lot of self-confidence along the way.
“Fear, to a great extent, is born of a story we tell ourselves, and so I chose to tell myself a different story from the one women are told. I decided I was safe. I was strong. I was brave. Nothing could vanquish me. Insisting on this story was a form of mind control, but for the most part, it worked.”
Cheryl Strayed
We can be inspired by her drastic action.
There were a lot of things I did not like about Cheryl Strayed and this book. I could have done without all of the language. Her life choices ranged from creepy to questionable. However, I admire the fact that she knew she needed to make a change in order to get out of the deep grief she was facing.
When we are faced with grief, stories like this one may inspire us to take drastic action. Perhaps we shouldn’t run off to the Pacific Crest Trial, but maybe some other action is needed after a loss. With the consultation of those we trust, making those changes may be exactly what we need to move forward.
Quick Review:
While I really enjoyed the story, I am finding it hard to wholeheartedly recommend this book because I did not feel emotionally invested in Cheryl Strayed. I have read books about people who have done far worse things, but the flippant way she approached her past mistakes rattled me. Her extreme use of profanity was off-putting. Despite these things, the story was very engaging and her writing was otherwise excellent.
Have you taken a drastic action during a difficult time in your life? Feel free to share in the comments below!
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In her powerful memoir, Malala Yousafzai writes about childhood in Pakistan and the events that led up to her being shot by the Taliban. Her advocacy for education of children, especially young girls, has made her the youngest ever Nobel Peace Prize laureate. This memoir gives the reader a unique glimpse into her story from her perspective.
Malala was a fairly ordinary girl living in the Swat valley in Pakistan. She went to a school where her father was the principal. Eventually, though, the Taliban who began to infiltrate the area said that young girls were not allowed to go to school. Malala refused to accept this, and with her parents’ support and blessing, she continued to not only go to school but to speak out on behalf of the education of all girls.
“When the whole world is silent, even one voice becomes powerful.”
Malala Yousafzai
Her father was a strong advocate of education, and the two of them traveled and shared the difficulties that the area they lived in faced under the Taliban. When a journalist began to publish anonymous letters about life in Pakistan that were written by Malala, they were read by those around the world. Eventually, though, her anonymous cover was blown (accidentally by her own father) and the Taliban set in motion a plan to kill her. One day, they got on the bus she was on and shot. The damage was extensive, and Malala woke up in a hospital in England where she was able to receive better care. Her family was relocated to England where they would be safe to continue to advocate for education away from the grasp of the Taliban.
Malala is an ordinary human doing extraordinary things.
Malala writes about ordinary things like arguing with her brothers and having problems with her best friend. Although she insists that her brothers start all of the fights, she admits that those fights exist and are a part of her life. Her arguments with her best friend are not glossed over, nor are her temporary lapses in judgement during some of these fights. Malala does not paint herself as a girl who was born a saint, but rather an ordinary girl who was given an amazing opportunity to speak up for what she believes in.
“I don’t want to be thought of as the ‘girl who was shot by the Taliban’ but the ‘girl who fought for education.’ This is the cause to which I want to devote my life.”
Malala Yousafzai
It is easy to look at people like Malala who have done great things and think, “I could never do that.” Malala won a Nobel Peace Prize at an age when my greatest accomplishment was getting my driver’s license. While we may not all receive a Nobel Peace Prize for the peace that we bring to the world around us, we can all work together as ordinary people doing extraordinary things. Sometimes in a world filled with so much darkness, a small act of kindness can begin to make change in the world around us.
Quick Review:
For a book written by a young adult, I Am Malala is very well-written. I have heard about Malala for years without knowing enough about what happened to her, and hearing her story in her own words was a rewarding experience. It was a great story, and my only real complaint was short areas of repetitiveness.
