Reviews tagging 'Blood'

Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a Life Interrupted by Suleika Jaouad

9 reviews

ivi_reads_books's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

With beautiful prose the author depicts what a potentially terminal diagnosis and years of treatments do to a person and the relationships to the people around them. She not only writes about her suffering but also how she comes back to life

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, and Grief

Moderate: Drug use and Alcohol

Minor: Infertility

themissyreads's review

dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

3.5

This book is 60% cancer 40% road trip. Which is fine i just wish it wasnt marketed as ‘a girl figured out how to Live Again after surviving cancer’ bc while thats the Point of the book and the most enjoyable part its really the minority of the page length. And check trigger/content warnings.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Terminal illness, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body horror, Drug use, Infertility, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Gun violence, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicide, and Vomit

Suleika meets a woman whose son ended his life. No details of the attempt itself. Suleika meets a death row inmate who has been involved in gang violence. gun-related self-injury described. Murder implied/referenced. Drug addiction implied/referenced. Suleika consents to sex even when painful and resulting in injury. Injury is briefly described. Suleika takes prescription drugs to deal with emotional pain during verbal fights with a partner. Mentions of cancer patients using marijuana medicinally.

naomi_k's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Grief, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Drug use, Infertility, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, and Gaslighting

Minor: Drug abuse, Gun violence, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Xenophobia, Murder, and Sexual harassment

mysterymom40's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Medical content, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Chronic illness, Death, Sexual content, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Ableism and Racism

cmcdaniel4's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

I adored this book: not simply a book about facing a life threatening illness, but self discovery, relationship challenges and rewriting trauma. Jaouad’s writing is gritty, heartbreaking, but hopeful and life affirming all at once. I wish it focused more on her impromptu journey across America to meet all the strangers who sent her letters during her cancer treatment… but is overall, exquisite and loaded with gut wrenching honesty! One of its biggest strengths is how the book grapples with the immense pressure the fallout from her diagnosis puts on her relationship with her boyfriend… and recognizing both his undeniable devotion at the beginning, his obvious love for her, but also how the long term strain of caregiving and continual sacrifice (at a pivotal time in both of their young adult lives) frayed their relationship over time. It’s rare to see an imperfect love story.  While at times Jaouad’s testimonial is uncomfortable read, I felt I had grown as a person by the time I read the final sentence. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cancer, Blood, and Vomit

thespinystacks's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

Between Two Kingdoms is told in two parts, the first is the story of Suleika a young adult who is finding herself in the world when her world is interrupted by a leukaemia diagnosis. This story is challenging to read, the medical content is intense but it’s important and if Suleika can live it, I can read it.

The second half of the story is Suleika’s emotional and physical journey to “rejoin” the world. This story takes her on the road meeting people who made contact for various reasons. 

Suleika’s story touched me in many ways, it felt like taking a journey with a friend, one trapped far away that I desperately wanted to reach. I highly recommend reading this book for perspective, to find beauty in the hard and worst things, and for some seriously important insight into living with cancer.

I haven’t stopped thinking about Suleika as a result of this amazing story, and I send love, strength and support to her as a friend from the pages and an admirer of strong women. Thankyou for sharing your story @suleikajaouad 

5/5 🚕🚌🚙🚐🚐 modes of transport 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, and Medical trauma

kaitlynreadsalot's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Terminal illness, and Medical trauma

Minor: Mental illness and Blood

paperknotbooks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Terminal illness, Medical content, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Grief

Minor: Confinement, Drug use, Blood, and Vomit

_autumn_'s review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, and Grief

Moderate: Death, Infertility, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Child death and Suicide