A review by andrearbooks
The Unwinding of the Miracle: A Memoir of Life, Death, and Everything That Comes After by Julie Yip-Williams

5.0

The Unwinding of the Miracle by Julie Yip-Williams was outstanding. This is an emotional read, but worth the journey given the beauty of the writing. This is a memoir (posted posthumously) built around the author's terminal cancer diagnosis at 37. She uses her writing to chronicle the emotions of living with this disease. This includes her relationship with her husband, young daughters, and extended family. The title speaks to the fact that it is somewhat of a miracle the author even made it to adulthood. Born blind, her own grandmother wanted her parents to have her euthanized. After coming to the United States as a refugee to escape the turmoil of Vietnam, she is able to eventually get surgery to restore some sight. She spends some time on what it means to overcome such obstacles to achieve all she has, but really this is a reflection on the emotions that come with coming face-to-face with your mortality. There are days where she details the beauty in the world, and there are others where she is overcome with the pain and grief of cancer and what this means for her, as well as what will never be. By the end of this one, I was a mess of tears. However, I also found such power in this story. Throughout, she stresses the importance of living while you're living. Given her situation, she has a unique understanding of working with the time you've got, and her message is going to stay with me for awhile. Thanks to Random House for the ARC that I'm a bit behind in reading. The good news? This one is out now, so no need to wait on a release date to check this one out right now.