Reviewed by Anne Boling for Readers' Favorite

In the last few years I have heard more and more about the VP Virus. HPV is a virus transmitted by having sex with an infected partner. The virus can go away on its own or can result in cervical cancer. Michelle L. Whitlock shares her fight against cervical cancer in "How I Lost My Uterus and Found My Voice". Michi had her whole life before her. She was a two year cancer survivor. She and Mark were planning their barefoot beach wedding in Jamaica, when she received the call from Dr. C. Michi experienced itching and burning to the point of wanting to scream. She was repeatedly treated for yeast infections, causing the doctor to run tests. After receiving the test results Michi decided to be proactive and not allow the cancer to control her. The doctors recommended a complete hysterectomy but she refused to allow the radical treatment. She opted for RVT and even became the “poster girl” for an article on Dr. B and the procedure. But the cancer returned. I usually refer to authors by their last names but I can’t do that this time. I have never physically met Michelle Whitlock and yet feel that I know her well enough to call her Michi. Michi holds back nothing. She shares the details of her radiation and chemo, none of which is pretty. After beating cancer again she had to be treated for the damage the treatments did.

I am unsure what to say about this book. I can assure readers that Michi has done a wonderful job sharing her life. I can tell the readers that the photographs add much to the text. The book is well-organized and Michi is a very talented writer. I can say all of these things truthfully. But what I really want to say is that Michi is a brave, courageous young woman. Not everyone would be able to share their experiences the way Michi has done. She has told her tale with brutal honesty. The end of her book has information about the new HPV vaccine. I admire this woman because she has not hesitated to share the details of her life in the hope of saving someone from going through hell. “Cancer taught me how precious life really is,” she says. Thank you Michi; you are one of the unsung heroes.

Reviewed by Anne Boiling for Readers' Favorite

Jessamine Rose offers readers a glimpse into her life. She was born in 1937, in a small town in eastern Kentucky. For many her upbringing will seem foreign but for some it will sound all too familiar. The family's cabin was cold, the cracks in the floor made it impossible to heat. The bathroom was an outhouse. Her father often beat her mother. Her father shot her mother to scare her. At one point the family lived under a cliff. In the hills of eastern Kentucky "you could shoot a dog and spend a year in jail, shoot a man and nothing." She faced sexual abuse, beatings, neglect and yet rose above it all. She was a mere 6 years old the first time she was raped. Her mother gave away her young brother and sister. Jassamine made her escape in the back of an ice truck, she was less than 14. She ended up living in a park in Ohio.

The court placed her in a foster home where she started a new life. After her foster parents moved, Jessamine attended Catholic school. She loved the ladies in long black dresses with their heads covered. The nuns were kind to her and she spent many hours talking to them.

After high school she married Boyd. She suffered several miscarriages. She and Boyd decided it was time for her to return to Kentucky and find her family. First she found her father; he furnished phone numbers so that she could track down her mother and siblings. Eventually the family was reunited. Today Jessamine lives in Nicholasville, Kentucky.

Jessamine faced many hardships in her life. Yet her memoir is upbeat. Despite her childhood she came out on top. I wish I had read this book a few weeks ago when I was in Nicholasville, I just might have given Jessamine a call to tell her what a remarkable woman I think she is.

This book needs a wee bit of editing, mostly on the spacing. The title and the cover work well together. This tiny book is a quick read but will stay with the reader long after the last page. There are many family photos that bring the story to life. I wish Miss Jessamine the best and thank you for sharing your story.

Reviewed by Lynette Fowlston for Readers' Favorite

This is a fictional book based on actual facts; the names and locations are changed. This is a story of child abuse and how Suzy learned to forgive.

Suzy (Carol Denise Brown) was the 6th child out of 16 children. Her father seldom lived at the home. From the day she was born her mother seemed to hate her more than any of the other children. Their older brother was in charge of the kids when their mother was at work. He was very abusive at times, more so than their mother. Suzy was abused, not only by her family, but by her classmates as well.

But the story does not end there. What happened to Suzy? Despite the scars of physical, mental and emotional abuse, she healed; she excelled; she became strong. She is a beautiful person inside and out.

I am surprised Suzy survived. Where was child protective services? The teachers at school had to notice a bruised, battered, half starved child. One of the things that jumped out for me was how Suzy wanted to please her mother. Suzy just kept loving her mother.

I found tears running down my cheeks as I read this book. The author cleverly brings out the emotions of the reader. Suzy became real to me. I wanted to pick her up and take her out of that home from hell. This book is well written and well organized. But the part that stands out is the characterization. While this book is very sad and disturbing, it is also a book of hope, for we know what happened to Suzy: she found healing. She survived and tells her story to help others.

Reviewed by Anne Boling for Readers' Favorite

Joseph J. Sivak offers readers a glimpse into the life of a caretaker and a doctor. He was only seventeen when he became his mother's caretaker. She was in her early sixties when she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. He and his siblings noticed a drastic change in her after the death of her husband. At first they attributed it to grief, but eventually they had to admit it was something much more serious.

In his memoir Sivak shares the heartache and the pain of being a caretaker. When you have to tell a loved one she can no longer drive, she will often react with anger. The victim is frightened and lonely for she is losing control of her own life. Often the victim (I use this term because I have witnessed the way the disease ravishes the patient) feels as if everyone is against her. The role of caretaker is one of constant vigilance, for the patient can wander away at any moment and not know where she is, how she got there, or even who she is. The pain of watching a loved one slip away is indescribable. As the disease advances the patient's bodily functions begin to "forget" how to function. The patient will often forget to eat, and at an advanced stage, may have a problem swallowing liquids. She can no longer control her bowels and eventually loses the ability to converse with others. The picture of Alzheimer's is not pretty and when it is someone you love, it is even uglier.

Sivak and several of his siblings are physicians. This makes his memoir unique for he can also relate to the discomfort of the physician who often has to be the bad guy. The physician is the one who signs his name at the bottom of the page. The physician is the one blamed for the patient not being able to drive. He or she is also the one who has to break the bad news to the family. Sometimes the family accepts the diagnosis with resignation; sometimes it is with anger and sometimes relief to at last knowing what is wrong.

Sivak weaves together his joint role as caregiver and physician. His story will be of great benefit to other caregivers. He still is not overly sentimental, and yet, it was easy to see the love and frustration he experienced in dealing with his mother. He uses the phrase "living ghost" to describe the last of his mother' life. I found that poignant. It is an excellent description. I found it easy to relate to Sivak's story, for I too have watched someone I love slowly slip away. I've often said I lost her ten years ago, and that death will be a healing and a release; and yet, like Sivak and his family, I will never be ready for her death. It was easy to feel the compassion Sivak has for his patients. He truly believes the patient should be more than a number; a patient is an individual with feelings and someone's loved one. I empathize with Sivak, and I commend him. This book touched me deeply.

Reviewed by Dr. Karen Hutchins Pirnot for Readers' Favorite

Sally Mann has written a heart-wrenching and factual accounting of childhood losses in her autobiography, Yearning. At a very young age, she was forced into a residential boarding school due to the mental illness of her father and her mother having to work full time to support the family. The father subsequently died, and Sally and her older sister Nan were then placed in separate foster homes. Sally adjusted to her foster family and became a cohesive part of the family unit, and then, she was taken from that family when her mother moved to Washington, D.C. to accept a job. At that time, Sally was in the mid-elementary years in school, and she and her sister mostly had to fend for themselves while their mother again worked full time to support them.

There are ongoing incidences of loss and loneliness in the story. The reader can easily identify with the yearnings the author must have carried with her to adulthood. She wanted so much to have a loving husband and children who would experience a stable family environment and a sense of belonging for herself. Instead, she got an alcoholic husband who went missing in the Vietnam war.

I found myself wanting to read on and on as the author tried to find herself through her children and her community ties. Eventually, she was able to do just that, and I cheered for her success. In the end, the reader is also left with the thought of what those barren childhood years cost the author as it relates to her sense of self and her sense of belonging. This is a lovely read and should be enjoyable for both younger and older adults.