Perseverance: True Voices of Cancer Survivors

I received Perseverance: True Voices of Cancer Survivors by Carolyn Rubenstein in the mail for review a few weeks ago. This was a bittersweet moment. You see, my father-in-law passed away this year due to cancer. I also have a writer friend, Mike Hamel, battling cancer right now. As I read through the miracles, inner strength, and enormous scientific strides, it heartened me to see that people are truly being healed. The best thing about this book is that it encourages the old adage of Carpe Diem. Seize the Day! Make every moment count. Amen!

Below is a little more about the book and its writer. Please do buy this book if you have anyone suffering with cancer. It is an enormous encouragement.

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The 20 college and graduate students profiled in the book, including Christians such as Caleb Scoville and Pamela Ledbetter, acquired a remarkable amount of wisdom in fighting cancer. They learned lessons such as:

Every life has a purpose, and we shouldn’t wait for a crisis to live life to the fullest.

Wise people know when they need help, and aren’t afraid to ask for it.
Our trials are critical to our self-fulfillment.

When we struggle with cancer or some other trial, our struggle gains meaning when we can share the lessons we learn with others.

Rubenstein, a Ph.D. candidate at Harvard, noted that all of the survivors profiled said they had benefited from having cancer and a number of them said their faith grew stronger. Jamie Saunders, diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in her freshman year of high school, learned to make God the cornerstone of her life. “I know I would not be the person I am today if it weren’t for the fact that I had cancer,” she said.

This remarkable book is sure to touch your heart and mind.

Hardcover: 384 pages
Publisher: Forge Books; 1st edition (August 18, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0765317788
ISBN-13: 978-0765317780