Cancer Is A Bitch - or I'd Rather Be Having a Mid-Life Crisis - Gail Konop Baker

Warm, funny, raw and honest, Cancer is a Bitch, by Gail Baker, is a wonderfully written memoir of the author's life as she and her family deal with her breast cancer. Baker writes of her marriage and family relationships (some complicated, some delightful), and how a diagnosis of breast cancer changes those relationships. She bares her feelings and takes you inside her heart and mind with urgent, polished prose that is hard to put down. Baker keeps this story grounded, matching the drive of the narrative with the turns and twists of everyday life. You'll long for a sequel to this book.

"If you help me get past this end-of-life crisis so I can have a midlife crisis, I'll always be loving and kind and patient and compassionate and I need to be okay, because I can't bear the idea of distracting the kids or Mike anymore than I already have," writes Gail Konop Baker about her bargain with God. She was talking with God the night before her one-year breast cancer follow-up appointment. Having gone through seven biopsies in just five years, she was still stunned when the last one resulted in a diagnosis of breast cancer: ductal carcinoma in situ.

She writes in a smooth, flowing surge of words that takes you back and forth in time. Her transitions are so logical that sometimes you won't notice that she's moved from a present-day moment with her daughters to a day when they were very small and just wanted to "play Baby Doll." Her emotional expression is so clear, so honest that you can see the scenes as she describes them.

Even though this is Baker's breast cancer memoir, she is not totally focused on her diagnosis or treatment. This book is about marriage, families, friends and community, and how a diagnosis of cancer impacts those relationships — both stable and shaky. Sometimes the presence of a potentially fatal illness brings healing to old rifts in families, and sometimes it exposes old wounds. During her journey, Baker reveals family secrets and somewhat grudging reconciliations. By the end, she is wearing a new bra and moving on with life "still yearning and questing, riding my life like a roller coaster." You will enjoy the ride as she takes you along.