PRO CONNECT
Judith Ford's fiction, essays, and poetry have appeared in many literary journals, including Quarter After Eight, Southern Humanities, Lullwater Review, Evening Street Review and many others. She was nominated for Pushcart Prizes, in nonfiction, in fiction and in poetry. In 2005 she won the Willow Review Prose Award and in 2008 her series of haiku poems won “most highly commended” in the Margaret Reid Poetry Contest. Her essay “Go Go Go, Said the Bird” was nominated for Best of the Web 2023. Ms. Ford worked as a psychotherapist in private practice for 37 years before retiring and moving with her husband and two dogs to Santa Fe, New Mexico. She earned an MFA in writing at Vermont College of Fine Arts in 2016.
Fever of Known Origin is her first published book.
“Without question, the author tackles difficult topics here—whether describing a severe, incapacitating illness or dealing with the endless complications of dying loved ones, the text is tough, realistic, and relatable.”
– Kirkus Reviews
Debut author Ford presents a memoir of illness and death.
In 1990, the author developed a strange malady. Her symptoms included regular fevers, lethargy, a rash, and digestive problems. She was eventually given the diagnosis of adult-onset Still’s disease. As Ford puts it, “Being this sick was as novel to me as a trek in the Himalayas would have been.” The constant fevers left her in a fog, and her digestive problems made a subclavian line necessary for feeding. The author was in no condition to attend to her work as a psychotherapist, and she worried about money. Her doctor warned that they might need to remove her colon. Eventually, however, with the help of modern medicine and a spiritually minded friend, she started to get better. Later in the book, she relates the declining health of both of her parents: Years after the author’s own onset of illness, her mother had a stroke that left her looking like “a person caught halfway between life and decay, still undecided about which way she was heading.” Her father passed away in a “thrashing, panicked fight for breath.” Without question, the author tackles difficult topics here—whether describing a severe, incapacitating illness or dealing with the endless complications of dying loved ones, the text is tough, realistic, and relatable. When the author’s ailing father insists that he doesn’t “need any goddamn nursing home,” any reader who has gone through a similar experience will recognize the struggle. While overall the book progresses at a steady pace, some later portions do meander. Still, the work stands up as an unabashedly personal investigation of life’s darkest moments.
A touching consideration of the frighteningly precarious nature of good health.
Pub Date: June 8, 2022
ISBN: 9781666738384
Page count: 286pp
Publisher: Resource Publications
Review Posted Online: April 28, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
Favorite author
Calum McCann
Favorite book
The Invisible Kingdom by O'Rourke
Hometown
Santa Fe, NM
Passion in life
my family, writing, mountains, dogs, music
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.