FEISTY RIGHTY

James presents a memoir of survival that tackles real life as experienced by a breast cancer patient.

Nine months separated a clean mammogram and the author’s discovery of a golfball-sized lump in her right breast that would forever change her life. James chronicles the long, painful process of getting diagnosed and going through treatment (and life in general) as a breast cancer patient. While her story is similar to those of other breast cancer survivors, her insights are compelling as she shares the realities of the disease, the accompanying anxiety, and her methods for coping with it. She clears up common misconceptions, including the facts that cancer has more than four stages; survival sometimes hinges on a “cancer-fighting gene”; and cancer is in no way karmic retribution (“could I have somehow prevented this from happening if I’d just been a better person?”). James also details her experiences with post-chemotherapy illness and fatigue, the psychological and emotional effects that come with it, and the disease’s impact on the patient’s everyday life. Though cancer is understood to profoundly disrupt a sufferer’s lifestyle, James acknowledges the little things readers may forget, like how we experience time, or the significance of losing hair. Along the way, she pays tribute to the long list of people in her support system, from the bevy of doctors she encounters to members of her “Secret Society,” a list of intimate friends and family members who help her cope with her illness. The most important elements of the memoir are the wisdom she acquires throughout her journey and the issues she raises regarding the status of cancer patients in society. Her book shifts from powerful insights (take each day at a time, discover your “why” for surviving) to railing against the hypocrisy of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, likening it to pumpkin spice latte season—all with brevity, wit, and style.

This cancer memoir is both inspiring and entertaining; a worthwhile read for anyone looking to improve their life.