Rewriting Illness

Description

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A NOVELIST with a “razor-sharp wit” (Newsday), a “singular sensibility” (Huff Post), and a lifetime of fear about getting sick finds a lump where no lump should be? Months of medical mishaps, coded language, and Doctors Who Don’t Get It. With wisdom, self-effacing wit, and the story-telling artistry of an acclaimed novelist, Elizabeth Benedict recollects her cancer diagnosis after discovering multiplying lumps in her armpit. In compact, explosive chapters, interspersed with moments of self-mocking levity, she chronicles her illness from muddled diagnosis to “natural remedies,” to debilitating treatments, as she gathers sustenance from family, an assortment of urbane friends, and a fearless “cancer guru.” Benedict’s sagacity jackets her fears, which are personal, political, and ultimately global. Amidst weighty concerns of the Covid pandemic and an all-consuming obsession over her ailments, Rewriting Illness is suffused with suspense, secrets, and the unexpected solace of silence. "A frank, riveting, and often hilarious memoir." CLAIRE MESSUD "The kind of inspiring book you want to share with all the important people in your life." SIGRID NUNEZ "Witty, vivid, and harrowing... as though Nora Ephron had written a book called, 'I Feel Bad About My Tumor." THOMAS BELLER "Superbly intelligent and surprisingly entertaining... She writes with an honesty and sly sense of humor about herself that make this book hard to put down." STEPHEN McCAULEY