Review:
Nothing's off limits in Katherine Russell Rich's gutsy account of her breast cancer treatment, from harsh insights about her relationships ("I was a stiff-lipped, bloodless, manners-obsessed WASP. He was Ricky Ricardo in a bad mood") to the wrenching details of her disease's progression to stage 4 status. For example, the tumors break through bone and into her spine, making her bones crack from within: "After months of straining against its leash, the fury of pain broke free and ripped into me as I bent down, slashing through my back, tearing into flesh, pressing without mercy onto bone.... I struggled to make myself stand, and felt--heard--something rip in my back." She holds back nothing--the pain of her tests, the apathy of many of her health providers, the intimate details of relationships, and the necessary wit ("Cancer humor is like the Zen laugh; it's a way of gathering back forces, a means of breathing in absurdity, darkness, and pain and blowing them out in one great joyous guffaw."). You follow her journey from being meek and fearful to the kind of "kick-ass cancer patient" she comes to respect. This is a riveting book that will change your understanding of what it's like to be treated for--and live with--cancer. --Joan Price
From the Back Cover:
A book of dizzying horror . . . narrated by a woman of sharp perceptions and no more delusions.
-- The New York Times Book Review
"Brilliant, harrowing, beautifully written, beautifully lived. This book has both charm and importance, and how often does one see those two qualities in
combination?"
-- Lorrie Moore
"The Red Devil bucks tradition and falls squarely on the side of 'funny,' 'intelligent,' and 'wickedly sharp.'"
-- Wall Street Journal
"Defiant, spirited, and often devilishly funny, The Red Devil is at once brutally honest yet hopeful -- one joyous triumph."
-- Louisville Courier Journal
"Admirable, evocative, laced with shimmering pearls of hard-earned wisdom and stunning wit, he Red Devil is a chronicle of illness that transcends itself to become a testament to the bounty and bravery of the human spirit."
-- Elle
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