No Cure for Being Human: (And Other Truths I Need to Hear) by Kate Bowler
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Web ID: 14352460a true tear jerker
Kate Bowler believed that life was a series of unlimited choices, until she discovered, at age 35, that her body was wracked with cancer. In No Cure for Being Human, she searches for a way forward as she mines the wisdom (and absurdity) of today’s “best life now” advice industry, which insists on exhausting positivity and on trying to convince us that we can out-eat, out-learn, and out-perform our humanness. We are, she finds, as fragile as the day we were born. Six years later, the author reflects on her journey since her diagnosis and all the questions it raised about life and time, relationships and perspective. It is raw and heart breaking and the author is very relatable for any type A A person will understand the terror of being told that the life you’ve always controlled and directed is now running fast down a track you didn’t choose. With raw emotion and sincerity Bowler reflects on the in-depth treatments, the struggles of hers and her families. This book will easily draw tears to many eyes and cause many hearts to swell. In the interest of full honesty, I must say there was a downside to this for me which is the impression given that the author is still far too close to her own pain to be objective, opening the door for some contradictions in the overall message of the story. I'd rate it just under four stars so I rounded up, and I do recommend this to anyone struggling and overwhelmed with traditional self help culture, or currently experiencing any sense of existential crisis. Thank you to net galley and publisher for providing a free e-copy for me to read and share my honest opinion. I am grateful for the opportunity to experience and speak about this book.
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We're only Human!
Kate writes a deeply vulnerable and honest book, as good as her debut work. I didn't realize the timing of picking up my advance copy would coincide with my wife's colon cancer diagnosis and surgery. But there is hope - both in the medical advances of the day and in a God who knows us, loves us and cares about what we go through. Yet not without raw and deep emotions since we are only "being human". Whether you are personally in the middle of a battle with disease or only know someone who is, pick up this book and allow Kate's intimacy and candor become your friend in your journey. I was advanced a copy of the book through NetGalley with no commitment on delivering a positive review.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Too Lovely and Real
Full disclosure- I adore author Kate Bowler. She is the only writer I know who routinely makes me sob at the beautiful truths that she lays down and simultaneously laugh through my tears as she reveals the absurdity of it all- and by "it all", I mean... life. In her most personal book yet, Bowler shares her continuing journey through a stage four cancer diagnosis as a young mother and her subsequent treatment. I've never had cancer, but she paints with strokes that we all recognize- bucket lists and dreams for our children... and wondering if we are wasting our most precious commodity— time... This book is incredibly precious and oh so relatable. I read a lot and I like to think that I usually do a decent job of putting words together, but when I finish a book like this one, I feel absolutely incapable of sharing my thoughts adequately. Kate's words are just too lovely and real. I can only say that I absolutely loved this book. Read it. My thanks to the author, publisher, and #NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced reader copy of this beautiful book. #NoCureForBeingHuman
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Wise, Heartbreaking, Inspiring
At 35, Kate Bowler was happily married, mother of a toddler, Duke Divinity School associate professor, and a highly respected author. She felt blessed and that life would continue to bring good things. Until she was diagnosed with incurable colon cancer and life as she knew it screeched to a halt. In her latest, No Cure for Being Human (and Other Truths I Need to Hear), Kate considers life six years on. Yes, she is still alive but how long will experimental treatment keep her that way? No one knows. So she’s left with living with uncertainty while still trying to maintain purpose and hope and connection. And that she does triumphantly, with wit and bracing truth. I read this story greedily, wondering how she makes peace with finitude. There are no pat answers. Sharing the questions is what makes Kate’s new book so apt for all of us. Sometimes, she says, life can only be lived in segments, like the three months between scans that tell if treatment is shrinking her tumors. Or a stolen afternoon swim with her son. I wept and cheered and wept again as I read, so taken with Kate’s humor, candor and personhood. She’s a wonder and so is her wise, heartbreaking, and ever inspirational book. 5 of 5 Stars Pub Date 28 Sep 2021 #NoCureForBeingHuman #NetGalley Thanks to the author, Random House Publishing Group - Random House, and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are mine.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Brilliant and Heartfelt: A Must-Read!
Kate's writing is stunning. If you haven't read her first memoir, "Everything Happens for a Reason (and other lies I've loved)," stop right now and pick up a copy. It's a keeper. "No Cure for Being Human" is her second memoir that digs even deeper to questions about meaning, suffering, existing as a human in a finite body. I stopped to reread passages more than once, as her thoughts provoked my own questions and tender places. The realness with which she shares her experience and asks difficult questions is disarming and alluring. This is one of those books you highlight something on nearly every page, full of wisdom and depth. I was honored to have Kate as my professor for Church History back in seminary. It was before her cancer diagnosis, and we were her first class she taught after having her son, Zach. So much of that class was memorable, not only for the creative ways she covered the content, but her clear delight in the fun side of life. Years and chemo treatments later, that perspective may have shifted but has not disappeared. Kate somehow holds together deep grief and levity in a way I wouldn't have thought possible. This a book to be savored; to share with a close friend; to journal. "No Cure for Being Human" is one of the most honest & insightful books I've ever read.
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Real, thoughtful and a dash of humor
I devoured Kate Bowler's first book in a very short time. So when I read No Cure for Being Human, I made myself slow down and savor this one. Bowler has a way of making me think and reflect on both her life and my life. She also can make me cry and she can make me laugh. Sometimes almost at the same time. No Cure for Being Human is more of her true story about her life as she has faced a cancer diagnosis as a young mom, married wife, friend and family member. She shares things realistically. I almost feel like I am standing with her in the doctor's office or wanting to hold her hand as she waits for the oncologist's report. Having been with a few doctors myself this summer, reading her work, has caused me to nod my head as I think about my own doctor visits. I also could relate to her thoughts on how to deal with life after such a diagnosis. Should she make a bucket list? How should she live her best life after her own body tried to kill her (as she says)? I would recommend No Cure for Being Human to anyone and everyone. But to someone who has to deal with a difficult diagnosis, I think it could be especially helpful. I enjoyed reading her story and her realistic, but refreshing outlook on life. I received a copy of this book from the author and the publisher. All opinions within this review are my own.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com