I had actually received an ARC of Suleika Jaouad’s memoir a couple of months before it was first published back in February 2021, but with the COVID pandemic in full force, plus all the chaos and uncertainty that accompanied the situation at the time, I decided to put off reading this until I felt ready to handle such a heavy read. Of course, as these things usually go, life and work got the better of me and here I am, only able to get to this one more than 5 years later. But in a way, things worked out in the end, as just getting to this memoir now meant that I got to listen to it via audiobook, with the author narrating her story first hand, which added a personal element that made the reading experience more poignant and emotional (the audiobook also features music by Suleika’s husband, Jon Batiste, which made this even more memorable).
In her memoir, Suleika recounts her journey battling leukemia, from the moment she first receives the devastating diagnosis on the cusp of her 23rd birthday, through the nearly 4 years of grueling treatment that she had to undergo, and then her subsequent recovery, including having to learn how to re-enter the world and restart her life anew. She achieves the latter by embarking on a 100-day road trip where, accompanied by her dog Oscar, she travels across the country to meet several of the people who had written to her when she was in the hospital – a trip that proves critical in helping Suleika come to terms with her own harrowing journey “between the kingdom of the well and the kingdom of the sick.”
Given the subject matter, this was not an easy read by any means, as Suleika provides a brutally honest and candid account of her experience and I will be honest in saying that some of the more explicit descriptions of her illness and treatment were a struggle to get through. With that said though, I found Suleika’s story not only moving and inspiring, but also poignantly resonant given the various battles with cancer that my own family has endured. I especially admire Suleika’s resilience and strength in the face of the huge toll – physical, mental, psychological, emotional – that such an illness can take on both the person afflicted as well as the family and friends around them.
As is often the case after I read such moving memoirs as this one, I felt compelled to read up on how Suleika Jaouad is doing currently and was saddened to learn that her leukemia returned in both 2022 and 2024, and she had to get a second bone marrow transplant as well as continue chemotherapy - but at the same time, it’s heartening to see the huge community of family, friends, and fans rallying around her with love and support, helping her get through each harrowing ordeal. I wish her and her loved ones all the best!
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