Thrive Book Club: 'Between Two Kingdoms'

By Kristen

This month's pick for the Thrive Book club is a more recent release, and according to ThriveNV navigator Amy is a book she didn't want to end. "Between To Kingdoms" is a memoir by Suleika Jaouad described as, "a searing, deeply moving memoir of illness and recovery that traces one young woman's journey from diagnosis to remission and, ultimately, a road trip of healing and self-discovery."

“A tender and vulnerable look inside a young woman’s experiences of living with and through cancer. Immersed in the beautiful writing, I laughed, I cried, and was deeply moved by the honesty of every word. We can all learn something from this breathtaking look at life.” 

- AMY THOMPSON, THRIVENV NAVIGATOR

I had first heard of Jaouad back in 2015 when I came across her "Life, Interrupted" column in the New York Times. In it, she chronicled her diagnosis, chemotherapy, a bone marrow transplant, and what life was and would be as a young cancer survivor. Her writing was compelling and thought-provoking, and I was drawn into her story with each new entry in the series.

Eventually she left the hospital and opened a new chapter. She got a dog and a VW bus. Then, I followed along on Instagram as she traveled the country, seemingly working out how to be and what to do with a life that wasn't what she thought it would be. She visited with some of those people who'd written to her in response to her columns and shared their stories.

The trip ended and she continued on.

I cheered for her when she earned an artist-in-residence at the Ucross Foundation working in a tiny cabin on the vast Wyoming frontier. Writing. Writing. Always writing.

From her travels, the people she met, the places she struggled and came to rest comes "Between Two Kingdoms"--that of sick and of health.

The book is available at major retailers and local bookstores. For photos, a book club kit, virtual tour dates and replays, visit https://www.suleikajaouad.com/book.