Review: BETWEEN TWO KINGDOMS

Title: Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a Life Interrupted by Suleika Jaouad

Book Beginnings quote:

It began with an inch.

Friday56 quote:

"Everyone who is born holds dual citizenship, in the kingdom of the well and in the kingdom of the sick,” Susan Sontag wrote in Illness as Metaphor. “Although we all prefer to use only the good passport, sooner or later each of us is obliged, at least for a spell, to identify ourselves as citizens of that other place.”

Summary: In 2011 when Suleika Jaouad was 23-years-old she was diagnosed with leukemia and given just a 35% chance of survival. The next three and half years were spent receiving chemo, clinical medical trials, and a bone marrow transplant. During this time she started a blog about her experiences. It gained the attention of the NYT where she was asked to write a column about her experiences. She did so when her energy allowed it. Once all that ended Jaouad has spent 1500 days trying to survive and now that survival was achieved, she didn't know how to live going forward. After a very depressing, unfocused period, she decided to head out on a road trip to meet ten or so of the people around the country who has written her during her illness. The road trip took her all across the country and back home again, over 10,000 miles. While out on the road she found herself and found a purpose for her life.

Review: Between Two Kingdoms was published in February of 2021. I became aware of the book after watching the documentary American Symphony about the juxtaposition of what was happening for Suleika Jaouad in 2022 after her cancer had returned and that of her famous husband, Jon Batiste just as his career was taking off as if shot from a cannon. 

Reading Between Two Kingdoms after seeing the documentary, likely had a dimming effect of the book for me. I knew her cancer had returned before I opened the book. Part of the focus of the documentary is about Jaouad's second bone marrow transplant in 2022, ten years after her first transplant. Knowing those two things, I just had to google to find out how she is doing now. I learned the second transplant only held for two years. Her cancer returned toward the end of 2024. I tell you all these details just to make a point -- Between Two Kingdoms is just the beginning of the story and the main character has not reached the end of the story. It is still evolving. Clearly Jaouad is still living in the kingdom of the sick but working on ways to enhance that experience with her new book: The Book of Alchemy: A Creative Practice for An Inspired Life. it is just published this month.

My rating 4.75 stars

-Anne