Crazy Sexy Cancer Tips by Kris Carr

I attended the Mountains and Plains Booksellers' Association fall meeting last weekend in Denver (ostensibly to sign copies of my Pocketful of Poultry book and to meet with my editor from Storey Publishing), but while there, I had to take advantage of the situation! I spent a few hours cruising the trade show floor, looking at this season's new releases from dozens of publishers. For a book junkie, what could be more fun? I found a number of books there that looked appropriate for book reviews here, and will cover them over the coming weeks...

The first one: Crazy Sexy Cancer Tips. This part-memoir/part-prescriptive book, is by Kris Carr, an actress and photographer diagnosed at 31 with epithelioid hemangioendothelioma, a cancer of the blood vessels in the liver and lungs. It has a foreword by Sheryl Crow. Carr also did a movie by the same name, which aired in August on the TLC channel.

I haven't seen the movie, but I will say, this book is absolutely exceptional. Funny, scary, heart-breaking, and inspiring, all rolled into one, the book offers not only Carr's tips, but also those of dozens of other young women who have heard the words, you have cancer. There are downright practical tips (learn what your insurance coverage includes before beginning treatment, or drink plenty of clean water and eat organic) and whimsical ones, too (have a shaving party and don a pink wig when it's time to let your hair go). Though the focus is on young adults with cancer (including a chapter on dating, sex, marriage, and babies), this book can easily cross generations, empowering women who hear the big-C diagnosis to live fully and purposefully. For this, Carr deserves a Pulitzer, a National Book Award, and an Oscar.