This book is amazing because I am able to be totally present with Anne’s journey: the pain and joy, humor and frustration, the anxiety and the glory. It is a special gift she offers in these pages. This will be vital information and companionship for those immediately on a journey with cancer as well as those who minister to, support and accompany them. Anne’s voice is trustworthy and intimate, so that one never feels dissonance or disorientation. Her voice is sure.
— Jane Smith Bernhardt, New Hampshire,
Author of We Are Here: Love Never Dies
If I were diagnosed with breast cancer, this would be the first book I would want by my side to remind me to breathe and to look for the lessons and the patience and peace in each step.
— Lisa Plummer, Virginia, Groggy Froggy
The true heart of this book is the author’s honesty and openness. Nothing is held back. Women who are beginning this journey as well as women who are in the thick of treatments or finished with treatments altogether will benefit from Anne Marie’s candid telling of her own story.
— Fran Booth, Social Worker, Therapist & Meditation Teacher, The Healing Garden, Harvard Massachusetts
Reading Bright Side of the Road was like being inside the mind and body of every one of my breast cancer patients. I finally understand now what the experience is like from the patient’s point of view.
— Dr. Stephen Karp, Breast Cancer Surgeon, Lahey Clinic, Massachusetts
This book is captivating and engaging. Anne Marie has a tone and style that supports, inspires, and educates.
— Sudha Carolyn Lundeen, BA, RN, Breast Cancer Survivor & Senior Yoga teacher, Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health, Massachusetts
As I read about how Anne Marie felt between the chemo and the radiation treatments, it helped me deal with memories of my own treatments. The Resources section in the back is very helpful too, even though I’ve been a survivor for several years now.
— Dot, Tennessee, Survivor
From the moment you read the first paragraph, you’ll be engaged in traveling on this journey with Anne Marie, from the normalcy of her everyday life to the depths of darkness and back out into the light. Anne Marie has managed to balance the “hard” stuff of the realities of breast cancer with a sense of humanness–maintaining the ability to laugh, feel joy and be “full” while her life was being torn apart. Her wisdom is universal–we have the choice to walk on the bright side or the dark side of any of life’s challenges, and Anne Marie shows us, both practically and spiritually, how to walk on the “bright side.”
— Elaine, Massachusetts
Bright Side of the Road reminded me of my own discovery and dealings with breast cancer several years ago. I could really relate to Anne Marie. What stood out for me was the open appraisal of her life – her willingness to talk about her sexuality, her moments of grief and anger. I appreciate that so much.
— Stacey, Australia, Survivor
There’s such wisdom and love woven throughout this journey. It is written from the heart. I see it as a guide to show us the way, a map to follow. It will touch and transform many lives, and not just of those who have had breast cancer. As I read this book, I felt everything Anne Marie felt and identified with much of it (particularly the part about being in the hospital). I know this was not a novel – it was a real life experience. But like a really good novel, I was riveted and eager to keep reading and see what happened next from chapter to chapter.
— Claire, UK, Survivor
If you want a story to lift you up when you are feeling scared, vulnerable and defeated, this book is for you. It contains a good balance of emotional/spiritual inspiration along with many useful resources and suggestions for coping with the challenge of breast cancer.
I loved Anne Marie’s honesty about her fears and worries. She is no Pollyanna, and yet, she chooses, moment by moment, to find the most life-affirming thoughts, words and actions to support herself as she walks this difficult path. Her resourcefulness is contagious, countering the natural impulse to react as a victim to the disease. Let yourself be lifted up while you walk on the bright side of the road with the author.
— Marti Beddoe, Illinois, Breast Cancer Support Group Leader,
Meditation Teacher