Based on true events, this novel tells the story of Jake and Leslie, a couple who have been married for 25 years, have two children in college, and a life they had expected. Then abruptly, on the way home from a business trip, Leslie tells Jake that she has breast cancer. Suddenly their world is turned upside down. First, there is the surgery, then the devastation of aggressive chemo therapy and radiation, each stage of treatment depicted in realistic detail. And while Jake is trying everything he can think of to make his wife more comfortable during her painful ordeal, his job is jeopardy. His boss tries to seduce him, and when he refuses her he finds himself out of a job.
Everything in Jake and Leslie's lives begins to unravel as they each are buffeted by events beyond their control. Hers from within her body; his from the outside world, each forcing them to answer life's hard questions, and to find strength beyond anything they thought they possessed. Ultimately, Leslie survives hers, and the bonds of their family have been strengthened, their marriage has been distilled and redefined by the struggle.
Norman presents a scenario all too real for the quarter million women who are diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States each year-and their families. There are books that map what is to be expected, but none present the husband's journey that parallels his partner's. And none are able to depict the searing emotional landscape of grief, fear, and healing, that Norman does with such grace.