patients

Hope Donahue chronicles her desperate quest for physical perfection, discussing how she became obsessed with looking beautiful and her many plastic surgeries, problems with food, low self-esteem, parents' role in her problems, and other related topics.

The personal narrative of Ruben Gallego, the grandson of the secretary general of the Spanish Communist Party, who spent much of his life in orphanages, hospitals, and old-age homes because he was afflicted with cerebral palsy.

Actress Brooke Shields tells about her struggles with postpartum depression following the birth of her first child, discussing the difficulties she had trying to conceive, the pressures she felt as someone in the public eye, and how she was able to recover.

Calvin Trillin recounts his wife Alice's life, describing her career, beauty, influence on his life, and devastating death.

Meredith Norton recounts her battle with breast cancer, relying on humor and straightforwardness to share her experiences and reflect on the surprising impact cancer had on her life.

The Native American author looks back upon his short time with Awee, the eleven-year-old boy with AIDS he took into his home on the Navajo reservation and cared for until his death.

Barbara LaSalle chronicles her efforts to uncover the reasons behind her son's social and emotional challenges and reveals what it is like to parent a child with a neurological disorder.

Chronicles the experiences of Jason McElwain, a young man with autism who served as his high school basketball team's manager and shocked everyone with his shooting skills during a game in which the coach allowed him to play.

The author meditates upon the issue of appetite as it relates to the lives of women, thinking about why women feel the need to suppress their appetites whether for food, love, work, or pleasure.