Lopsided: How Having Breast Cancer Can Be Really Distracting Reviews

• Wicked funny

  
  By A2YZW3PNHKLP2M on 2008-06-29
  If you're looking for easy consolations and wishful thinking, don't look here. Meredith Norton pulls no punches and tells simple but hard truths: as her dad puts it, "No one gets out of here alive." But this isn't a depressing book; it's a story of (temporary) survival, and it's wickedly funny. Norton has a great eye for the ridiculous and outrageous in others and in herself. Recommended to anyone who may die.
  
  

• Far too few by women of color

  
  By A1MTOBE5ZEX5FI on 2008-07-04
  I've read a lot of the breast cancer literature for the woman diagnosed since I was diagnosed 8 years ago - doing fine, thanks. This is the first one I think I've seen by a woman of color. A good combo read with Cancer Vixen.
  
  

• Priceless. Funny as hell. Fascinating. WOW.

  
  By A1JRW2244G65H4 on 2008-07-08
  I picked up this book even though I had never heard of it because a) I'm interested in memoir and b) my sister-in-law is battling cancer. I never expected to be this enthralled. I simply could not put it down. Several times I found myself sneaking away from work just to read another page or two. I was riveted.
  
  You can't help but fall in love with Meredith, this quirky character who doesn't take herself seriously and seems like just the kind of person I'd love (or be) in real life. Her battles are real but her wit is what moved me. I laughed out loud several times. I know, how is cancer funny? But you just have to read it for yourself. Really. You have to!
  
  Don't miss this great read!
  
  

• Amazing Grace When Facing A Death Sentence

  
  By A1F7RPQPL1GE4R on 2008-07-09
  Meredith Norton's memoir is unexpectedly funny about a very serious subject. I found myself reading the novel,not wanting to put it down, eager to find out how she brings the story to an end. The comparison to Sedaris is appropriate as Meredith maintains the humor throughout yet pauses at times to allow us to understand the severity of cancer she faced. Memoirs are supposed to be self-reflections of personal experience, not self-help books that offer advice to others who may be suffering from the same disease; I disagree with the reviewer who suggests caution. Meredith brings us into her world and experiences, so we understand her confusion, frustration, anger, and humor. A great read from a woman who has a wonderful spirit and drive to survive against all odds. And she can write.
  
  

• Cancer, with jokes

  
  By A1QC1WTOYORGL on 2008-07-09
  Move over Lance Armstrong - I predict this funny and bittersweet book about cancer will become the new go-to gift book for newly diagnosed cancer patients. This book is refreshingly BS-free, offering a clear-eyed, witty, and brutally honest portrait of lives touched by cancer.
  
  What a life too: Norton has piles of ridiculous personal stories that spice up the tale, such as her stories about her hardboiled mom and Cosby-style dad, plus enough crazy friends to fill up a football stadium. Norton's deft avoidance of saccharine-sweet cheese keeps this book true, clearing room for her humorous meditations to strike.
  
  
• caution
  By A3H6ZMPRTJZWNC on 2008-07-08
  Caution to the well-intentioned gift giver who may choose this for a loved one newly diagnosed or currently receiving treatment. I just completed chemo and radiation and affectionately refer to myself as "lopsided" so this title caught my attention immediately. I was especially attracted to the story because it was real-life and reviews underscored its funny factor. I found it to be an interesting story and yes, there were moments where it was funny but I was frustrated when I finished. I find it curious that she makes a case against self-pity and "milking it" -- so often it seems this is exactly what a memoir accomplishes. I'm sure it was cathartic to write, but I walked away from this book feeling cheated. I just didn't gain any practical, hopeful advice. Maybe I am still too close to my own diagnosis to appreciate her perspective. To the well-intentioned gift giver who may be reading this, I would highly recommend Any Day with Hair Is a Good Hair Day: How to Get Through CANCER and Get On with Your Life (Trust Me, I've Been There) by Michelle Rapkin. It is filled with practical advice and humor from hundreds of cancer survivors. Save "Lopsided" for another time.
  
  
• Not the typical memoir of a cancer survivor
  By AYSRJGYYTBN7T on 2008-07-09
  This book is a blast of fresh air for anyone who has battled cancer directly or by the side of a loved one. It is written almost completely without self-pity: frank, intensely aware, perhaps afraid inside -- but brash and full of life outside. I'm not sure how much direct application it will have for most people -- the author seems to have lived a pretty unique life -- but it certainly gives one an unexpected, helpful, and ultimately very wise perspective on life with this awful disease.
  
  
• A fabulous storyteller
  By A13ZVBR1NO3ELQ on 2008-07-09
  I read "Lopsided" in less than a day -- couldn't put it down. Meredith Norton is a fabulous storyteller with a wicked sense of humor. What I find most appealing about her writing is her ability to poke fun of family and friends while simultaneously treating them with great affection. The book humanizes (and "humorizes") the process of living with a devastating form of cancer, a gift to many.
  
  The book is not for everyone. The occasionally coarse language is one reason, and another is that it's not intended to be an "inspirational" memoir, which some desire or need. (I thought of giving it to one friend with terminal cancer, and decided against it.) But to those who can handle it, you will be left wanting more in-depth versions of each salacious anecdote!
  
  I think it's a great companion to Adam Gopnik's "Paris to the Moon" -- both offer hilarious inside looks at the French-American tete-a-tete in our modern world.
  
  
• Thank God She Wrote This Book!
  By AEQLXGM44Y5E2 on 2008-07-09
  "Lopsided" is a jolt of reality and hilarity for those of us that have, tragically but understandably, almost become used to the idea of breast cancer. So many women are being diagnosed each year that unless it strikes someone you love, the shock of cancer doesn't seem to reach inside and grab you. Until now... Meredith Norton makes absolutely certain that readers become part of not only her breast cancer story, but of her life. A cancer diagnosis affects real, live, original people and their families. We must never forget that each diagnosis is personal, unique and frightening. What a gift and a bonus that we can be reminded with such an absolutely hysterical, irreverant and fabulous story.
  
  
• A lifethreatening illness brings life into sharp focus for a free spirited young woman
  By A3F2YLNW7PBAMS on 2008-07-09
  This is not a self help book or a traditional book to console the ill. Unless you consider laughter to be good medicine, that is. When a vivacious young woman is blindsided by a rare and deadly form of breast cancer, she finds herself suddenly plunged into exhausting medical treatments. All around her, friends and well meaning acquaintances offer "inspirational" advice, oh yes, and wigs. Through her ordeal Meredith retains her unique sense of humor. The book switches between her struggle against cancer, and memories of the previous chapters of her life. I was literally laughing out loud at some parts and brought to tears by others. It's unfortunate it took such drastic measures to bring Ms. Norton's voice into publication, but we are the luckier for it. A story you won't soon forget.
  
  
• Refreshing take on cancer
  By A2WOOEUBHV1BWJ on 2008-07-09
  What a compelling book - I read it in one day - dare I call it a good beach read. It is amazing to see someone tackle cancer with such humor. While I certainly see the need for inspirational/advice books, I really appreciate the idea of just telling a story that happens to center on cancer. I think the author should be lauded for her fresh take on a topic in need of some levity. And I hope she gets to write more books on other topics.
  
  
• High expectations for 'Lopsided' - meager satisfaction
  By A1KVVAT9PDNGBC on 2008-07-28
  I picked up Meredith Norton's 'Lopsided' expecting more humor, more quick wit and a more enlightening world view on the whole 'zen' of cancer.
  What I got was a disjointed read, written in a jerky, schizoid style that was much more about the inanities of Ms.Norton's life and family quirks than it was about her illness and recovery. A better choice for those interested in the genre is Gerilyn Lucas' 'Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy', which will make you laugh and cry and laugh more.
  
  
• can't put it down!!!
  By AJMOG2UY3J29Z on 2008-07-11
  This book is like a pint of haagen daaz mocha chip, a bag of lay's, a rubix cube, or a crack pipe (from what I've heard)...but without the diabetes, high blood pressure, cellulite, and hallucinations! It's hilarious, it's engaging, it's refreshing, it's the story of an experience lived as it is rather than as what anyone else thinks it should be. Lopsided makes symmetry look way overrated.
  
  
• Not for the faint of heart. . .
  By A292Q8W6X1U0BT on 2008-07-16
  I was drawn to this book because it says "wickedly funny in the style of Augusten Burroughs and David Sedaris." I did find the book to be funny and entertaining, but I also found it harrowing and definitely not a pretty picture of what one goes through in the course of cancer treatment. At the end of the book, Meredith says that her experience with cancer was pretty normal or that it wasn't as bad as she expected. However, reading the book from the viewpoint of someone who has never had cancer or chemotherapy, I thought what she went through was gut-wrenching and certainly not something that I would think of as no big deal. And while I did find a significant amount of humor in her stories of her family and friends, the parts that were about her disease and treatment were not fun to read or funny or even entertaining. They made me very sad for her and for all of those around her during that horrible period of time. I originally bought the book to give to a fried of mine who is currently battling cancer, but I don't think she would find one bit of solace in the story, with the exception of the fact that Meredith is still alive to tell the tale.
  
  
• An amazing, insightful, and heartfelt book
  By A1T36QHVWARI8I on 2008-07-17
  I thoroughly recommend this book. Meredith Norton is an incredible writer, and her story is inspirational and also very funny. A great read, highly recommended.
  
  
• The Real Deal with enough humor to keep me reading
  By A3V7JH2PXY3J6S on 2008-07-18
  There is light at the end of the tunnel... even if it means laughing, crying and struggling along the way. Lopsided was an opportunity to hear from someone just like me (although I am not nearly as funny)a 30 something, wife, mother and lover of life. When the author describes what she goes through, from strong denial to acceptance to treatment-- while constantly thinking about her son, who would raise him and how she would deal with his French/American upbringing-- that hit home. Thanks to Meredith Norton for allowing us to peek into her life, her memories and all of her thoughts as she figured out how to deal with a sharp turn in her life that came without a manual or a clear logical answer.
  
  
• Breast cnacer
  By A236QUMLOOQQIB on 2008-07-21
  I bought this for a friend who was scheduled for surgery. Advised her to read it first so she would have some snappy answers for the idiotic things people say when you have cancer. She enjoyed it and has been ready for the remarks!
  
  
• Wow!
  By A26UOWRG5LSQDO on 2008-07-21
  I picked up this book because I had heard it was hilarious. In addition, as a retired M.D. and former practicing radiologist, I was particularly interested in a patient's story of her ordeal with cancer. Though I have read thousands of mammograms in my day and have diagnosed thousands of cancers of various types, I have rarely viewed cancer through a patient's perspective. Radiologists, as you may know, have limited patient contact.
  
  This book is light summer reading. Despite the fact that it is nonfiction and deals with a rather gruesome topic, the author has written a page-turner. The main reasons, it seems to me, is that she is an extremely funny and very talented writer, and an unusually pithy observer of human nature.
  
  I had recommended the book to my wife, who said she had no interest in a cancer memoir. But once a number of our friends had also started raving about the book and she stumbled across a great review of it, she bowed to the pressure and started reading it. Now she's interrupting my writing with gales of laughter and exceptionally positive commentary.
  
  So that's my bottom-line recommendation to you--if you're not interested in cancer, fine. Forget this book is about cancer. It's really about the human condition and will keep you in stitches from the moment you pick it up until it allows you to put it down, which won't be until you've finished it.
  
  
  
  
  
• A Celebration of Life
  By A2EICSENAAM7NW on 2008-07-24
  I loved this book. I haven't read many cancer memoirs, but this one is certainly a breath of fresh air. Hilarious, joyful, touching, and occasionally irreverent: anyone can read it. You'll be entertained and you'll also come away with an understanding of what it might be like to have breast cancer.
  
  
• Bring It On!
  By ANYOX4P2YHKXY on 2008-07-25
  Lopsided is not about cancer or medicine. It's not politically correct or sugar coated. It's about the reactions of one amazing woman to a major speed bump of life. And it's not a downer. Without this kick a brilliant first-time author might never have written, and isn't that short hair cute! My only complaint is I finished two hours into a twelve hour flight. What comes next? When?
  
  

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