Customer Reviews

The Faces behind Breast Cancer

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This beautiful book of portraits is a primer on empathy and connection. Its large-format photographs, printed in burnished black and white, allow me to look deeply into--and study--the faces of people who have been profoundly ill. The text is minimal, restricted to the sitter's first name and a brief quote. At first, this puzzled me. I'm part of an information-intense culture and I wanted more. But I'd missed the point of the book: contemplation. As a Catholic born and bred, I grew up looking at the calm and lovely face of the Virgin Mary. As I grew older, the religion dropped away, but my love of the contemplative face remained. I look for it everywhere, surrounding myself with madonnas, buddhas, shivas, saints. Like the saints in art, the men and women in this book are almost all presented with attributes, items they chose for themselves as identifiers, items that say, 'This is who I am.' Think of St. Francis with his birds, or St. Peter with his key. In the book the attributes include a book, a rose, a boot, a motorcycle, a tennis racket, a child, a dog, a rosary. No, these people aren't saints. But they have passed through the fire and survived--suffered more than I have ever suffered, and by looking deeply into their beautiful faces, I begin to feel their strength and resilience. I feel connected to them. These total strangers begin to look to me like a reflection in the mirror, of myself. Each calm, glowing face becomes my own.

Although Susan finally lost her gallant fight against breast cancer (I still am proud of her), and when she was asked to be on the cover and be inside with my daughters also, she did not hesitate. I am always amazed how cancer patients can get together for inspiration and courage to continue the battle. As a care giver for almost 15 years, I saw the transition from patient to survivor a few times. This transition included the dumps and peaks of fighting cancer but still having a positive outlook for the children. This book is one of those that my children continue look at just see Susan's bravery. And Josie captured that for all of the men and women in the book. Thanks again, Josie.

This book is a wonderful inspiration of the power of the human spirit seen through poignant images of individuals at various stages of breast cancer. The composition of the black and white photographs in The Faces Behind Breast Cancer provides us with an artistic expression of timelessness. Each individual picture, along with the limited use of text, brings a breadth and depth that humanizes breast cancer in a profoundly personal and spiritual way that binds the reader towards action. We see each person's story as "our story", and we feel a sense of oneness with the story. We also feel the author's message of hope, and we are drawn to fight for a cure.