My Joy, My Sorrow: Karen Ann's Mother Remembers [Paperback]

Julia Duane Quinlan (Author), Frank Rodimer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 30, 2005

Little did Julia Duane Quinlan know on April 15, 1975, that her daughter Karen Ann s trip to the Newton Memorial Hospital emergency room and subsequent events would change the course of health care for the dying around the globe.

By the time Karen Ann, then the twenty-one-year-old bright and energetic eldest daughter of Julia and Joe Quinlan, arrived at the New Jersey hospital, she was unconscious, and unbeknownst to her doctors and caretakers, already in a deep coma and permanent vegetative state. For months Karen Ann struggled against the machines that kept her alive. Behind a maze of technology, her parents watched horrified, unable to touch her, unable to kiss or hold their daughter. Knowing there was nothing more that could be done to save their daughter, Joe and Julia decided to remove the machines that were keeping their daughter from the natural death process and prolonging Karen Ann s suffering. What Julia and Joe thought was a very personal decision soon became an international debate a debate still raging in the news headlines today.

In this poignant, spiritual memoir Julia Duane Quinlan recalls not only Karen Ann s life and long death, but her own ordinary beginnings that helped form a deep inner faith and strong moral compass. Julia Quinlan chronicles her joy and sorrow and how she used the tragedy of her daughter s life to change the lives of countless others by crusading for hospice care for the dying and their families.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

JULIA DUANE QUINLAN wrote Karen Ann (Doubleday & Co.). She speaks at conferences across the country on ethics, end-of-life care, hospice and the historic importance of the Quinlan Landmark decision. She has received the New Jersey Hospice Community Leader Award for her efforts over the last two decades in the establishment of local community health initiates in Northwest New Jersey and Pennsylvania. She currently serves as chairman of the board of governors of the Karen Ann Quinlan Hospice in Sussex County, New Jersey. Julia resides in New Jersey, near her son, John, daughter, Mary Ellen, and son-in-law, Richard.

Product Details

• Paperback: 159 pages
• Publisher: St. Anthony Messenger Press (September 30, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0867166630
• ISBN-13: 978-0867166637
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,352,811 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Quiet Heroes Cast in Spotlight, July 18, 2005

By 

Carol Blank (USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: My Joy, My Sorrow: Karen Ann's Mother Remembers (Paperback)

For those unfamiliar with the story of Karen Ann Quinlan, the best place to begin this book is Appendix A, "The Legal Battle: A Chronology," which outlines the family's struggle to have their daughter weaned from her respirator, even though that act was likely to hasten her death. You will see that in 1975 Karen Ann was ruled to be in a persistent vegetative state with no hope of recovery, that her parents' efforts to minimize what they saw as her suffering were blocked by physicians and hospital administrators, and that their wishes were followed only after a ruling by the New Jersey Supreme Court.

In the pages preceding the appendix, we meet Joe and Julia Quinlan, devout Catholics, who married in 1946 and by 1957 had three children. They adopted their first child, Karen Ann, and Julia gave birth to Ellen and John. We learn about their early family life, with children attending Catholic schools and parents taking an active role in their lives. Joe and Julia embarked on a "new normal" on April 15, 1975, when they were called to the hospital where 21-yeaer-old Karen lay in a coma, which was shortly ruled to be irreversible.

Though Julia's story involves legal battles to have the respirator removed, its real significance is the family's strength and faith and the support they received from others, including clergy and law enforcement officers, who helped the family protect Karen's privacy from the press and public, some of whom were making threats.

As the book closes, we see the tight family bond and strong faith in action. After Karen's death in 1985, in appreciation for the nursing home care she received for those 10 years, and to honor her memory, Joe and Julia got involved in hospice work. Eventually Karen's brother and sister also devoted time to the cause. From 10 years of "waiting for Karen's time" to their subsequent efforts to ease the final days of others, this family is truly inspirational in part because they seem not to think of themselves as heroes.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This Book Is a Gem. Small, beautiful and precious!, August 14, 2005

By 

PalmCoast "KC" (Palm Coast, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Joy, My Sorrow: Karen Ann's Mother Remembers (Paperback)

This is a beautifully written book about a family of seemingly ordinary people who, each in their own way, proved to be great human beings.
They were thrust into an incredible nightmare when their Karen Ann went into an irreversible coma.
The family's only concerns were to do what they thought was right and what they knew Karen Ann would have wanted them to do. Their struggle to follow through on their beliefs and Karen's wishes changed the world.
People are known by the company they keep. We are fortunate that this deeply personal book allows us to keep the company of Julia Quinlan.
Thank you Julia, for this wonderful gift.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Losing a child, November 22, 2005

By 

Lajla Abrams "Lajla" (Monroe, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Joy, My Sorrow: Karen Ann's Mother Remembers (Paperback)

This book needed to be written. As a bereaved parent myself, I understand the importance of wanting to keep the memory of a dead child/children alive. Julia Quinlan's willingness to re-live the painful memories of her child's suffering and ultimate death show remarkable courage. She is indeed a very courageous woman. Her appeal to the younger generation of the consequences of dugs mised with alcohol is vital information. However, what comes through more in this book is the care-giving provided during Karen-Anne's (and her family's) ordeal. I admire Julia's honesty and her credibility in writing this book. She deserves to be heard!