Customer Reviews

When Hearts Conjoin

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"Some people believe angels are real. Some believe they walk among us. On August 7, 2006, on the fourth floor of Primary Children's Hospital, angels were there to comfort me on the scariest day of my life."--begins the remarkable true story of the conjoined Herrin twins in the long-awaited memoir, When Hearts Conjoin. The account of Kendra and Maliyah's birth and subsequent separation has appeared in magazine articles and newspaper articles around the world. So it was with eager anticipation that I read an advance copy of When Hearts Conjoin--the real story, as told by their mother, Erin Herrin.

If we pay careful attention, we will recognize the small miracles surrounding us on a daily basis. Some we may attribute to good fortune, others to the diligence of making the right choices, day in and day out. Yet, it is a rare thing to witness something so extraordinary that even medical experts are brought to an astonished halt.

On a warm October afternoon in 2001, Erin and Jake Herrin were told at a regular ultrasound appointment that the twins Erin carried were conjoined. After an agonizing three-day wait to meet with a specialist, they received the disheartening advice to abort the babies. Conjoined twins had little or no chance of survival outside of the womb, not to mention the complications that would ensue if they did in fact make it through the first fragile days of life.

As Erin and Jake Herrin struggled with one of the most important decisions of their lives, they turned again and again to their faith. They knew they were going against medical advice and common sense, yet, the peace they felt was undeniable. They decided to follow through with the pregnancy. It wasn't until years later that they would understand the chain of events that were set in place--events that repaired their marriage, brought two beautiful girls into their family, and transformed the medical industry.

From the first page, I was swept into the life of Erin and found myself reading the entire book in one day. The rollercoaster of emotions that she and her husband experienced left me breathless and in tears many times. Her pain was my pain, and her joy became my joy. At times, the reality of what Erin underwent in a physical sense and what she and her husband experienced emotionally and spiritually were overwhelming. I could barely comprehend experiencing one of their trials--let alone the combination. A miscarriage, the pending divorce with Jake, a father with stage four cancer, a father-in-law rapidly deteriorating from Parkinson's, making the decision between the life and death of two children, a series of critical surgeries, a kidney donation, and finally the decision to separate the conjoined girls.

How could Erin and her husband endure all this and still keep their family together and their faith intact? The answer may seem inexplicable: Faith. Yet it was the only way. Their faith, combined with prayers from every corner of the world sustained them through the deepest valleys of despair. In order to tell her story, Erin Herrin had to revisit the past, oftentimes painful memories, some of which she kept tightly locked in her heart. In a recent interview, co-writer Lu Ann Staheli said, "Probably the most difficult thing about [writing] this book was that Erin had tried so hard to shut out all the fears and bad memories from the past that she had almost blocked out some of the very details we needed to make this story alive enough to touch the hearts of the readers."

When the movie, Titanic, was release in 1997, friends of mine said that seeing the mothers, fathers, and children slip into an icy grave forever changed their perception of the importance of family. Likewise, When Hearts Conjoined is a story of achieving the impossible through absolute perseverance, staying true to one's heart, and sacrificing oneself for another in the most genuine form of service.

I must wholeheartedly agree with the foreword penned by Richard Paul Evans, "I'm honored to introduce a mother's story of sacrifice, of decisions that had to be made by her young family, of tender moments of quiet determination that can only come through the purest love. You will not be the same person after reading about Erin's journey to claim her family and keep them close to her heart."

I, too, am a changed person.

Somehow I missed the news coverage when the Herrin twins were born, so the story was brand new to me when I read this book. I loved how not only was the story about the twins themselves--and their separation--but it was about the family, too. About the young parents in a tentative, quick marriage with problems of their own and other issues. Those added details really made the story come to life and made me feel that, by the last page, I really knew the Herrin family. I'm a slow reader, but I got through this one really quickly. I couldn't put it down.

Okay, so I'm not sure the title "When Hearts Conjoin" is the most compelling, so maybe I should have given this review four stars. The front picture is cute, but I thought it might be sappy. Boy, was I surprised to find a hard-hitting, real life drama. The story as a whole haunted my thoughts after I had to put it down, and I had to come back and finish it. Erin's honesty about her life and feelings, combined with LuAnn Brobst Stahli's writing talent, makes a book you won't forget.
Only two things bugged me, and they are so minor, you probably won't even notice them. One is that there seemed to be too many references about "I thought I might be having twins." Cut two of them out, and I think it would have been a better book.
The other thing is Erin's attitude about thoughtless questions from people who saw the girls. She seemed to be a bit angry at the questioners. I can understand that some questions could be annoying, but I think I can speak from experience as a mother of six sons and having so many people ask me when I was having a girl for so long, and expressing disappointment when they heard we were expecting yet another son, that I had to learn that people who comment aren't trying to be unkind. They've never been where you are, and they don't know what to say. So WE should be kind to THEM. Give them the benefit of the doubt. It's newer territory for them than you, and they don't know which way to go. Help them along gently.
Okay. That said, this book was very inspiring, and I think Erin should consider changing her name from "Erin" to "Jobette." (You know, the feminine version of "Job?")
Of course, she could be Cinderella, too. I quite enjoyed the pictures in the book. That was a really good idea! Oh... one more thing... the girls in the photos should have been identified more clearly.
That's all! Read it! You'll like it or I'll eat my toast. Cold.

"Some people believe angels are real. Some believe they walk among us. On August 7, 2006, on the fourth floor of Primary Children's Hospital, angels were there to comfort me on the scariest day of my life."--begins the remarkable true story of the conjoined Herrin twins in the long-awaited memoir, When Hearts Conjoin. The account of Kendra and Maliyah's birth and subsequent separation has appeared in magazine articles and newspaper articles around the world. So it was with eager anticipation that I read When Hearts Conjoin--the real story, as told by their mother, Erin Herrin.

From the first page, I was swept into the life of Erin and found myself reading the entire book in one day. The rollercoaster of emotions that she and her husband experienced left me breathless and in tears many times. Her pain was my pain, and her joy became my joy. At times, the reality of what Erin underwent in a physical sense and what she and her husband experienced emotionally and spiritually were overwhelming. I could barely comprehend experiencing one of their trials--let alone the combination. A miscarriage, the pending divorce with Jake, a father with stage four cancer, a father-in-law rapidly deteriorating from Parkinson's, making the decision between the life and death of two children, a series of critical surgeries, a kidney donation, and finally the decision to separate the conjoined girls.

I must wholeheartedly agree with the foreword penned by Richard Paul Evans, "I'm honored to introduce a mother's story of sacrifice, of decisions that had to be made by her young family, of tender moments of quiet determination that can only come through the purest love. You will not be the same person after reading about Erin's journey to claim her family and keep them close to her heart."

I, too, am a changed person.

"When Hearts Conjoin" is an intriguing and inspiring true story that stays in the mind long after the last page. The book is well written and I had strong feelings of compassion for both the parents and the twins as their ordeals unfolded. I recommend this fine book as an uplifting and thought-provoking read that made me want to go and hug all concerned in its telling.