My Daughter's Heart

by Kim Jasken

The arrival of spring 2020 held nothing but promise for the Jasken family. With plans for camping trips and yard upgrades, life was moving along as usual. But fate had other plans. In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, their youngest daughter suddenly collapsed, plunging the family into a tumultuous world of fear and uncertainty—they were devastated to learn that the source of Sierra’s ailment was a failing heart.   In the months to come, Sierra was surrounded by doctors and nurses, undergoing countless medical procedures in an unfamiliar city to give her another chance at life.   Compelling and poignant, filled with wry humour and raw emotion, My Daughter’s Heart is the true story of a family’s journey through a life-threating crisis.

224 pages, Perfect Paperback

Published June 1, 2023

About the author

Kim Jasken was born and raised in Regina, Saskatchewan, but has lived most of her adult life in Saskatoon. She is a wife and the mother of two teenage girls. She loves travelling and camping (in an RV) and would never turn down a good piece of cake. Kim has a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and a master’s in Educational Technology and Design, and she works as an online curriculum developer at a post-secondary institution. My Daughter’s Heart is her first book.

Reviews

[Jessica Krieger · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Not enough words to explain what this book means to me. I went through many of the same surgeries and procedures as sierra did and am on a lot of the same medications to this day.

The stollery children’s hospital is a place where miracles happen every day. This author explained a place I hold so dear to my heart in words that make it feel like home. The CLS, Judy, has also been my CLS since I was a baby. I’m 27 now and still keep in touch with her today. The story of sugar cookies so perfectly encapsulates who Judy is and the magic that lives inside her.

This book represents community, love, faith, and how INSANELY resilient heart kids and their families are. A must read.

[Sage Jasken · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good! Loved the book so much :)

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This memoir describes the struggles of a family when their preteen daughter develops severe heart disease as a part of the muscular dystrophy she was diagnosed with.

The Jalen family live in my home province of Saskatchewan.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can feel the emotion while reading this true story.

[Amanda]

I cannot give this a rating because it’s a little too close to home. While my daughter and Sierra have had very different medical experiences, the similarities to the uncertainty, unexpected joy, overwhelming sadness and everything in between are all there. It turns out my daughter and Sierra were admitted over a period of time together. Kim’s recounting of the Halloween parade of 2020 made me smile and brought tears to my eyes remembering it.
Thank you Kim for writing this book.

[Tanya Kettner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really well written and encapsulated the emotion, struggles, and joy with all the ups and downs this family would have faced dealing with sudden heart failure. This story was extra special as I live in the same community they are from, and I work in adult cardiology where patients have been referred to Edmonton for a VAD as well. Was really neat hearing it from the patient/family perspective. I hope Sierra is doing well. :)

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic!
Such an emotional rollercoaster.
A well written story. I loved it.

[Lindam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing story.