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Beautiful Affliction
A young woman risks everything to save her own life in this “unusual, riveting medical drama crafted with deep emotion and exquisite detail” (BookPage).
Lene Fogelberg is dying—she is sure of it—but no doctor in Sweden, her home country, believes her. Love stories enfold her, with her husband, her two precious daughters, her enchanting surroundings, but the question she has carried in her heart since childhood—Will I die young?—is threatening all she holds dear, even her sanity. When her young family moves to the US, an answer, a diagnosis, is finally found: she is in the last stages of a fatal congenital heart disease. But is it too late?
Unflinchingly honest and often harrowing, Beautiful Affliction is an inspiring account of growing up and living on the verge of death—and of the beauty, harshness, loneliness, and, ultimately, unbending love that can be found there.
Lene Fogelberg is dying—she is sure of it—but no doctor in Sweden, her home country, believes her. Love stories enfold her, with her husband, her two precious daughters, her enchanting surroundings, but the question she has carried in her heart since childhood—Will I die young?—is threatening all she holds dear, even her sanity. When her young family moves to the US, an answer, a diagnosis, is finally found: she is in the last stages of a fatal congenital heart disease. But is it too late?
Unflinchingly honest and often harrowing, Beautiful Affliction is an inspiring account of growing up and living on the verge of death—and of the beauty, harshness, loneliness, and, ultimately, unbending love that can be found there.
352 pages, Paperback
First published September 15, 2015
132 people are currently reading
2743 people want to read
About the author
Lene Fogelberg
3 books418 followersLene Fogelberg is the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of "Beautiful Affliction: A Memoir" and the newly released young adult novels, "The Oaken Queen" and "The Lightning Tree," both part of the captivating Natural Intelligence Revolution Trilogy. She loves to explore the world and has lived all over the globe—in a small Pennsylvania town, as well as in Germany, Malaysia, and Indonesia. She currently resides in Sweden with her family.
Learn more at https://lenefogelberg.com
Learn more at https://lenefogelberg.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 147 reviews
August 5, 2015
Brilliantly paced, this memoir left me as breathless as if I’d read a thriller about a killer circling its victim. The writing has a spare and clear rhythm. It echoes the writer’s constant struggle to escape the “riddle” that engulfs her very being from childhood to the young wife and mother she has become. When Lene Fogelberg is a child in Sweden, doctors persuade her family there is nothing wrong with her even as every breath she takes is a struggle. This memoir weaves glimpses of that past into an ever-tightening noose that engulfs Lene and her new family. It grips the reader and won’t let go until the very last page. It is a heart-wrenching journey of determination, love, and a last-minute chance for survival against almost impossible odds.
September 13, 2015
Ok, friends, this is a fantastic read. I havent’ read many memoirs in my life, but if there are more like this, it’s a genre worth exploring more. This book has the language, the emotions, the people, the love story, the problems, the excitement, everything that makes a book completely wonderful. It’s a difficult story though (imagine knowing you are dying and noone listening? Thinking you are crazy? And then being right, all along? And being sooo close...). I usually judge my reading experience by how it makes me feel, during, and after, and this book definitely instills emotions! And the emotions are of the best kind - emotions of wonder, of beauty, of love. Ability to see beauty in every little detail around you. Seeing the world through the eyes of this author, is something I highly recommend!!!
August 13, 2015
Fogelberg has crafted a literary and beautifully compelling story about a mysterious 'monster' that is destroying her health and yet defies all medical attempts to find a cause. Once it is cast as a mental issue, no one seems interested in digging any deeper. She knows something is wrong, but no one will believe her. As captivating as this part of the story is, however, it is much more than a medical mystery. It is a heartfelt and touching story about a mother who loves her husband and children and struggles with the thought of leaving them behind. Her efforts to give them a sense of her love and how she wants that love to be remembered is what makes this book a magnificent memoir that I will be thinking about for a long time.
August 6, 2015
I want to say that Lene is a very lucky woman that she is alive today to share her story. What an amazing story it is. Lene was born with a heart murmur that left untreated for many years lead to a fatal congenital heart disease. One that left Lene trapped in her body with the heart of a ninety year old woman. I was intrigued by Lene's story because my sister's oldest son had to have heart surgery when he was just a baby. He was born premature at 6 months old. Barely weighing over 2 pounds. He had to stay in the hospital for about 3 more months. He is now 13 years old and you can not tell that he was ever born premature.
So reading this book I could imagine what it could have been like if the doctor's had not caught my nephew's heart condition in time. The way that this book was written with the present and then the different formatting and font of Lene's thoughts was nice. I really felt like I got to get close to her this way. When Lene would have an attack with her heart and she felt trapped in a bubble, there was a time or two where I too felt as if I was trapped in that bubble with all of the oxygen sucked out of the room. I found this book to be a very well written read.
So reading this book I could imagine what it could have been like if the doctor's had not caught my nephew's heart condition in time. The way that this book was written with the present and then the different formatting and font of Lene's thoughts was nice. I really felt like I got to get close to her this way. When Lene would have an attack with her heart and she felt trapped in a bubble, there was a time or two where I too felt as if I was trapped in that bubble with all of the oxygen sucked out of the room. I found this book to be a very well written read.
September 16, 2015
I was drawn into this book from the beginning. Before I knew the story, Lene Fogelberg’s skillful writing promised to bring me along on her journey with honesty and respect. And what a story it is. It’s about intuition, love, weakness and strength. Family, faith, heritage. And always poetry.
One of the themes that I connected with is that of trusting one’s intuition. Intuition for one’s own health and well-being is often contradicted by those professionals who “know better.” And we learn to trust others’ understanding of our bodies rather than believe what we know to be true about our own selves. Lene literally heard her heart telling her something was wrong and it took years to have anyone take her complaints seriously--except for her steadfast husband.
Many passages spoke to me personally, but one has stayed with me since I finished the book: “And that is just it, maybe these things only come to the weak, because in strength the body only knows itself, is full of itself, its movements its words, but in weakness is the invisible and the whisperings. In the moment before the darkness falls, there is the answer to the riddle, with a finger over its lips: Shhh, don’t say anything, just listen, but what am I supposed to say?” This struck me as an insightful and important understanding; intuition at its finest.
Most stories of one person’s fight against all odds are moving and inspirational. I’m not even sure why this one stands out for me as being even more than that, but I found it to be compelling, essential and important. I would recommend this book to anyone, not only those who might benefit from an empathetic perspective for a similar situation, but for anyone who values a well written book that is both intelligent and beautiful.
One of the themes that I connected with is that of trusting one’s intuition. Intuition for one’s own health and well-being is often contradicted by those professionals who “know better.” And we learn to trust others’ understanding of our bodies rather than believe what we know to be true about our own selves. Lene literally heard her heart telling her something was wrong and it took years to have anyone take her complaints seriously--except for her steadfast husband.
Many passages spoke to me personally, but one has stayed with me since I finished the book: “And that is just it, maybe these things only come to the weak, because in strength the body only knows itself, is full of itself, its movements its words, but in weakness is the invisible and the whisperings. In the moment before the darkness falls, there is the answer to the riddle, with a finger over its lips: Shhh, don’t say anything, just listen, but what am I supposed to say?” This struck me as an insightful and important understanding; intuition at its finest.
Most stories of one person’s fight against all odds are moving and inspirational. I’m not even sure why this one stands out for me as being even more than that, but I found it to be compelling, essential and important. I would recommend this book to anyone, not only those who might benefit from an empathetic perspective for a similar situation, but for anyone who values a well written book that is both intelligent and beautiful.
December 3, 2015
Beautiful Affliction is a stunning debut memoir about a young woman whose fatal congenital heart condition is dismissed by the medical community in Sweden. But, it isn’t only the topic that makes this memoir a page-turner. Lene Fogelberg weaves a riveting story of fear of impending death, invalidated for years as she struggles with daily fatigue, dizziness and shortness of breath. She knows something is wrong and often feels she is going insane while putting up a valiant front for her husband and two little girls. Underlying this daily challenge is the deep love that she and her husband, Anders, share. I felt the love, the frailties, the fears. It’s her prose--lyrical and fluid-- which kept me up way past my bedtime. I could not put the book down and read it in one sitting. She brought me right into her story with ease through her vivid details and genuine voice. It flows seamlessly through rocky terrain and against the backdrop of seemingly impossible odds. Even though I knew she survived, it still kept me on edge.
Her use of flashbacks is very effective as she alternates chapters between her past and her present leading up to the heart surgery that saved her life. This serves to build the tension and kept me highly engaged in the story. The circumstances of her ultimate diagnosis and treatment are nothing short of a miracle.
The beauty of memoir is that we are invited into another person’s story in a way where we can connect with our own story. We are part of the story as we share in the experience, feeling the pain and rejoicing in the triumphs and the gift of life. Lene’s memoir delivers on all counts. A truly beautiful and uplifting memoir, masterfully written
Her use of flashbacks is very effective as she alternates chapters between her past and her present leading up to the heart surgery that saved her life. This serves to build the tension and kept me highly engaged in the story. The circumstances of her ultimate diagnosis and treatment are nothing short of a miracle.
The beauty of memoir is that we are invited into another person’s story in a way where we can connect with our own story. We are part of the story as we share in the experience, feeling the pain and rejoicing in the triumphs and the gift of life. Lene’s memoir delivers on all counts. A truly beautiful and uplifting memoir, masterfully written
August 25, 2015
Lene Fogelberg’s Beautiful Affliction is an incredibly rewarding read. At times harrowing, her account of living on the edge of death for most of her life nonetheless resonates with hope and love. Her words have a certain gentleness and grace that buoyed me, and made me feel the wonder of life anew.
September 28, 2015
This memoir contains in it one of the greatest love stories I have encountered, which caused me to hug my husband tighter and rock my daughter longer. Don't misunderstand, this is not brain-candy mushy reading (that personally makes me nauseous). Fogelberg's memoir is real in every way; it broke my heart and mended it at the same time. I cried, I laughed, and now, after reading, I want to share this beautiful work with everyone.
September 5, 2015
It is hard to believe that English in not Lene's first language. The story is compelling and the prose is poetic. I thought it fitting to read the story with the din of cicadas humming through my neighborhood. I am glad Lene chose to share her story with the world. Maybe in the sharing, she can can help us all silence the whispering monsters in our lives.
February 9, 2017
This. Book.
Even long before it existed, I wanted to love it.
Several years ago, my mother-in-law (who knows Lene’s mother) told me about Lene’s move from Sweden to Philadelphia, and how it resulted in her life saving open-heart surgery.
Even back then, Lene’s story gave me chills.
And then several months back, I heard Lene had written a book about her life journey. A fellow writer! A fellow writer, who is also a Swede living abroad!
I had to investigate this girl.
One visit to her blog later, and I knew I’d stumbled onto something – and someone – special. Over the past several months, our online friendship has meant surprisingly much to me.
So naturally, I was excited to dive right into Lene’s book the day it arrived on my doorstep.
Excited, and also afraid. What if I didn’t like her book as much I wanted? What if my admiration for her and my blind trust in her abilities had created expectations too high for her memoir to live up to?
On the very first page, the tension in my shoulders melted.
Yes. I knew I was right to trust Lene.
This. Book.
But I have to be careful. I don’t want to create hype – hype is difficult to live up to, even for a memoir as extraordinary as Lene’s.
But. But!
If you are anything like me, as you read this book you might be tempted to:
-Savor a glass of apple juice, just to make sure it really isn’t the solution to all the world’s problems.
-Almost-hug Lene’s heart surgeon. And possibly almost-slap some of her other doctors (on second thought, scratch the “almost”).
-Bring out a tape measure, to see just how much scarring Lene had post-surgery.
-Count the number of words in that crazy-long sentence that hits you right in the ribs.
-Call all your friends and family and ask them how they are really doing and how you can help, because afflictions are difficult enough without the heavy burden of loneliness.
-Look up some more Norwegian jokes (I had almost forgotten about those!)
The rest is yours to discover, and savor, and above all – feel.
At a few points early on in the story, I did feel that Lene and her marriage seemed a little too good to be true, a little too near-perfect (apart from the problems related to her illness, of course). And then I read the next few chapters and I saw and felt her struggle and I thought yes, she is real, and yes, I can relate!
Guys, this is Lene’s first book. Her first! I have not yet had any books published, but over the past many years I have stacked up about ten novel-length manuscripts and over a hundred picture book manuscripts.
I am trying very hard to not be jealous of Lene’s ability to mesmerize.
Lene’s book is a perfect selection for book clubs. And if Beautiful Affliction ends up being the best-seller it has the potential to be, and the whole world begs to be Lene’s best friend, just remember this:
I saw her first.
This. Book.
Yes, Lene almost lost her heart.
Perhaps that is why she is so adept at touching ours.
Even long before it existed, I wanted to love it.
Several years ago, my mother-in-law (who knows Lene’s mother) told me about Lene’s move from Sweden to Philadelphia, and how it resulted in her life saving open-heart surgery.
Even back then, Lene’s story gave me chills.
And then several months back, I heard Lene had written a book about her life journey. A fellow writer! A fellow writer, who is also a Swede living abroad!
I had to investigate this girl.
One visit to her blog later, and I knew I’d stumbled onto something – and someone – special. Over the past several months, our online friendship has meant surprisingly much to me.
So naturally, I was excited to dive right into Lene’s book the day it arrived on my doorstep.
Excited, and also afraid. What if I didn’t like her book as much I wanted? What if my admiration for her and my blind trust in her abilities had created expectations too high for her memoir to live up to?
On the very first page, the tension in my shoulders melted.
Yes. I knew I was right to trust Lene.
This. Book.
But I have to be careful. I don’t want to create hype – hype is difficult to live up to, even for a memoir as extraordinary as Lene’s.
But. But!
If you are anything like me, as you read this book you might be tempted to:
-Savor a glass of apple juice, just to make sure it really isn’t the solution to all the world’s problems.
-Almost-hug Lene’s heart surgeon. And possibly almost-slap some of her other doctors (on second thought, scratch the “almost”).
-Bring out a tape measure, to see just how much scarring Lene had post-surgery.
-Count the number of words in that crazy-long sentence that hits you right in the ribs.
-Call all your friends and family and ask them how they are really doing and how you can help, because afflictions are difficult enough without the heavy burden of loneliness.
-Look up some more Norwegian jokes (I had almost forgotten about those!)
The rest is yours to discover, and savor, and above all – feel.
At a few points early on in the story, I did feel that Lene and her marriage seemed a little too good to be true, a little too near-perfect (apart from the problems related to her illness, of course). And then I read the next few chapters and I saw and felt her struggle and I thought yes, she is real, and yes, I can relate!
Guys, this is Lene’s first book. Her first! I have not yet had any books published, but over the past many years I have stacked up about ten novel-length manuscripts and over a hundred picture book manuscripts.
I am trying very hard to not be jealous of Lene’s ability to mesmerize.
Lene’s book is a perfect selection for book clubs. And if Beautiful Affliction ends up being the best-seller it has the potential to be, and the whole world begs to be Lene’s best friend, just remember this:
I saw her first.
This. Book.
Yes, Lene almost lost her heart.
Perhaps that is why she is so adept at touching ours.
January 27, 2016
Definitely my best read book of 2015. This book, a memoir of a woman's undiagnosed heart ailment and how she survives, is so full of beauty and moments that soar. And then catch your breath. She describes her daughters, and I see my girls. She writes of awakening after surgery, and I feel trapped and airless. She tells about post partum depression, and I am there in that hopeless place. Yet, oddly, it's not bleak. It's beautiful. All of it.
I keep coming back to this book's entry here to see how others are enjoying it, to hear how they love the language and the story of Lene's life. But how are there only 237 ratings? How have not more people read this? I want to physically put it in every reader's hands.
Please. Read this.
I keep coming back to this book's entry here to see how others are enjoying it, to hear how they love the language and the story of Lene's life. But how are there only 237 ratings? How have not more people read this? I want to physically put it in every reader's hands.
Please. Read this.
September 4, 2015
I don't have the words for how much I loved this book. I couldn't put it down, so be careful when you start it. I'm a little sleep deprived, but it was well worth it. It's beautifully written, honest, thought provoking, poetic and expertly woven together. I'm in awe that this is the author's first book. It left me with a heightened sense of appreciation for the beauty in everyday life as well as gratitude for my own struggles. It has increased my desire and ability to truly see those around me, and not to be so inwardly focused. This has become one of my favorite books. I can't wait to read the next book Ms. Fogelberg publishes.
November 16, 2015
At the very heart of the matter resides a riddle with invisible, yet menacing tentacles whose chokehold is slowly extinguishing the life of Lene Fogelberg. Every tick of the clock a gamble, BEAUTIFUL AFFLICTION directs the reader's focus to what matters—really matters—in their own lives. A gripping page-turner, Fogelberg's suspenseful masterpiece will break your heart with joy.
September 27, 2015
Lene Fogelberg is a wonder! Not only has she written a beautifully compelling study of the human heart and spirit in Beautiful Affliction, she has written it in English, her second language. Her poetic prose and wispy-like descriptions of the world between the worlds as she struggles to stay alive and breathe after her surgery is just fascinating. The inner world we get to experience as she lays in bed with a ventilator breathing for her is truly magical and mystical. I was brought to tears several times during the book, the emotions welling up in me as I felt the horrible truth of her condition. In one scene after the surgery, when Anders is helping Lene to the bathroom for the first time I had to put the book down and breathe deeply to recover myself. The intimacy in that scene was just heart wrenching and so beautifully written it made me cry. It is the connection and love expressed so well between married people. Anders is both sweet and strong, it’s hard not to fall in love with him ourselves. Truth and honesty reign clear in this book, and if you pick it up you will not be able to put it down.
November 28, 2015
Touching but not mushy
I was not sure about this story at first. I did not want a depressing book. Boy, was I wrong. The author's writing is descriptive and beautiful. She describes her experiences so the reader feels her suffering, but she is not complaining or asking for the reader's sympathy. Instead we root for her and cheer her on. This was a well written and inspiring book. It was the perfect choice for Thanksgiving weekend. We should all be as grateful for life.
I was not sure about this story at first. I did not want a depressing book. Boy, was I wrong. The author's writing is descriptive and beautiful. She describes her experiences so the reader feels her suffering, but she is not complaining or asking for the reader's sympathy. Instead we root for her and cheer her on. This was a well written and inspiring book. It was the perfect choice for Thanksgiving weekend. We should all be as grateful for life.
November 26, 2015
What an incredible book! The poetically described narrative of a Swedish woman with a grossly abnormal heart, who never has her affliction diagnosed in Sweden, but then moves to the United States and learns from a cardiologist at age 31 that she has about 10 percent use of what Woody Allen might describe as her third-favorite organ. This deficiency has caused her to be exhausted her entire life and dismissed by teachers and even her parents as an unusually lazy child, whereas actually she was a child and eventual adult who was barely staying alive with a trickle of a blood flow in her body.
The author describes her anticipatory fears of having open-heart surgery in the U.S., and how she may never survive it. Her description of what she remembers of the recovery period after the surgery is harrowing and poetically specific. I don't ever remember being so horrified and fascinated as I was by her description of the pain she went through. She relates it with a wrenching specificity that almost made me cringe at times.
Her philosophical thoughts about her husband, her two daughters, and her parents as they witness and share her fear and pain are poetically described. It is a brilliant and anguishing book that is hard to put down.
My only quibble is the book's structure of alternating chapters from the past with chapters from her current life. It's easy to follow at first, when she was just a child in the past, but as she gets closer to the time of the surgery, it was hard for me to distinguish which period of her life she was talking about. Her switching from roman type to italic in these alternating chapters helps to a degree.
I would highly recommend this book.
The author describes her anticipatory fears of having open-heart surgery in the U.S., and how she may never survive it. Her description of what she remembers of the recovery period after the surgery is harrowing and poetically specific. I don't ever remember being so horrified and fascinated as I was by her description of the pain she went through. She relates it with a wrenching specificity that almost made me cringe at times.
Her philosophical thoughts about her husband, her two daughters, and her parents as they witness and share her fear and pain are poetically described. It is a brilliant and anguishing book that is hard to put down.
My only quibble is the book's structure of alternating chapters from the past with chapters from her current life. It's easy to follow at first, when she was just a child in the past, but as she gets closer to the time of the surgery, it was hard for me to distinguish which period of her life she was talking about. Her switching from roman type to italic in these alternating chapters helps to a degree.
I would highly recommend this book.
October 31, 2015
This is one of the most moving memoirs I have read; also one of the most remarkable, both in topic and writing style. Lene Fogelberg is a poetic, honest writer with a strong voice to match her strong spirit. It is frightening how neglected her medical care was in Sweden; almost unbelievable that she could go all the way into adulthood and through pregnancy without a proper assessment of her heart murmur. Clearly if circumstances hadn’t sent her husband and their family to the US, Lene would not have survived to write so eloquently about her long and emotionally terrifying journey, through the medical system in America, through double open heart surgery, and out the other side. It is a love story. It is a story of a courageous family; a story that probably would not have had the happy ending it did without Lene’s husband, Anders, who never failed to believe her when no one else seemed to, and supported her through multiple grueling decisions and procedures while caring for their daughters. Not easy in a strange country, where everyone speaks not ony in medical lingo but in a foreign tongue.
Lene’s skill at showing, not telling, was the golden reason this memoir stands head and heart above most others for me. For example: I have heard many descriptions of the experience of being injected with contrast dye before undergoing a CAT scan, both from radiologists and from patients. Lene’s is by far the most evocative and the one that I am sure is closest to the truth. The difference between her experience and the experience of other patients in a similar situation is simply that Lene captures it in words.
At first I feel nothing. Then it comes. The rushing, the heat, in all my blood vessels, large, small, arteries, veins, rushing, rushing, a waterfall in my body. In my head, my brain, somone creeping into my brain paths, a small electrician pulling wires, everywhere at the same time, the heat, the rushing, in my eyes, my neck, my arms, stomach, legs, feet, and I wet myself, I can’t help it.
The voice of the technician comes out of a speaker:
“It’s all right, you’re not wetting yourself.”
The rushing is over. (from Chapter 32, p183-184).
Wonderful.
Lene and her family, homesick for Sweden, returned there where health-care reform has thankfully now improved the situation for future patients. And as Lene writes in an Author’s note, she will always carry a piece of America in her heart.
Absolutely a memoir to savour.
Lene’s skill at showing, not telling, was the golden reason this memoir stands head and heart above most others for me. For example: I have heard many descriptions of the experience of being injected with contrast dye before undergoing a CAT scan, both from radiologists and from patients. Lene’s is by far the most evocative and the one that I am sure is closest to the truth. The difference between her experience and the experience of other patients in a similar situation is simply that Lene captures it in words.
At first I feel nothing. Then it comes. The rushing, the heat, in all my blood vessels, large, small, arteries, veins, rushing, rushing, a waterfall in my body. In my head, my brain, somone creeping into my brain paths, a small electrician pulling wires, everywhere at the same time, the heat, the rushing, in my eyes, my neck, my arms, stomach, legs, feet, and I wet myself, I can’t help it.
The voice of the technician comes out of a speaker:
“It’s all right, you’re not wetting yourself.”
The rushing is over. (from Chapter 32, p183-184).
Wonderful.
Lene and her family, homesick for Sweden, returned there where health-care reform has thankfully now improved the situation for future patients. And as Lene writes in an Author’s note, she will always carry a piece of America in her heart.
Absolutely a memoir to savour.
October 20, 2015
There are so many little bits of beauty and wisdom that are expressed through this book. Wisdom that really can only come to those who have struggled. I wanted to mark so many thoughts that struck me but I ran out of stickies.
September 22, 2015
I have never read a memoir before but after reading Lene Fogelberg's story I may just pick some more up.
This memoir was absolutely beautiful. Her story and the way that it was written is amazing. I didn't feel like I was reading a memoir or "biography" type book. It kept me engaged and I would give it 10 stars if it went that high.
I highly recommend this memoir.
Thank you Lene for sharing your story with me!!
This memoir was absolutely beautiful. Her story and the way that it was written is amazing. I didn't feel like I was reading a memoir or "biography" type book. It kept me engaged and I would give it 10 stars if it went that high.
I highly recommend this memoir.
Thank you Lene for sharing your story with me!!
December 2, 2015
I had to stop reading this at 75% completed since I related to it on a very personal level. I related to the author so closely with her experience of long term illness that I started feeling anxiety. When she entered the hospital for open heart surgery I had to stop. I rated this a 5 since her writing was very realistic.
November 23, 2015
I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I started this book because I chose not to read the back cover of the book or any other written information on the book. I wasn't even sure which "class" it fell under for my #FRC2015 challenge.
The author, Lene Fogelberg has crafted a literary and beautifully compelling story about a mysterious 'monster' that is destroying her health and yet defies all medical attempts to find a cause. I had no idea about the health care in Sweden and the unavailability of doctors for months on end. It was very interesting to follow her story beginning at age 6 when they dismiss any potential issues as a non-threatening "heart murmur" which, left untreated and undiagnosed for nearly three decades, almost killed this woman. As she attempted to receive medical treatment, the doctors ended up convincing her she was a hypochondriac rather than look into the possibility of her really having anything wrong.
I think about all the years she endured feeling so sick, quietly enduring a heavy chest, being tired unable to live a zestful life, not even knowing how good she could feel. Inside though, she knew - not exactly why she wasn't well, but she knew something - some monster - some "riddle" - was killing her. Slowly. I am glad Lene chose to share her story with the world. Her story and the way that it was written is incredible.
Although this isn't held out to be a Christian memoir, I can certainly see God's hands hard at work in Lene's story. Her husband was transferred to the United States for his job and they were able to secure an immediate doctor's appointment for the original purpose of obtaining driver's licenses in the US. One thing leads to another, the heart issue is discovered, she is properly referred for additional medical testing so that she can receive treatment. Her life is saved for herself, for her husband, and for her two little girls. Had she stayed in Sweden, this would not have been the case for Lene. This is another one of those God miracles loudly testifying to the world that He is at work. Moving from Sweden to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania resulted in Lene's life saving open-heart surgery and saved her life.
The author, Lene Fogelberg has crafted a literary and beautifully compelling story about a mysterious 'monster' that is destroying her health and yet defies all medical attempts to find a cause. I had no idea about the health care in Sweden and the unavailability of doctors for months on end. It was very interesting to follow her story beginning at age 6 when they dismiss any potential issues as a non-threatening "heart murmur" which, left untreated and undiagnosed for nearly three decades, almost killed this woman. As she attempted to receive medical treatment, the doctors ended up convincing her she was a hypochondriac rather than look into the possibility of her really having anything wrong.
I think about all the years she endured feeling so sick, quietly enduring a heavy chest, being tired unable to live a zestful life, not even knowing how good she could feel. Inside though, she knew - not exactly why she wasn't well, but she knew something - some monster - some "riddle" - was killing her. Slowly. I am glad Lene chose to share her story with the world. Her story and the way that it was written is incredible.
Although this isn't held out to be a Christian memoir, I can certainly see God's hands hard at work in Lene's story. Her husband was transferred to the United States for his job and they were able to secure an immediate doctor's appointment for the original purpose of obtaining driver's licenses in the US. One thing leads to another, the heart issue is discovered, she is properly referred for additional medical testing so that she can receive treatment. Her life is saved for herself, for her husband, and for her two little girls. Had she stayed in Sweden, this would not have been the case for Lene. This is another one of those God miracles loudly testifying to the world that He is at work. Moving from Sweden to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania resulted in Lene's life saving open-heart surgery and saved her life.
September 15, 2015
Original review at www.125pages.com
I received this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
4.75 Stars
♦ Oh you guys! This, this is the memoir I have been wanting to read. Beautiful Affliction is so powerful and fluid, this could easily stand as a fiction novel, but the fact that it is a true tale makes it just so much more. When a three line email transcribed in a book makes you tear up, you know you have found something almost magical. While reading I was genuinely concerned that the main character would die. I would then have to snap myself out of it and realize she wrote the book, so very much alive. The writing was that good and that transformative that you will get caught in the moments and not realize you already know the outcome. I have been complaining recently about the lack of depth in the memoirs I have been reading; they seem more like lists and entries in a day planner. This is one that wipes my palette clean and reminds me why I love memoirs. The chance to experience a snapshot of someone else’s life, to live in and experience their world in a powerful way. I think it is an intrinsic part of human nature to be voyeuristic and when you can find a vessel such as this to dip into for a day, you are lucky. So in short, world, pacing, people, tone all fantastic. Go read this.
◊ Favorite lines from Chapter 50 – “…their soft hair against my cheek for the last time and their laughter and their steps through the garden and into the blackness jumping from star to star and the threshold is swinging and I have to hold on because if I let go the door will close behind me and there is nothing like this abyss anywhere on earth, the threshold a tiny bridge between endless worlds and the darkness closing in, I have to turn toward the light, the outstretched hand I have to take, you already know, Lene, yes, I know but I was thinking nothing is impossible and I love so very much but now my heart beats for the last time, the last the last the last the last.”
I received this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
4.75 Stars
♦ Oh you guys! This, this is the memoir I have been wanting to read. Beautiful Affliction is so powerful and fluid, this could easily stand as a fiction novel, but the fact that it is a true tale makes it just so much more. When a three line email transcribed in a book makes you tear up, you know you have found something almost magical. While reading I was genuinely concerned that the main character would die. I would then have to snap myself out of it and realize she wrote the book, so very much alive. The writing was that good and that transformative that you will get caught in the moments and not realize you already know the outcome. I have been complaining recently about the lack of depth in the memoirs I have been reading; they seem more like lists and entries in a day planner. This is one that wipes my palette clean and reminds me why I love memoirs. The chance to experience a snapshot of someone else’s life, to live in and experience their world in a powerful way. I think it is an intrinsic part of human nature to be voyeuristic and when you can find a vessel such as this to dip into for a day, you are lucky. So in short, world, pacing, people, tone all fantastic. Go read this.
◊ Favorite lines from Chapter 50 – “…their soft hair against my cheek for the last time and their laughter and their steps through the garden and into the blackness jumping from star to star and the threshold is swinging and I have to hold on because if I let go the door will close behind me and there is nothing like this abyss anywhere on earth, the threshold a tiny bridge between endless worlds and the darkness closing in, I have to turn toward the light, the outstretched hand I have to take, you already know, Lene, yes, I know but I was thinking nothing is impossible and I love so very much but now my heart beats for the last time, the last the last the last the last.”
October 20, 2015
We know, of course, that Lene Fogelberg pulls through. That’s not the point.
The point is that in her memoir Beautiful Affliction, we journey with her through the nearly constant, terrifying, painful symptoms that follow her from her native Sweden to the United States, where she ultimately discovers she is in the last stages of a fatal congenital heart disease.
With exceptional detail, Fogelberg brings readers into her head as she struggles to breathe, to raise her two daughters without letting them know she is sick, and to navigate her homeland’s healthcare system that takes too long to figure out what’s wrong.
I’m a fan of the flashbacks she uses to show how far back she had to deal with her condition. As early as the first chapter we are seeing the world—and the doctor’s office—through her eyes as a young girl: “I know what that is, it’s a stethoscope, my mom told me earlier.” Back and forth from the present to the past, we also learn about her relationship as she tries to acclimate to Philadelphia (where her incredibly supportive husband, Anders, has been transferred for work) while homesick and convinced—for a long time without a diagnosis—that she is dying.
Those who have been hit with dire medical news can relate to remembering the smallest details; in Fogelberg’s case, the ceiling fan spins and a cat paws through the grass in the backyard. And parents will be able to sympathize when Fogelberg, insisting her girls
“live in the security of having their mamma with them forever” until the moment she stops breathing, acknowledges with a heavy heart that she has just lied to preserve healthy appearances. These are the types of details that keep a reader hooked.
The questions behind the logic of her condition, the doubts about her sanity, the attempts to find meaning behind the seemingly meaningless. It all resonates deeply and powerfully through a story about living on the verge of death—and then getting a chance to live differently.
The point is that in her memoir Beautiful Affliction, we journey with her through the nearly constant, terrifying, painful symptoms that follow her from her native Sweden to the United States, where she ultimately discovers she is in the last stages of a fatal congenital heart disease.
With exceptional detail, Fogelberg brings readers into her head as she struggles to breathe, to raise her two daughters without letting them know she is sick, and to navigate her homeland’s healthcare system that takes too long to figure out what’s wrong.
I’m a fan of the flashbacks she uses to show how far back she had to deal with her condition. As early as the first chapter we are seeing the world—and the doctor’s office—through her eyes as a young girl: “I know what that is, it’s a stethoscope, my mom told me earlier.” Back and forth from the present to the past, we also learn about her relationship as she tries to acclimate to Philadelphia (where her incredibly supportive husband, Anders, has been transferred for work) while homesick and convinced—for a long time without a diagnosis—that she is dying.
Those who have been hit with dire medical news can relate to remembering the smallest details; in Fogelberg’s case, the ceiling fan spins and a cat paws through the grass in the backyard. And parents will be able to sympathize when Fogelberg, insisting her girls
“live in the security of having their mamma with them forever” until the moment she stops breathing, acknowledges with a heavy heart that she has just lied to preserve healthy appearances. These are the types of details that keep a reader hooked.
The questions behind the logic of her condition, the doubts about her sanity, the attempts to find meaning behind the seemingly meaningless. It all resonates deeply and powerfully through a story about living on the verge of death—and then getting a chance to live differently.
September 19, 2015
I joined SheWrites and immediately brushed shoulders with Lene Fogelberg, author of the rich emotion symphony called Beautiful Affliction. I understand the old tradition, for women, of knowing you are ill, but if the docs can't find a diagnosis, they tell you it's hypochondria. It is frustrating to read about Lene's struggle - understanding she is not well, but unable to get anyone to investigate what turns out to be a life-threatening heart problem.
Lene's prose is like silk, swirling back and forth from her meeting with spouse Anders, the terrible weakness after giving birth to two beautiful daughters, and finally, in Pennsylvania, connecting with a friend whose husband is a cardiologist, who helps to find the best surgeons to undertake her surgeries. The use of darkness and light is perfect ... slipping in and out of hope .. hanging on for the girls ... determined to finally speak the truth, to say, "I am in pain!" I am eager for more, and I believe Lene is a (literary) friend now with whom I share the writer's life. It is a difficult read, particularly I believe for Moms, but more than worth the tears and sorrow for the joy and hope which undergird this strong memoir.
Lene's prose is like silk, swirling back and forth from her meeting with spouse Anders, the terrible weakness after giving birth to two beautiful daughters, and finally, in Pennsylvania, connecting with a friend whose husband is a cardiologist, who helps to find the best surgeons to undertake her surgeries. The use of darkness and light is perfect ... slipping in and out of hope .. hanging on for the girls ... determined to finally speak the truth, to say, "I am in pain!" I am eager for more, and I believe Lene is a (literary) friend now with whom I share the writer's life. It is a difficult read, particularly I believe for Moms, but more than worth the tears and sorrow for the joy and hope which undergird this strong memoir.
December 6, 2015
Lene's amazing ability to closely describe her experience has you living inside her skin, feeling the erratic beating of her heart, and breathing her laboured breaths as you share her harrowing journey through life with an undiagnosed health problem. Repeatedly told she was normal, how could she know that her terrible exhaustion was not laziness or an inability to cope with things others found easy? Yet through it all, she clings to beauty and love with a sensitivity born out of pain, and reminds us to notice it everywhere, even in darkness. Her poetic writing has an immediacy which rouses all the senses. I look forward to her upcoming novel.
August 24, 2015
Intimate. Provoking. Inspiring. Lene's unique writing style was the ideal way to convey such a moving life story. The manner in which she recounted her fears, her afflictions, her loves and her miracles has led me to lasting self-reflection.
December 5, 2015
This book came at just the right time for me. Enduring a beautiful affliction all mine own, I felt like Lene and I traveled together. I am so happy that she will be healthy, even though I will not. Wonderful story, much like a lovely song of life.
September 7, 2015
This is a beautiful book. It is well written and heartbreaking and at the same time it is a brilliant reminder about how precious life is. Everyone should read this book.
September 24, 2021
Imagine reading a memoir in which every chapter is a poem. Pain is described metaphorically, often cryptically. Post-surgery recovery has an other-worldly quality, lacking tangible details but relaying the surrealism effectively. Nature, love, science, medicine, fear, kindness, doubt and joy work their way into the narrative so that we see how intertwined human emotions are with the natural and man-made worlds. To read Lene Fogelberg’s Beautiful Affliction is like sitting by her side and holding her hand throughout her journey toward a diagnosis and treatment. The way she describes her physical condition felt visceral for me: the shortness of breath, the stabbing pains. Fogelberg also conveys the tiny acts of mercy from her family and medical professionals with such subtlety that I was in tears throughout the story. This is a memoir like no other.
January 23, 2016
Beautiful Affliction is a page-turner. I've never read a book where I experienced the feeling of what it's like to be dying in such a visceral way. Writing a book in first person is risky and Lene Fogelberg pulls it off flawlessly. The images and metaphors still have me thinking about what she went through for decades of her life, about the symptoms that made her know she ways dying, yet no one in the medical profession believed her. The incredible love and devotion of her husband, and her love for him and their two children, made me grab the Kleenex more than once. It was surely what gave them the strength to not give up. Highly recommend this book!
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