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Graphic Medicine
Taking Turns: Stories from HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371
In 1994, at the height of the AIDS epidemic in the United States, MK Czerwiec took her first nursing job, at Illinois Masonic Medical Center in Chicago, as part of the caregiving staff of HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371. Taking Turns pulls back the curtain on life in the ward.
A shining example of excellence in the treatment and care of patients, Unit 371 was a community for thousands of patients and families affected by HIV and AIDS and the people who cared for them. This graphic novel combines Czerwiec’s memories with the oral histories of patients, family members, and staff. It depicts life and death in the ward, the ways the unit affected and informed those who passed through it, and how many look back on their time there today.
Czerwiec joined Unit 371 at a pivotal time in the history of AIDS: deaths from the syndrome in the Midwest peaked in 1995 and then dropped drastically in the following years, with the release of antiretroviral protease inhibitors. This positive turn of events led to a decline in patient populations and, ultimately, to the closure of Unit 371. Czerwiec’s restrained, inviting drawing style and carefully considered narrative examine individual, institutional, and community responses to the AIDS epidemic—as well as the role that art can play in the grieving process.
Deeply personal yet made up of many voices, this history of daily life in a unique AIDS care unit is an open, honest look at suffering, grief, and hope among a community of medical professionals and patients at the heart of the epidemic.
A shining example of excellence in the treatment and care of patients, Unit 371 was a community for thousands of patients and families affected by HIV and AIDS and the people who cared for them. This graphic novel combines Czerwiec’s memories with the oral histories of patients, family members, and staff. It depicts life and death in the ward, the ways the unit affected and informed those who passed through it, and how many look back on their time there today.
Czerwiec joined Unit 371 at a pivotal time in the history of AIDS: deaths from the syndrome in the Midwest peaked in 1995 and then dropped drastically in the following years, with the release of antiretroviral protease inhibitors. This positive turn of events led to a decline in patient populations and, ultimately, to the closure of Unit 371. Czerwiec’s restrained, inviting drawing style and carefully considered narrative examine individual, institutional, and community responses to the AIDS epidemic—as well as the role that art can play in the grieving process.
Deeply personal yet made up of many voices, this history of daily life in a unique AIDS care unit is an open, honest look at suffering, grief, and hope among a community of medical professionals and patients at the heart of the epidemic.
224 pages, Paperback
First published March 15, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 171 reviews
August 10, 2019
Posted at Shelf Inflicted
Never have I been so moved by a graphic novel as I have with this account of M.K. Czerwiec’s career as a nurse in an HIV/AIDS care unit.
Her story begins in 1993, at the height of the AIDS epidemic, and before effective retroviral drugs existed. Though much of this story centers on patient treatment and interactions with other caregivers, there is a lot of thought-provoking exploration of living with a terminal disease, the fluid boundaries between caregiver and patient, and the emotional toll death takes on us all.
This thoughtful, simply written story is deeply moving, powerful, and a worthy addition to modern AIDS literature. While this graphic novel deserves every one of its 5 stars, I have a few minor quibbles that didn’t at all detract from my enjoyment.
One of the sentiments expressed towards the end bothered me a little. “This was our plague. It was devastation of a generation, a couple of generations…” I never liked that AIDS was referred to as the “gay plague.” This implies the disease only affected men and was a punishment.
The art was simple, and there were annoying blank pages between sections. This may just affect the e-book.
Some of the panels contained too much text and were at times difficult to read.
Though much progress has been made, many people around the world are still dying of AIDS because of fear, social stigma and ignorance, so I am glad for this novel’s existence. I was happy to find the e-book at my local library, as I can’t justify paying over $20 for a graphic novel.
I probably would never have come across this on my own, so many thanks to John for recommending this to me.
Never have I been so moved by a graphic novel as I have with this account of M.K. Czerwiec’s career as a nurse in an HIV/AIDS care unit.
Her story begins in 1993, at the height of the AIDS epidemic, and before effective retroviral drugs existed. Though much of this story centers on patient treatment and interactions with other caregivers, there is a lot of thought-provoking exploration of living with a terminal disease, the fluid boundaries between caregiver and patient, and the emotional toll death takes on us all.
This thoughtful, simply written story is deeply moving, powerful, and a worthy addition to modern AIDS literature. While this graphic novel deserves every one of its 5 stars, I have a few minor quibbles that didn’t at all detract from my enjoyment.
One of the sentiments expressed towards the end bothered me a little. “This was our plague. It was devastation of a generation, a couple of generations…” I never liked that AIDS was referred to as the “gay plague.” This implies the disease only affected men and was a punishment.
The art was simple, and there were annoying blank pages between sections. This may just affect the e-book.
Some of the panels contained too much text and were at times difficult to read.
Though much progress has been made, many people around the world are still dying of AIDS because of fear, social stigma and ignorance, so I am glad for this novel’s existence. I was happy to find the e-book at my local library, as I can’t justify paying over $20 for a graphic novel.
I probably would never have come across this on my own, so many thanks to John for recommending this to me.
December 14, 2018
I hoped to write a more in-depth review - one that this book so deserves - but time is against me. I've read this through in full twice already and am still certain there is more to gain from further readings.
Part unique history, part memoir, if you don't find yourself tearing up at least twice, I'd be worried your tear ducts aren't working.
Part unique history, part memoir, if you don't find yourself tearing up at least twice, I'd be worried your tear ducts aren't working.
August 24, 2018
It's a hard read but a good read, the weight of the AIDS epidemic rests heavy on my heart but it helps to have beautiful history projects like this one to turn to.
January 4, 2020
At first I was put off by the simplistic nature of the art, but as I started reading I simply stopped caring what it looked like as I became riveted by Czerwiec's words. She recounts her time on an HIV/AIDS unit in a Chicago hospital during the 1990s, giving her personal testimony and including elements from the oral histories she gathered from co-workers, patients and their families. It's heavy going, obviously, making me confront thoughts about death and dying that I usually prefer to avoid. In addition to spinning some compelling tales from the unit and delivering some interesting facts about the time and place, she makes good points about art's role in dealing with death and grief. Recommended.
September 24, 2019
I recently read The Great Believers, and this graphic memoir was listed as recommended reading, so picked up a copy from my library.
This is a memoir of the author's time working as a nurse at at the Illinois Masonic Medical Center in Chicago, as part of the caregiving staff of HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371. At the height of the epidemic, amid all the hysteria and general awfulness of how infected people were treated, the staff of Care Unit 371 were a shining example of how to competently and humanely care for patients and their families. This is a collection of both the author's memories as well as an oral history of that place and time.
I really appreciated what the author did in documenting the stories of the patients, families, and staff. What I didn't like was the illustration style, which was too cartoonish for my tastes, and rather distracting. Comics can be such a powerful medium to convey a story, but in this case I wish the author had teamed up with an illustrator for the artwork. The individual stories are moving and poignant and tragic, and even joyful, so I wish the art captured those feelings in a more compelling manner. This is an important piece of history, and I'm glad it exists as a reminder of the power of empathy and compassion and humanity in the face of tragedy.
This is a memoir of the author's time working as a nurse at at the Illinois Masonic Medical Center in Chicago, as part of the caregiving staff of HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371. At the height of the epidemic, amid all the hysteria and general awfulness of how infected people were treated, the staff of Care Unit 371 were a shining example of how to competently and humanely care for patients and their families. This is a collection of both the author's memories as well as an oral history of that place and time.
I really appreciated what the author did in documenting the stories of the patients, families, and staff. What I didn't like was the illustration style, which was too cartoonish for my tastes, and rather distracting. Comics can be such a powerful medium to convey a story, but in this case I wish the author had teamed up with an illustrator for the artwork. The individual stories are moving and poignant and tragic, and even joyful, so I wish the art captured those feelings in a more compelling manner. This is an important piece of history, and I'm glad it exists as a reminder of the power of empathy and compassion and humanity in the face of tragedy.
June 9, 2023
There is so much in this one little graphic novel. Taking Turns by MK Czerwiec is the story of an HIV/AIDS unit in Chicago, but it's also a memoir, in parts it is an oral history, and also an exploration of grief and death.
This was such a powerful book in so many ways. Of course each person's story has a power in its own right, but there is a lot more beyond that. This hospital was unique in how it embraced care of the whole patient, altering assumptions about carer/patient relationships, and focusing more on mental well-being. It's so radically different from how care is done in most health practices and seeing that by itself was incredible. Another big take-away for me was the discussion of grief, how she handled her emotions through art and some of the conversations she had with others.
There was so much of this that struck me as someone who has been trying to read deeply about this time period, but also on a personal level. I also think this lays out quite a bit about what AIDS is and the timeline of AIDS in the US in a really helpful way. I highly recommend this for anyone, but I especially think that it's good for those who are just starting to learn about the AIDS epidemic.
This was such a powerful book in so many ways. Of course each person's story has a power in its own right, but there is a lot more beyond that. This hospital was unique in how it embraced care of the whole patient, altering assumptions about carer/patient relationships, and focusing more on mental well-being. It's so radically different from how care is done in most health practices and seeing that by itself was incredible. Another big take-away for me was the discussion of grief, how she handled her emotions through art and some of the conversations she had with others.
There was so much of this that struck me as someone who has been trying to read deeply about this time period, but also on a personal level. I also think this lays out quite a bit about what AIDS is and the timeline of AIDS in the US in a really helpful way. I highly recommend this for anyone, but I especially think that it's good for those who are just starting to learn about the AIDS epidemic.
January 22, 2022
Today we are looking at a nonfiction work of graphic medicine and graphic memoir; Taking Turns by MK Czerwiec. They apparently just released a second edition, but the one I read was published in 2017 by Penn State University College of Medicine.
Content notes for cancer, parent death, HIV/AIDS, patient death, hospice, and nursing.
According to the back flap MK Czerwiec is "a nurse who uses comics to contemplate the complexities of illness and care giving. She is the artist-in-residence at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, co-curator of GraphicMedicine.org, and co-author of Graphic Medicine Manifesto, also published by Penn State." She also has been one of the main hosts of the Graphic Medicine Podcast and is a lesbian.
What keywords came to mind? Dignity, negotiating boundaries, death, community care, and art.
The summery is "In 1994, at the height of the AIDS epidemic in the United States, MK Czerwiec took her first nursing job, at Illinois Masonic Medical Center in Chicago, as part of the care-giving staff of HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371. Taking Turns pulls back the curtain on life in the ward.
A shining example of excellence in the treatment and care of patients, Unit 371 was a community for thousands of patients and families affected by HIV and AIDS and the people who cared for them. This graphic novel combines Czerwiec’s memories with the oral histories of patients, family members, and staff. It depicts life and death in the ward, the ways the unit affected and informed those who passed through it, and how many look back on their time there today.
Czerwiec joined Unit 371 at a pivotal time in the history of AIDS: deaths from the syndrome in the Midwest peaked in 1995 and then dropped drastically in the following years, with the release of antiretroviral protease inhibitors. This positive turn of events led to a decline in patient populations and, ultimately, to the closure of Unit 371. Czerwiec’s restrained, inviting drawing style and carefully considered narrative examine individual, institutional, and community responses to the AIDS epidemic—as well as the role that art can play in the grieving process.
Deeply personal yet made up of many voices, this history of daily life in a unique AIDS care unit is an open, honest look at suffering, grief, and hope among a community of medical professionals and patients at the heart of the epidemic."
In retrospect I'm not sure if this was the best thing I could have read this past week, because this week was incredibly tough in many ways and this book deals with a lot of heavy topics. Although I also feel like maybe it was exactly the right thing to read, because perhaps the only comforting thing right now is reading about other care-givers living through their own crises. Which is certainly a perspective. I think the plot synopsis does perhaps over-emphasize the group input aspect of the book. Or at least it probably went into the background of the book but wasn't addressed in the narrative beyond the fact that Czerwiec did patient surveys. That said, I still feel like this is a really great and important work and I'm probably also projecting my own struggles around my position as a giver of care right now. Knowing who created the book I did not go into it expecting much more then the perspective I got, which is certainly casting a wide focus across her community. I just need to find out if there are more comics from an HIV/AIDS patient perspective. Preliminary research has revealed 7 Miles a Second by David Wojnarowicz so that's been added to the TBR.
One thing I really really really appreciated about this book is how little time MK spent depicting homophobia and the abandonment that many HIV/AIDS patients faced. Obviously those are important facets of the AIDS crises that cannot be forgotten or minimized. But being in the thick of it, in an space where people were given so much loving care and dignity, MK chose to focus on that. This isn't to say hard topics were not tackled; but this was one of the ways it felt like a book for the queer community (and anyone else who wants to read it) rather then a 101 explainer text for the general public on HIV/AIDS.
Moving along to the art, I can see it being a bit of a barrier to some. That's fine. I think for me (being someone who is open to a lot of different styles) the key is consistency and not biting off more then one can chew. In some ways the simplicity makes it feel more relatable, and perhaps inspiring to readers to put their own pens to paper. Flipping through the book it is incredibly accessible and readable. The writing is also extremely compelling and sucked me right in.
Sexuality and gender are obviously pretty central to most of the HIV/AIDS narratives I have consumed over my life. in Taking Turns the pattern does continue to a certain extent, but wasn't something I felt were super emphasized. I think in this instance, because of how targeted different identities have been when it comes to HIV/AIDS, even though people from all gender and sexuality communities have been impacted, de-emphasizing was a constructive choice. Especially because it was still there and obviously not hidden. What do you think?
Race did not seem to be something that came up in the book at all.
Class, again, felt perhaps a bit de-emphasized.
Chronic illness on the other hand was obviously the main focus of Taking Turns. A lot of time was spent highlighting some of the unorthodox ways doctors and patients interacted in unit 371 and the positive impacts that had. MK also writes about the time she accidentally stuck herself with a needle teaching someone to check their blood sugar and the way she worked through that. Bodies becoming more and more disabled and the impact (or lack there of) of medications was also explored, along with MK's experience watching so many people die.
This is one of those books that I'll be thinking about for a long time to come. Both for the feels and the food for thought. If you feel up to picking up this book right now I would highly recommend it. Five out of five stars.
Content notes for cancer, parent death, HIV/AIDS, patient death, hospice, and nursing.
According to the back flap MK Czerwiec is "a nurse who uses comics to contemplate the complexities of illness and care giving. She is the artist-in-residence at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, co-curator of GraphicMedicine.org, and co-author of Graphic Medicine Manifesto, also published by Penn State." She also has been one of the main hosts of the Graphic Medicine Podcast and is a lesbian.
What keywords came to mind? Dignity, negotiating boundaries, death, community care, and art.
The summery is "In 1994, at the height of the AIDS epidemic in the United States, MK Czerwiec took her first nursing job, at Illinois Masonic Medical Center in Chicago, as part of the care-giving staff of HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371. Taking Turns pulls back the curtain on life in the ward.
A shining example of excellence in the treatment and care of patients, Unit 371 was a community for thousands of patients and families affected by HIV and AIDS and the people who cared for them. This graphic novel combines Czerwiec’s memories with the oral histories of patients, family members, and staff. It depicts life and death in the ward, the ways the unit affected and informed those who passed through it, and how many look back on their time there today.
Czerwiec joined Unit 371 at a pivotal time in the history of AIDS: deaths from the syndrome in the Midwest peaked in 1995 and then dropped drastically in the following years, with the release of antiretroviral protease inhibitors. This positive turn of events led to a decline in patient populations and, ultimately, to the closure of Unit 371. Czerwiec’s restrained, inviting drawing style and carefully considered narrative examine individual, institutional, and community responses to the AIDS epidemic—as well as the role that art can play in the grieving process.
Deeply personal yet made up of many voices, this history of daily life in a unique AIDS care unit is an open, honest look at suffering, grief, and hope among a community of medical professionals and patients at the heart of the epidemic."
In retrospect I'm not sure if this was the best thing I could have read this past week, because this week was incredibly tough in many ways and this book deals with a lot of heavy topics. Although I also feel like maybe it was exactly the right thing to read, because perhaps the only comforting thing right now is reading about other care-givers living through their own crises. Which is certainly a perspective. I think the plot synopsis does perhaps over-emphasize the group input aspect of the book. Or at least it probably went into the background of the book but wasn't addressed in the narrative beyond the fact that Czerwiec did patient surveys. That said, I still feel like this is a really great and important work and I'm probably also projecting my own struggles around my position as a giver of care right now. Knowing who created the book I did not go into it expecting much more then the perspective I got, which is certainly casting a wide focus across her community. I just need to find out if there are more comics from an HIV/AIDS patient perspective. Preliminary research has revealed 7 Miles a Second by David Wojnarowicz so that's been added to the TBR.
One thing I really really really appreciated about this book is how little time MK spent depicting homophobia and the abandonment that many HIV/AIDS patients faced. Obviously those are important facets of the AIDS crises that cannot be forgotten or minimized. But being in the thick of it, in an space where people were given so much loving care and dignity, MK chose to focus on that. This isn't to say hard topics were not tackled; but this was one of the ways it felt like a book for the queer community (and anyone else who wants to read it) rather then a 101 explainer text for the general public on HIV/AIDS.
Moving along to the art, I can see it being a bit of a barrier to some. That's fine. I think for me (being someone who is open to a lot of different styles) the key is consistency and not biting off more then one can chew. In some ways the simplicity makes it feel more relatable, and perhaps inspiring to readers to put their own pens to paper. Flipping through the book it is incredibly accessible and readable. The writing is also extremely compelling and sucked me right in.
Sexuality and gender are obviously pretty central to most of the HIV/AIDS narratives I have consumed over my life. in Taking Turns the pattern does continue to a certain extent, but wasn't something I felt were super emphasized. I think in this instance, because of how targeted different identities have been when it comes to HIV/AIDS, even though people from all gender and sexuality communities have been impacted, de-emphasizing was a constructive choice. Especially because it was still there and obviously not hidden. What do you think?
Race did not seem to be something that came up in the book at all.
Class, again, felt perhaps a bit de-emphasized.
Chronic illness on the other hand was obviously the main focus of Taking Turns. A lot of time was spent highlighting some of the unorthodox ways doctors and patients interacted in unit 371 and the positive impacts that had. MK also writes about the time she accidentally stuck herself with a needle teaching someone to check their blood sugar and the way she worked through that. Bodies becoming more and more disabled and the impact (or lack there of) of medications was also explored, along with MK's experience watching so many people die.
This is one of those books that I'll be thinking about for a long time to come. Both for the feels and the food for thought. If you feel up to picking up this book right now I would highly recommend it. Five out of five stars.
May 8, 2018
If you're like me, you'll go into this thinking, "I know this one (as in, this Graphic Medicine title) gets a lot of praise, but I'm not really as compelled by the HIV/AIDS story as much as, say, the Graphic Medicine titles on things like Cancer and Parkinson's, which my life has actually been touched by."
And you'll realize very quickly just how wrong you are.
This book had me nearly in tears multiple times. I was young when the AIDS epidemic caught the world by storm, and thus missed learning about it until now. To have this story told by a nurse on the front line is just incredible. Besides the sadness and disbelief of what these patients went through, and what the doctors and nurses experienced in the first decade of HIV/AIDS treatment, what stood out to me most was the lesson on how to treat and care for a person who is dying. The compassion and love MK shows her patients throughout the book is inspiring, and applicable across many different careers. I see parallels in the way she spoke with her patients and the way I need to speak to my library patrons who approach me with medical questions.
An eye-opening and inspiring book all around. Read this, then go be kind to everyone you meet.
And you'll realize very quickly just how wrong you are.
This book had me nearly in tears multiple times. I was young when the AIDS epidemic caught the world by storm, and thus missed learning about it until now. To have this story told by a nurse on the front line is just incredible. Besides the sadness and disbelief of what these patients went through, and what the doctors and nurses experienced in the first decade of HIV/AIDS treatment, what stood out to me most was the lesson on how to treat and care for a person who is dying. The compassion and love MK shows her patients throughout the book is inspiring, and applicable across many different careers. I see parallels in the way she spoke with her patients and the way I need to speak to my library patrons who approach me with medical questions.
An eye-opening and inspiring book all around. Read this, then go be kind to everyone you meet.
September 14, 2021
Great to get a perspection of someone who was on the frontline when this epidemic began.
August 14, 2020
I read a lot about the AIDS epidemic a couple of years ago, but everything I read was centered around San Francisco. I was intrigued when I got a glimpse of how people in Chicago (where I’ve lived for 20 years) experienced the epidemic in ‘The Great Believers,’ and that’s where I learned about this book. I devoured it in an hour! MK Czerwiec brings the highs and lows, struggles and triumphs of Unit 371 to life through her words and drawings. What a necessary and compassionate place Unit 371 was to patients, families, and staff fighting AIDS in the 80s and 90s. The doctors, nurses, and staff who ran the unit knew it couldn’t look like/run like a typical hospital unit, because the disease wasn’t typical. The angels who ran Unit 371 have my eternal gratitude for caring for their patients with such fierce compassion.
April 12, 2020
I was not an HIV nurse during the height of the epidemic, but I was a nurse. As we now know, all of us were HIV nurses, whether we knew it or not; the disease was far more pervasive than any of us had any idea was true.
M.K. Czerwiec was, in fact, a brand-new nurse at the height of the beginning of the mysterious new disease which swept through the gay community with a vicious, pinpoint precision that seemed almost predatory. She was in the center of it, in a ward specifically designated for those with HIV. She was permanently shaped by this experience, as this book suggests, and not so much scarred as etched by its acid bite.
I am an HIV nurse now, and have been for 20 years. My experience is quite different: the disease is manageable, and medications have only become easier and easier to take and tolerate. We treat many of the ravages of old age, addiction, and cancer rather than of HIV itself (though some cancers—cervical, anal, lymphoma—are more common in those who living with HIV).
Still, I have developed a wariness of memoirs of the early days of the pandemic. The fact is, HIV is a disease, and far too many medical professionals have written self-congratulatory stories of their own bravery in the face of so much disease and death, when taking care of ill people is simply what we signed up for.
But Czerwiec manages to avoid this pitfall through the expedients of humility and honesty; she is not the white-robed goddess, just another of the walking wounded who lost too many friends too soon. She is warm, welcoming, bemused, and sad. Her drawings are charmingly amateurish, in a style which has become very prominent among those who do panel art these days. Such simplicity adds to the sense of guilelessness which saves the work from being either maudlin or preening.
In short, this is a lovely, difficult, sweet story of one person's journey through the formative event of our generation, much as 9/11 shaped the next, and perhaps Covid-19 is shaping the current one. I am filled with admiration for this author because she has kept her heart fully engaged and left her ego largely in neutral. Well done, indeed.
M.K. Czerwiec was, in fact, a brand-new nurse at the height of the beginning of the mysterious new disease which swept through the gay community with a vicious, pinpoint precision that seemed almost predatory. She was in the center of it, in a ward specifically designated for those with HIV. She was permanently shaped by this experience, as this book suggests, and not so much scarred as etched by its acid bite.
I am an HIV nurse now, and have been for 20 years. My experience is quite different: the disease is manageable, and medications have only become easier and easier to take and tolerate. We treat many of the ravages of old age, addiction, and cancer rather than of HIV itself (though some cancers—cervical, anal, lymphoma—are more common in those who living with HIV).
Still, I have developed a wariness of memoirs of the early days of the pandemic. The fact is, HIV is a disease, and far too many medical professionals have written self-congratulatory stories of their own bravery in the face of so much disease and death, when taking care of ill people is simply what we signed up for.
But Czerwiec manages to avoid this pitfall through the expedients of humility and honesty; she is not the white-robed goddess, just another of the walking wounded who lost too many friends too soon. She is warm, welcoming, bemused, and sad. Her drawings are charmingly amateurish, in a style which has become very prominent among those who do panel art these days. Such simplicity adds to the sense of guilelessness which saves the work from being either maudlin or preening.
In short, this is a lovely, difficult, sweet story of one person's journey through the formative event of our generation, much as 9/11 shaped the next, and perhaps Covid-19 is shaping the current one. I am filled with admiration for this author because she has kept her heart fully engaged and left her ego largely in neutral. Well done, indeed.
March 21, 2017
"Taking Turns: Stories from HIV/AIDS Care Unit" is a graphic work by MK Czerwiec that describes her time working as a nurse in a dedicated AIDS unit at Illinois Masonic Hospital in Chicago. It is as much a story about the staff members and the volunteers as much as it is about the patients. The ward was most active during the years that an AIDS diagnosis meant certain death to those who contracted it. As the new protease inhibitors were developed in the mid-1990's, that death sentence was lessened and AIDS became for most a treatable disease. The AIDS ward, so busy in the 1980's and 1990's basically closed-up-shop and the patients went to the cancer wards if they needed treatment.
What are graphic novels? According to Wikipedia, "A graphic novel is a book made up of comics content. Although the word 'novel' normally refers to long fictional works, the term 'graphic novel' is applied broadly and includes fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work." I think this definition is important because more books are being published as "graphic" and the difference between a "written" book - particularly a memoir, as Czerwiec's work is considered - and a graphic is the intensity of the ideas being displayed by having both a written and drawn text. What MK Czerwiec writes and illustrates in "Taking Turns" brings the horrors of the illness, as well as the love and hope both given and received to the patient and his care givers.
"Taking Turns" is not a great work of art, but it is an honest - and loving - look at a hard period of time for many, many people.
What are graphic novels? According to Wikipedia, "A graphic novel is a book made up of comics content. Although the word 'novel' normally refers to long fictional works, the term 'graphic novel' is applied broadly and includes fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work." I think this definition is important because more books are being published as "graphic" and the difference between a "written" book - particularly a memoir, as Czerwiec's work is considered - and a graphic is the intensity of the ideas being displayed by having both a written and drawn text. What MK Czerwiec writes and illustrates in "Taking Turns" brings the horrors of the illness, as well as the love and hope both given and received to the patient and his care givers.
"Taking Turns" is not a great work of art, but it is an honest - and loving - look at a hard period of time for many, many people.
August 17, 2024
Thoughts from my notes app:
-I read "The Great Believers" and loved the important queer history this book included. The author listed this graphic novel in her acknowledgements as helping her understand the time period very well
-While I was reading The Great Believers, I thought about the health care providers and specifically the nurses caring for the patients hospitalized with AIDs complications, and how scary that must have been. (Slightly similar to us nurses working as a global pandemic was happeningggg)
-I know many lesbian stepped up and cared informally and professionally as nurses for their queer community which ties into my grad school research.
-Graphic novels aren't wordy, and sometimes I have issue with that, the story is too abrupt. But this one, so perfectly encapsulates the fear and messiness and learning curve of being a new nurse working on an HIV/AIDs unit.
-I read "The Great Believers" and loved the important queer history this book included. The author listed this graphic novel in her acknowledgements as helping her understand the time period very well
-While I was reading The Great Believers, I thought about the health care providers and specifically the nurses caring for the patients hospitalized with AIDs complications, and how scary that must have been. (Slightly similar to us nurses working as a global pandemic was happeningggg)
-I know many lesbian stepped up and cared informally and professionally as nurses for their queer community which ties into my grad school research.
-Graphic novels aren't wordy, and sometimes I have issue with that, the story is too abrupt. But this one, so perfectly encapsulates the fear and messiness and learning curve of being a new nurse working on an HIV/AIDs unit.
June 15, 2021
I was visiting a friend a few weeks ago (she works at Loyola Hospital in Maywood, IL), and I saw that she was reading The Great Believers and next to it was this GN, Taking Turns. Of course, I asked her if I could read it and I am glad I did, because it is a terrific read. Of course, like The Great Believers it is a tough read, about a difficult subject and tears will fall but the incredible kind, humanity of everyone involved makes it worth every tissue. 4.5 stars
June 26, 2019
4.5 stars rounded up. After reading about this book in the acknowledgments of The Great Believers, I put it on hold at the library immediately. I am finding myself drawn to the history of the AIDS crisis in Chicago, and how that played out differently for different people. This book provides another perspective (that of a nurse) as the crisis played out.
October 17, 2019
A beautiful, heartwrenching book that really honours the profession of nursing.
The art is quite simple but does the trick; the stories shared here are an important piece of history and I commend MK for the work she has done both as a nurse as well as an artist and storyteller.
The art is quite simple but does the trick; the stories shared here are an important piece of history and I commend MK for the work she has done both as a nurse as well as an artist and storyteller.
January 7, 2023
I’m not usually one for graphic novels. I picked this up because it was listed as one of the sources for The Great Believers, which I really enjoyed. It’s written by a nurse who was a new grad on a dedicated AIDS unit in Chicago, and worked there until it closed. As a PICU nurse during these crazy times, I find myself wondering more often what it was like to work at the beginning of AIDS. This was well worth the read.
May 14, 2017
The first cases of AIDS began appearing in 1981. The disease, which at the beginning seemed to infect only gay men, was met with stony silence and active derision by our lords and overseers. Then-president Ronald Reagan refused to acknowledge the outbreak, though his staff and supporters spoke loud and clear. Pat Buchanan, his communications director said that AIDS was “nature’s revenge upon gay men”. Jerry Falwell, founder of the Moral Majority- one of Reagan’s staunchest financial backers- stated unequivocally that “AIDS is the wrath of God upon homosexuals.”
It would be fully six years later before Reagan would publicly speak about the disease. By that time, it had reached pandemic levels, with over 36,000 American diagnosed and over 20,000 dead.
AIDS is no longer viewed with the sheer terror it once was. IF you’re lucky enough to live in a first-world country and IF you can afford medical care and IF you’re willing to subject yourself to a strict and endless regimen of medication, the disease has become survivable.
Things have changed so drastically that it’s easy to rewrite history, for the details of what really happened to get blurry and lost with time. As with any world-shattering event, if you didn’t live through it, the urgency and emotion of personal involvement can be hard to grasp.
Taking Turns: Stories From HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371 is a new graphic novel by MK Czerwiec from The Pennsylvania State University Press which attempts to capture one small part of the history of the epidemic. In 1994, the height of the disease in the US, over 270,000 Americans had died. Czerwiec began her nursing career at Illinois Masonic Nursing Center in Chicago, one of the hardest hit areas of the country, and would continue working there until the HIV/AIDS ward was literally closed from lack of need.
She uses a simple, clear drawing style to pull the reader into what could easily be an overwhelming subject. Part diary-as-catharsis, part oral history, she pieces together memory (her own and those she gathered) to form an unvarnished retelling of the way things were.
At times, her attention to detail leads to dense blocks of uninterrupted medical exposition that can be hard to digest in the graphic novel format. But it’s all toward the goal of giving space for unheard voices to tell their tales and for often complex information to be conveyed.
And just when you think you might be suffering from infodump overload, she pulls you back in with stunning, small moments that stop you in your tracks. At one point, as Czerwiec is going about her nursing duties, a patient, a complete stranger, calls out to her. “Excuse me,” he says. “Hi. I’m Stephen and I’m really scared. Could you hold me?” And she does. I can’t remember the last time I openly sobbed while reading a book, but here I did.
And that’s what this book offers. Not only a view into a frantic time, a look into the lives of the doctors, nurses and patients who lived and died. But a tribute to those who embraced each other with open arms, who reached out to help when much of our country was busy pretending nothing was happening. A folktale of healing and loss and beginning again.
It would be fully six years later before Reagan would publicly speak about the disease. By that time, it had reached pandemic levels, with over 36,000 American diagnosed and over 20,000 dead.
AIDS is no longer viewed with the sheer terror it once was. IF you’re lucky enough to live in a first-world country and IF you can afford medical care and IF you’re willing to subject yourself to a strict and endless regimen of medication, the disease has become survivable.
Things have changed so drastically that it’s easy to rewrite history, for the details of what really happened to get blurry and lost with time. As with any world-shattering event, if you didn’t live through it, the urgency and emotion of personal involvement can be hard to grasp.
Taking Turns: Stories From HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371 is a new graphic novel by MK Czerwiec from The Pennsylvania State University Press which attempts to capture one small part of the history of the epidemic. In 1994, the height of the disease in the US, over 270,000 Americans had died. Czerwiec began her nursing career at Illinois Masonic Nursing Center in Chicago, one of the hardest hit areas of the country, and would continue working there until the HIV/AIDS ward was literally closed from lack of need.
She uses a simple, clear drawing style to pull the reader into what could easily be an overwhelming subject. Part diary-as-catharsis, part oral history, she pieces together memory (her own and those she gathered) to form an unvarnished retelling of the way things were.
At times, her attention to detail leads to dense blocks of uninterrupted medical exposition that can be hard to digest in the graphic novel format. But it’s all toward the goal of giving space for unheard voices to tell their tales and for often complex information to be conveyed.
And just when you think you might be suffering from infodump overload, she pulls you back in with stunning, small moments that stop you in your tracks. At one point, as Czerwiec is going about her nursing duties, a patient, a complete stranger, calls out to her. “Excuse me,” he says. “Hi. I’m Stephen and I’m really scared. Could you hold me?” And she does. I can’t remember the last time I openly sobbed while reading a book, but here I did.
And that’s what this book offers. Not only a view into a frantic time, a look into the lives of the doctors, nurses and patients who lived and died. But a tribute to those who embraced each other with open arms, who reached out to help when much of our country was busy pretending nothing was happening. A folktale of healing and loss and beginning again.
November 5, 2018
Originally published on my book blog, TheBibliophage.com.
Taking Turns is a memoir in graphic novel format from MK Czerwiec. She was one of the nurses caring for HIV / AIDS patients at Chicago’s Illinois Masonic Medical Center in the 1980s and 1990s. I found this book on Hoopla after reading The Great Believers. Rebecca Makkai, who wrote Believers, mentions Czerwiec’s book in her acknowledgments.
I thought it’d be interesting to see the same time period from a caregiver’s perspective, and to compare a novel with a memoir. I was right! Taking Turns is a short, but affecting read. Czerwiec tells about how she came to work on Unit 371. She explains how and why it was different to take care of critically ill AIDS patients, especially at a time when treatments were scarce.
Caregivers are taught about maintaining boundaries with their patients. And Czerwiec struggles with her boundaries, because the patients and the disease made the situation unique. Ultimately, she begins to use art to process her myriad feelings and thus, Taking Turns was created.
My conclusions
Reading this memoir was a great companion to The Great Believers. The novel is told from the patient and family point of view. On the other hand, Taking Turns is the health care professional’s perspective. They complement each other perfectly.
Czerwiec clearly cares deeply about her work. She chooses some moving stories to tell about her patients, along with a few quotes that utterly gut-punched me. In addition, she talks about doctors. research, and treatments in completely accessible ways. While this is a deeply personal book, you’ll also learn many aspects of the early years of the AIDS crisis.
Although the subject matter is heavy, Czerwiec creates art with sunny colors and simple lines. The counterpoint to the subject matter is effective, and keeps the mood from bogging down.
Little did I know that another book would create not just a pair, but a triptych. Ironically, Czerwiec creates a triptych in her memoir with one of her patients / friends. My third book is Cancerland by David Scadden, M.D. Part of his work was connecting the science learned in treating AIDS to treating cancer. It’s freaky (in a good way) to have all three so close together. Review on Cancerland coming soon.
If you’re curious about nursing, critical illness, patient / caregiver relationships, and the history of HIV/AIDS, I would recommend this graphic novel.
Taking Turns is a memoir in graphic novel format from MK Czerwiec. She was one of the nurses caring for HIV / AIDS patients at Chicago’s Illinois Masonic Medical Center in the 1980s and 1990s. I found this book on Hoopla after reading The Great Believers. Rebecca Makkai, who wrote Believers, mentions Czerwiec’s book in her acknowledgments.
I thought it’d be interesting to see the same time period from a caregiver’s perspective, and to compare a novel with a memoir. I was right! Taking Turns is a short, but affecting read. Czerwiec tells about how she came to work on Unit 371. She explains how and why it was different to take care of critically ill AIDS patients, especially at a time when treatments were scarce.
Caregivers are taught about maintaining boundaries with their patients. And Czerwiec struggles with her boundaries, because the patients and the disease made the situation unique. Ultimately, she begins to use art to process her myriad feelings and thus, Taking Turns was created.
My conclusions
Reading this memoir was a great companion to The Great Believers. The novel is told from the patient and family point of view. On the other hand, Taking Turns is the health care professional’s perspective. They complement each other perfectly.
Czerwiec clearly cares deeply about her work. She chooses some moving stories to tell about her patients, along with a few quotes that utterly gut-punched me. In addition, she talks about doctors. research, and treatments in completely accessible ways. While this is a deeply personal book, you’ll also learn many aspects of the early years of the AIDS crisis.
Although the subject matter is heavy, Czerwiec creates art with sunny colors and simple lines. The counterpoint to the subject matter is effective, and keeps the mood from bogging down.
Little did I know that another book would create not just a pair, but a triptych. Ironically, Czerwiec creates a triptych in her memoir with one of her patients / friends. My third book is Cancerland by David Scadden, M.D. Part of his work was connecting the science learned in treating AIDS to treating cancer. It’s freaky (in a good way) to have all three so close together. Review on Cancerland coming soon.
If you’re curious about nursing, critical illness, patient / caregiver relationships, and the history of HIV/AIDS, I would recommend this graphic novel.
September 29, 2018
At the end of
The Great Believers
, author Rebecca Makkai provides a bibliography of books she consulted and recommended to learn more about the AIDS crisis. Taking Turns was one of those books, providing a first-person look at the AIDS unit at Illinois Masonic Hospital. Actually, "first person" isn't completely accurate, as nurse M.K. Czerwiec brings the voices of other staff members (and volunteer Joel Hall, incidentally a famous Chicago choreographer). This is an important historical resource, documenting the work of the caregivers and the experience of the patients. These stories were not told contemporaneously due to the stigma of the disease.
Most of the book is about Czerwiec's experience over 15 years, starting as a new nurse in the AIDS unit and concluding with with her turning out the lights as the unit closed. Czerwiec doesn't present this as a tale of heroism (although it is one); she details her struggles and insecurities and grief and joys. Taking Turns is also instructive, with scientific background on the disease and its treatments. This sometimes difficult and occasionally dense information is presented in graphic novel format. The illustrations are very simple and cartoon-like, which helps leaven the heavy nature of the text. Taking Turns is a readable account of a painful part of our recent history.
Another benefit of reading Taking Turns is that it helped me to understand better Makkai's novel. The gay community (both male and female) was insular, not by choice, but by necessity. Many gay people were shunned by family members and ostracized by much of society. Being part of the gay community during the AIDS crisis was an intense experience. In Makkai's novel, Fiona is consumed by caring for her brother and other gay men afflicted with AIDS. Her all-consuming attention made much more sense to me after reading Taking Turns. Like Czerwiec, Fiona isn't presented as a hero, but as a caring, confused, and often overwhelmed person doing heroic work.
Most of the book is about Czerwiec's experience over 15 years, starting as a new nurse in the AIDS unit and concluding with with her turning out the lights as the unit closed. Czerwiec doesn't present this as a tale of heroism (although it is one); she details her struggles and insecurities and grief and joys. Taking Turns is also instructive, with scientific background on the disease and its treatments. This sometimes difficult and occasionally dense information is presented in graphic novel format. The illustrations are very simple and cartoon-like, which helps leaven the heavy nature of the text. Taking Turns is a readable account of a painful part of our recent history.
Another benefit of reading Taking Turns is that it helped me to understand better Makkai's novel. The gay community (both male and female) was insular, not by choice, but by necessity. Many gay people were shunned by family members and ostracized by much of society. Being part of the gay community during the AIDS crisis was an intense experience. In Makkai's novel, Fiona is consumed by caring for her brother and other gay men afflicted with AIDS. Her all-consuming attention made much more sense to me after reading Taking Turns. Like Czerwiec, Fiona isn't presented as a hero, but as a caring, confused, and often overwhelmed person doing heroic work.
July 26, 2017
M.K. Czerwiec helps to bring the history of the Queer community’s interactions with AIDS to new generations, letting us connect to aspects of our history not through the distant medium of history books that often bleed all of the emotion out of a historical event, but rather through her own personal experience with AIDS as a nurse who worked with people who were infected. In “Taking Turns”, Czerwiec shares her own story and how it touched multiple parts of the Queer community and the medical community as they engaged in a shared experience of AIDS. This is not a distant, pathological story, but instead one that is intensely personal, real, and relatable.
The medium of comics is one that was intensely powerful for the story of a nurse in an AIDS care unit because it prevented the sort of cool standoffishness that often occurs when we talk about AIDS, a distancing technique that we frequently use to pull ourselves away from the memory of those lost to the virus. But, with a comic, the reader looks directly into the eyes of the patients. We see their transformations as the virus progresses. We see the medical equipment that surrounds them and shapes their existence.
To read a more complete version of this review, visit my website Dis(Abled) Embodiment at https://disabledembodiment.wordpress....
The medium of comics is one that was intensely powerful for the story of a nurse in an AIDS care unit because it prevented the sort of cool standoffishness that often occurs when we talk about AIDS, a distancing technique that we frequently use to pull ourselves away from the memory of those lost to the virus. But, with a comic, the reader looks directly into the eyes of the patients. We see their transformations as the virus progresses. We see the medical equipment that surrounds them and shapes their existence.
To read a more complete version of this review, visit my website Dis(Abled) Embodiment at https://disabledembodiment.wordpress....
May 15, 2018
I LOVED THIS.
i'm not a nurse but i did spend 5 years of my life counseling people in psychiatric crisis. doing that kind of work changes you. the world gets divided into people who understand and people who don't. you get addicted to the drama, the intensity, the chaos, the idea that the work you do is the most important. but it also depletes you. obviously, my story is way different from MK's but the way she tells it is so amazing. it's such an important part of our queer history, one that i think this younger generation is forgetting. there will never be too many aids memoirs. they're too important. this one is a unique take on it and completely unforgettable. warning: might make you cry on public transit!
i'm not a nurse but i did spend 5 years of my life counseling people in psychiatric crisis. doing that kind of work changes you. the world gets divided into people who understand and people who don't. you get addicted to the drama, the intensity, the chaos, the idea that the work you do is the most important. but it also depletes you. obviously, my story is way different from MK's but the way she tells it is so amazing. it's such an important part of our queer history, one that i think this younger generation is forgetting. there will never be too many aids memoirs. they're too important. this one is a unique take on it and completely unforgettable. warning: might make you cry on public transit!
August 7, 2017
Another graphic memoir captures the heart and soul of a piece of history. Taking Turns follows MK, a nurse in an unorthodox care unit, Unit 317, of a hospital in Chicago in the 1990's, the height of the North American AIDS epidemic. In simple, straightforward drawings and prose, MK creates a portrait of this devastating time, during which a community came together with great bravery and compassion to respond to the epidemic. A very personal, yet universal, meditation on life and death, sometimes funny and sometimes profound. MK does not paint herself as a hero, but she certainly is one.
February 4, 2019
What a beautiful book. Read in about an hour, cried at least twice.
October 1, 2018
While the art is simple, this is an excellent graphic novel about how far we have come in treating an epidemic, one which was allowed to spiral out of control due to silence born from prejudice and hatred. A good reminder of how much has changed, even though we have so far to go.
Read
August 5, 2017Loved this.
September 10, 2017
Amazing reconstruction of the height of the AIDS crisis's.
October 19, 2018
A very informative and important read. A fascinating and heart-rending look into a terrible crisis for the queer community.
October 30, 2023
Taking Turns: Stories from HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371, by M.K. Czerwiec is a graphic memoir of her experience working through the epidemic. It is moving, accurate, truthful, and portrays the actuality of the time. The details about boundaries doing AIDS service work is exact, the facts are in place, including a graph at the end of the book of the # of deaths per year. There are notes, a bibliography, and resources in the back of the book. The art is terrific. She shows making chart notes for five clients on the next page we see three of those clients drawn out (pages 42-43) the chart note underlying. Beautifully orchestrated, subliminal and brilliant throughout.
The book has a quote at the beginning, "The unendurable Happens. You know, people we love and can't live without are going to die. We're going to die . . . it's unendurable . . . art holds that knowledge that we're both living and dying at the same time." Marie Howe, from Krista Tippet's podcast, On Being, August 28, 2014. Marie Howe is a poet who lost her brother to AIDS.
People are acknowledged near the end of the book with portrait drawings and quotes, volunteer Joel Hall said, "I'm still affected by that experience. 371 is something that never goes away. It's always there. 371 is a point of reference, a resource if you will, a resource for my own person. Learning how to die is learning how to live. You learn how to live for yourself from seeing people die with dignity. And I have role models to aspire to, to look towards. Boy, I'd like to be that brave when it's time for me not to be on this planet." The work I did in HIV/AIDS evokes similar feelings for me, and I know it did and does for many of my former coworkers because we hold a strong connection. We lived through a war.
The book has a quote at the beginning, "The unendurable Happens. You know, people we love and can't live without are going to die. We're going to die . . . it's unendurable . . . art holds that knowledge that we're both living and dying at the same time." Marie Howe, from Krista Tippet's podcast, On Being, August 28, 2014. Marie Howe is a poet who lost her brother to AIDS.
People are acknowledged near the end of the book with portrait drawings and quotes, volunteer Joel Hall said, "I'm still affected by that experience. 371 is something that never goes away. It's always there. 371 is a point of reference, a resource if you will, a resource for my own person. Learning how to die is learning how to live. You learn how to live for yourself from seeing people die with dignity. And I have role models to aspire to, to look towards. Boy, I'd like to be that brave when it's time for me not to be on this planet." The work I did in HIV/AIDS evokes similar feelings for me, and I know it did and does for many of my former coworkers because we hold a strong connection. We lived through a war.
November 11, 2021
Taking Turns: Stories from HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371 is a graphic novel written illustrated by M.K. Czerwiec. It weaves together multiple threads of nonfiction narratives in this profound graphic memoir of her early years as a nurse and her formative time working at an HIV/AIDS care unit starting in 1994.
MK Czerwiec is a registered nurse, cartoonist, educator, and co-founder of the field of Graphic Medicine.
Around this central strand of a caregiver’s experience, Czerwiec winds personal stories about patients, facts about the day-to-day job of a nurse, and in-depth medical explanations of HIV/AIDS, its effects on health, its treatments, and much more. In the sudden devastation of the AIDS crisis, the LGBTQ people most affected by it were abandoned to one another's care.
Taking Turns: Stories from HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371 is written and constructed rather well. Rather than the usual medical tales of professional-minded strangers treating faceless victims, Czerwiec's vignettes become about bonding intimately over suffering and death, watching the community be decimated at the same time as mutual nursing was building connections. Some of the pages are heart-wrenching, and the story has the potential to be supremely depressing, but Czerwiec wrings hope from the honesty of her simple, cheerful cartooning style.
All in all, Taking Turns: Stories from HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371 is an open, honest look at suffering, grief, and hope among a community of medical professionals and patients at the heart of the epidemic.
MK Czerwiec is a registered nurse, cartoonist, educator, and co-founder of the field of Graphic Medicine.
Around this central strand of a caregiver’s experience, Czerwiec winds personal stories about patients, facts about the day-to-day job of a nurse, and in-depth medical explanations of HIV/AIDS, its effects on health, its treatments, and much more. In the sudden devastation of the AIDS crisis, the LGBTQ people most affected by it were abandoned to one another's care.
Taking Turns: Stories from HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371 is written and constructed rather well. Rather than the usual medical tales of professional-minded strangers treating faceless victims, Czerwiec's vignettes become about bonding intimately over suffering and death, watching the community be decimated at the same time as mutual nursing was building connections. Some of the pages are heart-wrenching, and the story has the potential to be supremely depressing, but Czerwiec wrings hope from the honesty of her simple, cheerful cartooning style.
All in all, Taking Turns: Stories from HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371 is an open, honest look at suffering, grief, and hope among a community of medical professionals and patients at the heart of the epidemic.
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