Bone by Bone: A Memoir of Trauma and Healing

by Geralyn S. Ritter

On May 12, 2015, Amtrak 188 derailed outside of Philadelphia going 106 miles per hour. Eight passengers were killed and many more severely injured. Geralyn Ritter was thrown from the train with such force that she sustained catastrophic injuries to her chest, her abdomen, and her pelvis. Found unconscious, unable to breathe, and suffering massive blood loss, she was not expected to survive. After enduring weeks in the ICU, dozens of surgeries over the following years, unremitting pain, PTSD, depression, and opioid dependence, Geralyn was faced with a daunting beyond mere survival after trauma, where is the path back to joy? Bone by Bone shares her powerful story of resilience. With humor, grace, and no-holds-barred honesty, she describes the journey back to life and offers support and encouragement for others. Bone by Bone addresses the long-lasting impact of sudden trauma and extends hope-from the perspective of someone who has been there. And back. 

261 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 24, 2022

Reviews

[Kelly Lang · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bone by Bone gives a first person account of surviving one of the worst train disasters. Geralyn tells her story with grace, honesty, and perspective. She is able to bring the reader into those dark days when she couldn’t move her body but had the will to keep going. Her experience weaning off the strong painkillers was eye opening.

As a trauma survivor I related to her feelings of loneliness but also her desire to give back to those who saved her and others.

[Tina Rentzis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honesty from start to finish. Powerful and inspiring.

[Lynette · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a poignant and thoughtful book telling the story of surviving the Amtrak train accident outside of Philadelphia. It highlights the many miraculous events that occurred but also the very real physical, emotional, and spiritual challenges that she as a trauma survivor endured. It’s heart wrenching and heart warming at the same time - yet funny. The book also tells the story of how trauma affects those around the patient as well - family, friends, the medical professionals. Highly recommend.

[Cam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Geralyn Ritter tells the story of her survival of Amtrak's 2015 derailment in Philadelphia with honesty, brave vulnerability and genuine heart. She doesn't ever hint at feeling sorry for herself despite the extensive injuries she sustained. The writing is smooth and fluid. We see accidents often in the news, but aren't able to experience a first hand account of the months and years it takes to recover; this story details what it takes in a way that inspires hope and faith. This book could be useful both as a guide to recovery or create empathy for those on the sidelines. She does a great job balancing the specifics of her story with the challenges and bureaucracy of being a patient. This story is rich with research about the medical system and the challenges that patients and their caregivers face. Geralyn Ritter's journey to wellness is as much of a miracle as her initial survival.
Thank you to NetGalley and Smith Publicity for the opportunity to read this advance copy.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent, well-written memoir from the survivor of the May 12,2015 Amtrak crash who had the most injuries and lived. She details her 2.5 year journey of multiple surgeries, weaning off pain drugs, and dealing with trauma's myriad effects. It's an painfully eye-opening, yet inspiring, story that anyone dealing with trauma or a loved one with trauma should read, but it's also a great read for anyone else. Ms. Ritter had the support of a loving family and a cadre of professionals, but her personal courage and faith in God is what ultimately got her through the long and painful journey. She's an inspiration to all!

[Bibliohiker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley for letting me review this book. At first you’d think this wasn’t real after reading a little into the book but the accident really did happen. It’s a miracle the author survived after seeing photos of the train car she was riding in. God was protecting her that day. The book tells about her many surgeries and rehab along with the pain management and kicking the pain meds. It’s awesome she’s alive today and not paralyzed or in a wheelchair or using crutches.
It’s just sad and makes you angry that it took so many accidents and people getting seriously hurt or killed before action was finally taken. This book also makes you realize that everything can change in a blink of an eye.

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so good and I am in awe of how resilient Geralyn is/was through all she went through. I don’t read a lot of memoirs, preferring fiction to nonfiction, but her story was so crazy and interesting and her strength was inspiring.

[Shatanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I heard Geralyn talk at a work event. I sat at my desk and cried listening to her story. The book was well done and I listened to it instead of reading it since she was the narrator. Truly an incredible story.

[Madeleine Black · Rating 5 out of 5]

An unbelievable story of surviving a horrific train accident and the impact it had on Geralyn physically and emotionally and on her family

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author was a passenger on the Amtrak train that crashed outside of Philly in 2015. She was by far the worst injured survivor. Her abdominal organs were forced into her chest cavity, her ribs were shattered (her surgeon said "annihilated"), her pelvis was broken in half with an open penetrating wound - any one of multiple injuries should have killed her, but she survived. She mentions a rating scale that was used to determine traumatic injury severity, with 25 being severe; she was a 57. This was really good. It is hard to imagine how scary it was for her family in the hours after learning of the crash, her husband driving to different crisis meeting points and hospitals, her teenage son calling hospitals in a panic. She also described her trauma recovery and dealing with opioid dependence and PTSD and so on. I really liked this. 4 stars

[Leigh-Ann Borella · Rating 5 out of 5]

All I can say is Wow!! What an amazing book.

I have the unique pleasure of knowing this family as my son has been a friend/classmate of one of Geralyn's sons since grade school. What a surreal feeling to read a book and actually know what all the "characters" look like, laugh and say "yup that sounds like ..." or remember receiving that text message the next morning after the accident saying that Geralyn was "on the train that crashed".

Geralyn is an amazing woman and one of the kindest, funniest and inspirational people I know. Her laugh and smile are infectious.

I encourage everyone who is even going though the smallest of events to severe trauma to read this book. It will help you to rethink your journey and help you realize that you are not alone.