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First Impression: A powerful story of how one woman’s faith helped her overcome some of the most difficult challenges a woman may ever face.

Resilience book cover

Maryam Monika Saliu has not lived the easiest life. As a young woman in a long-term relationship, Saliu longed for a child and wanted to ensure that her health was at a premium ready to receive such a gift. Diagnosed with intimate tumors, life took a devastating turn when physician negligence exacerbated the condition. Sepsis, decreased risk of survival, the loss of twins, the abandonment of a partner, and the breakdown of her marriage followed in quick succession. Yet Saliu prevailed. Resilience: Surviving a Life Saving Operation is a Silver Lining is the true story of a brave woman’s internal struggle for survival from the survivor herself.

I wish to convey my thanks to an incredible woman that has overcome a chaos of obstacles. I am grateful fo the gift of her book in exchange for an honest review. I am also touched by her story and her battle for survival.

The book opens with a short introduction of three paragraphs. The fact that some form of the title appears no less than nine times does feel a bit overkill, almost like there is a need to cram the SEO term in for search engine ranking purposes. However, once past this section the language takes on a more natural, honest, and cohesive flow.

Told over three parts, the book is divided into six chapters. Part One can be summed up as pain. It provides the background of falling pregnant, discovering the tumors, and the negligence that almost caused unnecessary death. It tells of the excruciating pain of the physical recovery as well as the emotional pain loved ones had to endure not knowing how the situation would prevail. It also deals with the pain of falling in love, being rejected, and a swift overview of a marriage culminating in a rapid divorce. However, Saliu delivers her account with strength and optimism, looking at it in hindsight and appreciating the fact that she was chosen to survive.

Part Two is given over to the healing process. It takes the reader back to a more intimate look at Saliu’s relationship with her children’s father, an unlikely relationship with an inmate sentenced for 35 years following an escape (the original crime is not mentioned) and the deep-rooted relationship now found with Allah since her conversion to Islam.

Finally, Part Three, the shortest section, is an extension of the healing process and a welcoming of the present state. This section talks of Saliu’s hopes and realities, whilst conveying her general acceptance of how her life had panned out this way because it was willed.

The book carries deeply spiritual optimism. Faith is a large factor that encourages the resilience the author has come to speak of. It is also the reason she is able to forgive all the heartache she endured at the extent of doctors and lovers.

Although the conversational tone of the book reads as though Saliu is speaking directly to the reader, particularly when she uses colloquial terms like, ‘like’ e.g., ‘…I think I visited like twenty-six to twenty-seven places…’ it could also be quite irksome. The author comes from a Hungarian background, thus reading in English there are clearly some grammatical issues and odd sentence arrangements. This does not detract from the meaning being presented but does suggest that an editorial eye might be cast over the text to remove some inconsistencies for ‘Western’ readers.

The book is appealing to optimists and followers of faith needing a reminder that life often comes with hardships to endure and conquer. It serves as a tome of passion and strength to guide you through your own difficult times when they become burdensome. Through her experiences, Saliu is humbled by what she has been through and uses her story to impart words of wisdom to those in doubt through her own words, the words of the Quran and famous figures such as Mandela and Coelho. Though not a book for anyone at any time, it is a short story that will bring light to someone at the right time when they are stuck in the depths of a dark day.

Quick Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ / PG-13

Have you say: What does resilience mean to you? Is it something that should be celebrated or something we should develop out of necessity? Feel free to drop your responses in the comments below for the Papergirl Community to discuss.

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