The Beauty in Breaking: A Memoir
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-06-29 20:30:57
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Michele Harper
- ISBN：0525537392
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Summary
A New York Times Bestseller
A New York Times Notable Book
"Riveting， heartbreaking， sometimes difficult， always inspiring。" --The New York Times Book Review
As seen/heard on Fresh Air， The Daily Show with Trevor Noah， NBC Nightly News， MSNBC， Weekend Edition， and more
An emergency room physician explores how a life of service to others taught her how to heal herself。
Michele Harper is a female， African American emergency room physician in a profession that is overwhelmingly male and white。 Brought up in Washington， D。C。， in a complicated family， she went to Harvard， where she met her husband。 They stayed together through medical school until two months before she was scheduled to join the staff of a hospital in central Philadelphia， when he told her he couldn't move with her。 Her marriage at an end， Harper began her new life in a new city， in a new job， as a newly single woman。
In the ensuing years， as Harper learned to become an effective ER physician， bringing insight and empathy to every patient encounter， she came to understand that each of us is broken--physically， emotionally， psychically。 How we recognize those breaks， how we try to mend them， and where we go from there are all crucial parts of the healing process。
The Beauty in Breaking is the poignant true story of Harper's journey toward self-healing。 Each of the patients Harper writes about taught her something important about recuperation and recovery。 How to let go of fear even when the future is murky: How to tell the truth when it's simpler to overlook it。 How to understand that compassion isn't the same as justice。 As she shines a light on the systemic disenfranchisement of the patients she treats as they struggle to maintain their health and dignity， Harper comes to understand the importance of allowing ourselves to make peace with the past as we draw support from the present。 In this hopeful， moving， and beautiful book， she passes along the precious， necessary lessons that she has learned as a daughter， a woman， and a physician。
A New York Times Notable Book
"Riveting， heartbreaking， sometimes difficult， always inspiring。" --The New York Times Book Review
As seen/heard on Fresh Air， The Daily Show with Trevor Noah， NBC Nightly News， MSNBC， Weekend Edition， and more
An emergency room physician explores how a life of service to others taught her how to heal herself。
Michele Harper is a female， African American emergency room physician in a profession that is overwhelmingly male and white。 Brought up in Washington， D。C。， in a complicated family， she went to Harvard， where she met her husband。 They stayed together through medical school until two months before she was scheduled to join the staff of a hospital in central Philadelphia， when he told her he couldn't move with her。 Her marriage at an end， Harper began her new life in a new city， in a new job， as a newly single woman。
In the ensuing years， as Harper learned to become an effective ER physician， bringing insight and empathy to every patient encounter， she came to understand that each of us is broken--physically， emotionally， psychically。 How we recognize those breaks， how we try to mend them， and where we go from there are all crucial parts of the healing process。
The Beauty in Breaking is the poignant true story of Harper's journey toward self-healing。 Each of the patients Harper writes about taught her something important about recuperation and recovery。 How to let go of fear even when the future is murky: How to tell the truth when it's simpler to overlook it。 How to understand that compassion isn't the same as justice。 As she shines a light on the systemic disenfranchisement of the patients she treats as they struggle to maintain their health and dignity， Harper comes to understand the importance of allowing ourselves to make peace with the past as we draw support from the present。 In this hopeful， moving， and beautiful book， she passes along the precious， necessary lessons that she has learned as a daughter， a woman， and a physician。
Reviews
Nikkole
，
I struggled to read this book。 I love medical shoes and the science of finding a diagnosis。 This is what I thought the book would be when I first started reading it。 It was not。 In my opinion very boring！ It was a book club pick and so disappointing。 I got the audible to listed at 2。5x just to finish it。 I do not recommend this！
Mariella MN
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Loved it！ What a beautiful memoir。 must-read！
Zuly
，
The breaking and healing metaphor used throughout the scenes from this ER physician is a useful way to view any kind of breaking in life as a door to seeing and healing。
MJ Carnino
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Being in healthcare and two children in the trenches， enjoyed on many levels。 Good perspectives。
Aditi Jain
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Great memoir！！ Great stories and insights about spirituality and finding purpose and happiness！ Dr Michelle Harper is an ER doctor that cares about healing both the mind and body forgiving for your own sake and having unconditional love for yourself
Melissa
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Compelling autobiography; surviving an abusive father， and a difficult home life that was kept hidden from everyone around， until she was able to leave for college。 In telling the stories of some of her patients she also tells of her healing and ongoing self-care strategies to deal with the demands on an ER physician。 I enjoyed the read and I found a lot to take away here for my own life and work-life。
Marie
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Michele Harper's presents a thought-provoking and heart-wrenching memoir of an ER doctor's personal and professional experiences。 Michele Harper's presents a thought-provoking and heart-wrenching memoir of an ER doctor's personal and professional experiences。 。。。more
C Bower
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LA times reviewed 6/27/2021
Renee Ruder
，
This was an interesting story about a black female doctor's perspective on medicine and her struggles in her chosen profession and her passion for caring for her patients。 It didn't feel complete， but more as a compilation of short stories and the writers thoughts and meditations。 It could have been woven together better as a story， and I felt it was disjointed sometimes。 This was an interesting story about a black female doctor's perspective on medicine and her struggles in her chosen profession and her passion for caring for her patients。 It didn't feel complete， but more as a compilation of short stories and the writers thoughts and meditations。 It could have been woven together better as a story， and I felt it was disjointed sometimes。 。。。more
Natala
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I did enjoy this book and it was so easy to read。 I was expecting it to be slightly different though。 As a past nurse with a short stint in a busy ER I know that my writings of my shifts would come across far more frantic。 The authors writings sounded so calm and so peaceful and positive， and for that I could not relate to what I thought to be a relatable story。 Michele Harper seems like a remarkable woman in all aspects of her accomplished life。 I would've enjoyed working alongside her and let I did enjoy this book and it was so easy to read。 I was expecting it to be slightly different though。 As a past nurse with a short stint in a busy ER I know that my writings of my shifts would come across far more frantic。 The authors writings sounded so calm and so peaceful and positive， and for that I could not relate to what I thought to be a relatable story。 Michele Harper seems like a remarkable woman in all aspects of her accomplished life。 I would've enjoyed working alongside her and let some of her positivity soak into my skin。 。。。more
Sophia
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The book had very interesting stories of her patients in ER， but I did not find the book to be profound with any inspirational thoughts。 I can’t figure out if the author had any one particular event or patients that inspired her either。 The stories of her life and patients were interesting though。 Maybe should go in with that premise。 This is just book with a collection of Dr。 Harper’s stories of her patients。
Jill Peters
，
Just beautiful。
Rbeeker
，
A well written journey， with lessons gained。
Dorothy Young
，
This book is about a female African American ER doctor who talks about some patients who helped her find a way to heal herself and become a healer herself。 The memoir is quite short。
Lisa
，
Great bookAs a female physician， this book resonated with truth。 Despite a Different life， different paths， similar realities threaded throughout the book。
Chris
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This is a beautiful book。 Wise， compassionate。 I will definitely recommend it to others。
Cathy
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I loved the book！ I think the title should be The Beauty of Breaking A Memoir of Healing。 I was inspired by Dr Harper’s high level of self-care。 I would definitely want her to be my ER Physican’s。
Kris Dickinson
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Amazing。 Especially Chapter 7。 Wont give anything away but anyone who thinks they are 'broken'， needs to read this ASAP Amazing。 Especially Chapter 7。 Wont give anything away but anyone who thinks they are 'broken'， needs to read this ASAP 。。。more
Ryan
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 First off， I’m not sure if it’s a spoiler， but I am going to include a quote from the epilogue。I enjoyed this book because it made me feel something real。 Michelle Harper’s writing forced me to think about the things I’ve done that I’m not proud of as well as the things that have been done to me， and how I reacted。Towards the end of the book， while reflecting on a patient she says: “ I， too， have been so fed up with what felt like indomitable desolation that I just sifted through the wreckage an First off， I’m not sure if it’s a spoiler， but I am going to include a quote from the epilogue。I enjoyed this book because it made me feel something real。 Michelle Harper’s writing forced me to think about the things I’ve done that I’m not proud of as well as the things that have been done to me， and how I reacted。Towards the end of the book， while reflecting on a patient she says: “ I， too， have been so fed up with what felt like indomitable desolation that I just sifted through the wreckage and then shouldered it， dragging it along behind me， bent over by the weight of sorrow。 But this devastation is a crossroads with a choice: to remain in the ashes or to forge ahead unburdened。 Here is the chance to molt into a new nakedness， strengthened by the legacy of resilience to climb over the debris toward a different life。”I’d like to thank her for writing such a powerful paragraph， and for this beautiful book。 I’d give this 5 stars if not for the continued discussion of yoga and meditation。 While some find it helpful I found it to be an unnecessary aside。 But， I could be very wrong in this point and those of you who love yoga may find the meaning I could not。 。。。more
Jane Martinez
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Title says it allI read this in one seating - mostly because it resonated so much with where I am and what I am personally going through， but also because the universal truths highlighted within are so gently and carefully unwrapped and presented - as gift and not lecture， example and not obligation， encouragement and not condemnation。 A gentle prompting to discover and honor your own best self， even as the author continues to do the necessary work to discover and honor her own path to truth。
Sarah
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This memoir written by an EM doc from DC helped me reflect on my own encounters with patients， how they shape us， & what kind of doctor I want to be。 As I get ready for the unknowns of residency applications， I will hold onto this excerpt: "I see those junctions。。。as a privilege。 They gave me the opportunity to be uncertain。 And in that uncertainty grew opportunity。" I think the more comfortable we become with uncertainty， the better equipped we will be to help patients navigate these uncertaint This memoir written by an EM doc from DC helped me reflect on my own encounters with patients， how they shape us， & what kind of doctor I want to be。 As I get ready for the unknowns of residency applications， I will hold onto this excerpt: "I see those junctions。。。as a privilege。 They gave me the opportunity to be uncertain。 And in that uncertainty grew opportunity。" I think the more comfortable we become with uncertainty， the better equipped we will be to help patients navigate these uncertainties as well。I particularly learned from the interaction with the woman with high blood pressure & headaches。 Stressors can influence health so much and I am working on conveying this in a way that takes concerns seriously while empowering patients to address the stress。 Conversation & listening as healing is so powerful when done well。 With respect to her interaction with the police after an episode of violence she witnessed at home and the heartbreaking way in which she realized no one was coming to save her， I was surprised to see how many close relationships she developed with police later on & how much trust she put in their assessments of patients that presented to the ED。 。。。more
Jennifer
，
The premise was wonderful， and I found her writing on the intersection of race and privilege really interesting。 However， the "patients" she presented to boost her arguments and the dialogue assigned to them was truly dreadful and ham fisted。 I think there is a danger in a memoir to anoint oneself and that was done here; that， along with the juxtaposition of patients deemed worthy in contrast with the ones that weren't， made this a little cringe-y at times。 The premise was wonderful， and I found her writing on the intersection of race and privilege really interesting。 However， the "patients" she presented to boost her arguments and the dialogue assigned to them was truly dreadful and ham fisted。 I think there is a danger in a memoir to anoint oneself and that was done here; that， along with the juxtaposition of patients deemed worthy in contrast with the ones that weren't， made this a little cringe-y at times。 。。。more
Rebecca
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A beautifully crafted memoir with bonus points for primarily being in Philly。 It falls victim to the common memoir problem of the narrator always being the hero/a revised and perfected character。
Angelika
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There were parts of this memoir that were fascinating， but overall， it was uneven， a bit preachy， and repetitive。
Alli Tripp
，
Having grown up in a house with medical provider as a parent ， none of this book was surprising So while it was a nicely written memoir and I applaud her efforts in the medical industry it wasn't particularly stunning or informative story to me personally Having grown up in a house with medical provider as a parent ， none of this book was surprising So while it was a nicely written memoir and I applaud her efforts in the medical industry it wasn't particularly stunning or informative story to me personally 。。。more
Susan
，
A black， female emergency room physician imparts the wisdom she has learned from the many cases she has attended in the medical field。 While some of the stories were interesting， I was just lukewarm about this book。 Honestly， at another time I might have loved it， but I have been in a book slump and maybe this is a case of the wrong book at the wrong time。 I think anyone in the medical field would probably enjoy this book， but I had a hard time focusing。
Karen
，
An interesting memoir where the author， an ER doctor， takes us on a journey through her early years with her family， her relationships （and failures）， her career and personal life， and some of the cases she encountered over years of working in the ER。 Some amazing stories of people coming back to life， to shutting down， to violence and murderers。 What connects the stories to each other and to Michele Harper is the need to heal。 In the process she is learning how to heal， how to self care， how to An interesting memoir where the author， an ER doctor， takes us on a journey through her early years with her family， her relationships （and failures）， her career and personal life， and some of the cases she encountered over years of working in the ER。 Some amazing stories of people coming back to life， to shutting down， to violence and murderers。 What connects the stories to each other and to Michele Harper is the need to heal。 In the process she is learning how to heal， how to self care， how to draw boundaries。 Life truly is a journey。Recommended。 。。。more
Chris Linder
，
3。5 stars？？？ Ok book。 The description was better than the book， which had some good messages and interesting stories， but the writing was hard to follow at times。 This book needed a better editor。 LOTS of long complicated run on sentence and overly complicated phrasing made this laborious to read！
Val
，
Dr Harper writes an interesting study of how coming to the breaking point in our life can open us up to true spiritual awakening。 At least， I think that's her point。 Mostly， what I got out of the book were a series of ER stories from her personal experience。 Plus her history witnessing her father abuse her mother and her tale of her failed relationships。 Dr Harper writes an interesting study of how coming to the breaking point in our life can open us up to true spiritual awakening。 At least， I think that's her point。 Mostly， what I got out of the book were a series of ER stories from her personal experience。 Plus her history witnessing her father abuse her mother and her tale of her failed relationships。 。。。more
Lou
，