Nonfiction

The Sky Was Falling: A Young Surgeon's Story of Bravery, Survival, and Hope

The Sky Was Falling: A Young Surgeon's Story of Bravery, Survival, and Hope

  • Downloads：4412
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2024-03-13 16:22:06
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Cornelia Griggs
  • ISBN：B0C7RLRH2T
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Reviews

lorena ，

I normally don’t read these types of books but it was recommended by people magazine。 I downloaded a sample and I was hooked。 I read in one day。 The author basically pulled back and exposed everything that was happening at the hospital。 She chose to continue the work that so desperately needed to be done even at the expense of losing precious times with her children。 She gives an honest portrayal of life in the hospital during the pandemic。 A real eye opener。

Rae ，

Covid-19 still wreaks havoc around the world but we are now seeing the first post-pandemic literature being written。 The Sky Was Falling is an account of the beginning months of the epidemic in a New York hospital， written by pediatric surgeon Dr。 Cornelia Griggs。The memoir is told in diary form， allowing the reader to relive the shock， tension， fear， panic， and general angst that we all felt during the initial onslaught of the virus。 That can be painful， but also cathartic。 Griggs is quick to s Covid-19 still wreaks havoc around the world but we are now seeing the first post-pandemic literature being written。 The Sky Was Falling is an account of the beginning months of the epidemic in a New York hospital， written by pediatric surgeon Dr。 Cornelia Griggs。The memoir is told in diary form， allowing the reader to relive the shock， tension， fear， panic， and general angst that we all felt during the initial onslaught of the virus。 That can be painful， but also cathartic。 Griggs is quick to show the seriousness of the situation as well as the compassion， strength and humor shown by those on the front lines。 As a country， we were not well-prepared for what we faced， but face it we did。 And no one did so with more aplomb than the heroes who worked night and day to save lives in our hospitals。This was a thoughtful and hope-filled read。 I appreciated the author's openness in detailing how the pandemic impacted her own family and not just her work environment。 I do think the book would have been stronger if Griggs had extended the timeline to the present day and shared more about the healthcare industry's recovery and preparation for the next wave or virus to come。Any reader with a penchant for memoirs and/or the healthcare field would enjoy this book。Thank you to Gallery Books and NetGalley for an advance digital copy in return for an honest review。 。。。more

Fay ，

Thank you Gallery Books for my #gifted copy of The Sky Was Falling！ Title: The Sky Was Falling: A Young Surgeon’s Notes on Bravery， Survival， and HopeAuthor: Dr。 Cornelia Griggs Pub Date: March 12， 2024⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑I can’t believe it’s been almost four years since our worlds were turned upside down。 When I started reading this book， I had no clue the author was the same doctor who wrote a viral op-ed piece in The New York Times that I remember reading and sending to others。 The Sky Was Falling， written Thank you Gallery Books for my #gifted copy of The Sky Was Falling！ Title: The Sky Was Falling: A Young Surgeon’s Notes on Bravery， Survival， and HopeAuthor: Dr。 Cornelia Griggs Pub Date: March 12， 2024⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑I can’t believe it’s been almost four years since our worlds were turned upside down。 When I started reading this book， I had no clue the author was the same doctor who wrote a viral op-ed piece in The New York Times that I remember reading and sending to others。 The Sky Was Falling， written like a diary， provides an emotional look at the life of a young pediatric surgeon and mother on the front lines at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic at a NYC hospital。 This book brought back so many emotions as I read and recounted what I remember seeing on the news and the changes we had to take to protect ourselves and our loved ones。 This book reinforced the respect I have for health care professionals， who truly put their lives at risk for their patients。 This book is emotional and raw and a must read memoir about bravery and hope。 “Bravery is feeling your children while holding on to your last bit of sanity during quarantine。 Bravery is what essential workers did in showing up to work to keep the fabric of society intact。 Bravery is social distancing from frail or elderly relatives for months or even years at a time， because we love them。” 。。。more

Katy O。 ，

（free review copy） For such a fraught topic， this memoir was absolutely mesmerizing and cathartic for me。 4 years after COVID hit the US， so many people claim to have completely moved on and to barely remember or be impacted by the trauma of the early months of the pandemic， but for me， it's still so so fresh。 Griggs offers an insider's glimpse of a NYC hospital and life of a surgeon during the absolute worst of the surge， and in doing so， reassures me that it really was as bad as I remember it （free review copy） For such a fraught topic， this memoir was absolutely mesmerizing and cathartic for me。 4 years after COVID hit the US， so many people claim to have completely moved on and to barely remember or be impacted by the trauma of the early months of the pandemic， but for me， it's still so so fresh。 Griggs offers an insider's glimpse of a NYC hospital and life of a surgeon during the absolute worst of the surge， and in doing so， reassures me that it really was as bad as I remember it being， and that the trauma I still feel from that time isn't exaggerated。 Her reflection on the impact of this work on families and especially mothers is poignant and a reminder of the sacrifices so many had to make to care for others。 I appreciate that it was more of a journal and written IN that time period rather than a reflection now looking back - it really gives a better picture of how things felt in the moment。I love medical memoirs and insider looks at the life of medical facilities and workers， so this book was right up my alley。 Highly recommend to anyone who also likes this type of nonfiction。 Source: digital review copy via Edelweiss 。。。more

Kate （kate_reads_） ，

Thank you to Gallery Books for the free copy of this book。

Michelle ，

Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book。Well， are we all ready for Covid books yet？ I don't know if I am， but this one seems pretty valuable to me。 It is written by a pediatric surgeon who lived through the first terrible phase of the Covid epidemic in New York City， separated from her family and trying to cope along with all the other medical professionals she knows。 And it was clearly a wrenching experience。 Dr。 Griggs also got involved in advocating on social me Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book。Well， are we all ready for Covid books yet？ I don't know if I am， but this one seems pretty valuable to me。 It is written by a pediatric surgeon who lived through the first terrible phase of the Covid epidemic in New York City， separated from her family and trying to cope along with all the other medical professionals she knows。 And it was clearly a wrenching experience。 Dr。 Griggs also got involved in advocating on social media for PPE for health providers and for taking the epidemic seriously。 She is clearly a very privileged person in this respect--she had media connections as her mother had been an editor at the New York Times; she had her mother and her nanny to take care of her children outside the city during her work in the epidemic。 She recognizes this in her writing。 But she also does not pussyfoot around about how terribly difficult the pandemic was for her and her colleagues。 。。。more

Bonnie Goldberg ，

I clearly remember reading Dr。 Griggs' Op/Ed in the New York Times early in the pandemic and was keen to read this expanded version of her experience on the frontlines of the pandemic in a New York City hospital。 Griggs， a pediatric surgeon， was in the last year of her decade-long training， when Covid overtook her hospital。 While some of what Griggs recalls will be familiar to anyone paying attention （lack of PPE， exceedingly sick adults and kids， the sheer terror of the unknown）， The Sky is Fal I clearly remember reading Dr。 Griggs' Op/Ed in the New York Times early in the pandemic and was keen to read this expanded version of her experience on the frontlines of the pandemic in a New York City hospital。 Griggs， a pediatric surgeon， was in the last year of her decade-long training， when Covid overtook her hospital。 While some of what Griggs recalls will be familiar to anyone paying attention （lack of PPE， exceedingly sick adults and kids， the sheer terror of the unknown）， The Sky is Falling offers an incomparable and intelligent compendium in real time of what happened during the first six atrocious months of 2020。 Griggs layers her unique perspective as a pediatric surgeon with her insights as a medical trainee during the crisis， as a mom of two young kids whom she parked with her folks in another state， as a spouse of a surgeon who himself was recovering from an illness and living in Boston， and as an ally to the social movements that occurred in the spring of 2020 as well。 Highly recommend for readers of medical non-fiction and memoirs。 Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery books for E-ARC 。。。more

Sara ，

It seems practically like another and distant past when we were so worried about Covid and what it really was and could do。 Nowadays we are numb to the very real threat that Covid was in those early days。 So it is important that we don't forget or gloss over this period in history。 Dr。 Griggs was wise enough to realize--in the moment--how important it would be to record her experiences and now we have them in the form of this book。The book itself captures both the reality and the fears of that p It seems practically like another and distant past when we were so worried about Covid and what it really was and could do。 Nowadays we are numb to the very real threat that Covid was in those early days。 So it is important that we don't forget or gloss over this period in history。 Dr。 Griggs was wise enough to realize--in the moment--how important it would be to record her experiences and now we have them in the form of this book。The book itself captures both the reality and the fears of that period in New York City。 It is a book that should be read by public health officials and the public itself because we need to learn from the past。 It reads smoothly and is actually hard to put down。 I wonder what my grandchildren in years to come will think when they read this book。 I am glad that it exists so that they might know what was happening during those days when they were home from school。Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book。 It's an important one！ 。。。more

Jayne ，

This is a devastating very real story about the COVID crisis。 It is too medical for me but I can imagine that others cannot put it down。 It is a page turner， but I couldn’t finish it。

Allison ，

Dr。 Griggs' beautifully written account of the COVID pandemic is harrowing， captivating and inspiring。 I was so enthralled with her experiences that I devoured the entire book in one sitting。 Dr。 Griggs was finishing her pediatric surgery residency in New York City in the spring of 2020 when the COVID pandemic up-ended the city。 In addition to rigorous medical training， Dr。 Griggs was also navigating parenting two toddlers while her husband was a physician in a different city。 During this time， Dr。 Griggs' beautifully written account of the COVID pandemic is harrowing， captivating and inspiring。 I was so enthralled with her experiences that I devoured the entire book in one sitting。 Dr。 Griggs was finishing her pediatric surgery residency in New York City in the spring of 2020 when the COVID pandemic up-ended the city。 In addition to rigorous medical training， Dr。 Griggs was also navigating parenting two toddlers while her husband was a physician in a different city。 During this time， Dr。 Griggs kept a journal and was active on social media documenting the realities of the emergency room and intensive care unit in New York City。 There are so many things that I loved about this book。 As a working parent， I was moved by Dr。 Griggs' dedication to her young children and the challenging decisions that she made to keep her family safe。 In many instances in the book she highlights the very important role that nurses play in front line health care with great appreciation。 Additionally， Dr。 Griggs covers the important socio-political backdrop of 2020 in a very authentic way recognizing the disproportionate impact the pandemic has had on communities of color。 After the pandemic Dr。 Griggs pursued additional training in public health。 She is early in her career and I am excited to see how she continues to serve her patients and the community。I highly recommend this book for anyone looking for an inspirational story。Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the opportunity to read the advanced reader copy of this manuscript in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more

Katelyn ，

I enjoyed this well-written memoir by Cornelia Griggs， a young pediatric surgeon who was just finishing up her medical training in the first months of the pandemic。 Stationed in New York City， Griggs takes readers day-by-day through her experiences in the early days of the pandemic。