Review of First Survivor

[Vines Ashley Wayne]

[Following is a volunteer review of "First Survivor" by Mark Unger.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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First Survivor by Mark Unger is a powerful, emotive and honest true story about a family’s struggle against an often terminal illness. It talks about Mark’s son Louis, first diagnosed when he was just three years old with neuroblastoma, an incredibly rare and serious form of cancer. The memoir is about how Mark and his wife Mary Ellen battled to save their child using any treatment possible, even if the odds were stacked against them.

Louis’s story is filled with tragic moments and moments of happiness—he is always cheerful and brave through all the treatment. He doesn’t appear to be scared; he might just be too young to fully understand what’s going on or how sick he really is. Throughout the book, his love for dinosaurs and any kind of toy brings an extra dimension of innocence to his war.

Mark writes in a way that makes the family's journey easy to follow, even when discussing complex medical treatments. The way he describes the doctors and nurses shows just how important they were in giving Louis the best chance to survive. Especially notable are doctors like Dr. Kushner and Dr. Cheung, who were key in coming up with a treatment plan that eventually saved Louis.

One of the most attractive features of the book is its sense of reality. Emotionally, the family is quite raw—from moments when all hope seems lost to times of hope. You can really feel this love among family members so much that they stand by each other when times are toughest than ever. Harry, who is Louis’s older brother, was also affected and it mentions in the book how his younger brother’s illness affected him.

The book also has some photos and medical notes, which make it feel really personal and make you realize how serious that situation was and how the family never gave up. The first thing I thought was wow, this is a sad story, but the siblings were so strong. Another thing to note is that it definitely wasn’t all doom and gloom, despite his diagnosis throughout. I would highly recommend First Survivor to fans of nonfiction stories of triumph against all odds and also to families who are affected by health concerns. It is a fast read that will pull at your heartstrings and also educate you. You will be inspired by Louis’s battle and the love of those around him. This book was well worth the five stars due to my likes listed above. I found few errors in this book. There were nothing I disliked about this book.

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First Survivor
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