College Prepster Book Club

The Proper Care and Maintenance of Friendship

by Lisa Verge Higgins

I just loved the cover... don't you?

I adored this book. It was one of the first reads of my summer and it was a nice/ much needed change from heavy textbooks and depressing articles (I am an environmental studies major…) to a nice read about how friendships and relationships function and survive.  It tells the story of four best friends. One, Rachel, dies of cancer after telling no one about her illness. She leaves three letters for her friends Kate, Sarah, and Jo, asking them to do one thing in her memory. However her dying wishes sends each of their lives into a chaotic spiral.

This book reminded me that sometimes we don’t know ourselves as well as we think, and if you are lucky enough to have a friend that sees the true you, be careful not to let them go. I found myself relating to parts of each of women’s struggles. I tend to build people up in my mind, and then never get over them, just like Sarah. I tend to strive for perfection and fitting into the mold, even when I would be happier outside of the box, just like Kate. And last, but not least, I find myself putting my ambitions above anything else in my life, especially above finding a relationship and maintaining time for my friendships.

I really liked the questions at the end of the book, so I thought I would share one of my answers with you and I would love to hear your responses to some of them.

2. Rachel chooses not to tell her friends about her illness because she feels like she is sparing them. Was this the right decision? Is it ever right to keep the news of a potentially fatal illness from your loved ones?

While I understand that Rachel wanted her life to maintain normalcy in her last months of her life, I think it was pretty selfish of her not to tell them. Death, while it is a big part of life, is not something that is easy to cope with.  Especially with an illness that takes you long before old age, it is only fair to give those around you a chance to prepare themselves as well as the opportunity to say goodbye. While Rachel felt like she was sparing them, she was going to die eventually and only made it harder for them at the end. 

What do you think?

I can't wait to read everyone else's review! Be sure to keep an eye out for Carly's at thecollegeprepster.com!
xoxo, M