I am so happy I won this book from Library Thing! Author, Judith L. Pearson, writes about her experience with breast cancer and how she overcame the mental aspects of the disease through logical thinking, comedy and strength. In twenty short chapters, the author makes you realize that you can fight the disease and the depression that goes with it. One of the lessons that sticks in my mind is that you should do everything you are physically and mentally able to do for that day, then do it again tomorrow, and so on. This lesson applies to everyone, in every situation. I am giving this book to a friend of mine who just found out she has kidney cancer. I hope she enjoys it as much as I did. ( )

It's crazy sometimes how life works in serendipitous ways. My receiving this book when I did was definitely one of those instances. I received this book in exchange for a review as part of a Member Giveaway on LibraryThing, and if the website is correct, only 10 people won out of 67 requesting. So what was so wonderful about this book? It was written by a woman who battled breast cancer (using her favorite way to describe it) and won. The book is separated into 20 different life lessons that Judith learned from her experience; including everything from "You Were Chosen" to allowing others to help you to, of course, "It's Just Hair." I started this book the minute I took it out of the mailbox and finished it within a few hours - I could NOT put it down. The author's sense of humor and light approach to such a heavy subject was refreshing and extremely enjoyable. She uses personal anecdotes, lists, and famous quotes to put her point across. This book is never devoid of variety and interest. While I may not be currently dealing with something directly affecting my physical health like breast cancer, I do have serious issues with depression and loneliness. Being a 25 year old very single female surrounded by so many other 20-somethings who have spouses and children eats away daily at my feelings of worth and happiness. All of the lessons Judith details were lessons that I desperately needed to hear. One of my favorites, which she referred back to several times, is that you are not the only person affected by your negative circumstance. In fact, all the people that love you are also deeply tied into the way that you feel and the way you approach life. Another lesson that profoundly touched me was that of "You Were Chosen." In other words, I can show people that I am happy with my life right now (which I really am a lot of the time) and that I have found ways to enjoy myself and make my life meaningful even without a significant other - which I most definitely have...it's just not the easiest thing to remember. "Lesson 11: Helping Hands" discusses how we absolutely cannot do everything by ourselves and thus must willingly accept help from others. Not only will doing this help those of us who are being helped, but it will also bring joy to those who are doing the helping ("a helper's high"). I will definitely keep this delightfully uplifting book handy so that I can refer to it when my negative circumstances start to take over how I approach life.

Check out my full and much more personal review at http://knittylove.blogspot.com/2012/05/its-just-hair-20-essential-life-lessons.h... ( )