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Regine’s
Book: A Teen Girl’s Last Words
DIARY OF A DYING GIRL:
17 year old blogs about living with
leukemia and accepting death
Regine Stokke began her blog after
being diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia in 2008. Her goal was to
paint a realistic picture of what it’s like battling a life-threatening
illness—and to share her experience with the world. During the 15 months Regine
was sick and to her death she transformed from an average teenage girl, upset
that she doesn’t have a private hospital room, to a grateful and humble young
woman with a deep appreciation for the beauty all around her.
Regine’s Book (Zest Books,
October 2012) is Regine’s story as it was written on her blog and is
supplemented with a selection of photos as well as comments from blog readers
and entries from those who loved her most. The book deals with all the facets
of living with cancer, from the good days to the bad and everything in between.
“I’ve been thinking a lot about people
who permanently lose their hair,” wrote Regine, who had lost her own hair due
to chemotherapy. “Can people actually get used to it? I haven’t. Society today
is obsessed with looks. [But] I wore a wig to the hospital today and finally
avoided all the stares. That felt good…”
At an age when Regine’s biggest concern
should have been what dress she was going to wear to prom, she was worrying
about whether or not the wig she’s wearing looks natural and about all the
things she may soon be leaving behind. “The fear of no longer existing never
goes away,” Regine laments only a few months before her death. “I’m afraid to
leave the world and I don’t want to do it. I think about my family, and about
my friends. I have to fight for them. I can’t leave them behind with that
sorrow. I have to try everything I can, despite how bleak everything looks.”
It was this incredible hope and love
for others that carried Regine through the 15 months of her illness. During
this time she also had her photographs displayed in a museum exhibit, attended
concerts, enjoyed her friends and family and advocated for others to register
as blood and bone marrow donors. Regine’s
Book shows her as a typical teenager in a terrifying situation, with an
amazing will to live, and the lessons she learned have relevance for all of us.
Through her eyes, readers will discover a more vivid world—and a new
appreciation for life, art, and the power of the human spirit.
Regine Stokke was a lover of life—a
poet, photographer, blogger, and leukemia patient, who blogged about her
devastating struggle with the illness and shared her story with a world of
strangers. Originally published in her homeland of Norway, Regine’s Book is being considered by the Norwegian Literature
Abroad (NORLA) foundation for a translation grant. Regine was a very gifted
photographer whose photos were exhibited at both the 2009 and 2010 Nordic Light photography festivals.
Cancer
affects millions of Americans every year.
According to the American Cancer Society:
According to the American Cancer Society:
- Half of
all men and one third of all women in the U.S. will develop cancer during
their lifetimes
- Cancer
is the second leading cause of death in children under 14 years of age
- 1,638,910 new cancer cases are expected to be diagnosed in
the US in 2012
- Nearly
50,000 new leukemia cases will be diagnosed in
the U.S. in 2012
Most teens likely know someone affected by
cancer, but don’t know the details of what it’s like to live day to day with
the disease. Regine’s Book tells the intimate story of one teen living with
cancer—putting a face on this terrible epidemic and illuminating the importance
of becoming a bone marrow donor.
Zest
Books will make a donation to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Team in
Training in Regine’s honor.
Add to Goodreads
To view Regin's original blog in its entirety
Check out an amazing article by Huffington Post that includes an original blog entry and moving photos.
Full tour schedule can be found at Zest Books & their monthly giveaway!
