Unraveling the Dark Comedy of Mortality: Why Annabelle Gurwitch’s New Memoir Will Change How You See Life and Death
In talking about how a COVID-19 test and related chest X-Ray led to her initial diagnosis, Gurwitch quotes Gertrude Stein—“There’s no there there” in California. She’s of course talking about the labyrinthine highway arteries that she traversed to get to the clinic, but she’s also cannily seeking the reader’s acknowledgment of this fitting metaphor for the muddled pathway of the cancer journey. She includes entire dialogues to let her readers in on the shock that left her crying “until the sun set.” Her cousin Ruth and friend Juel refuse to say “cancer.” “The doctor says it’s adenocarcinoma,” insists Ruth. After confirmation, Gurwitch calls Juel in mock triumph: “Guess who was right? I have lung cancer. I win!” Even in sorrow, Gurwitch is funny.
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