Miranda Fitch is a theater professor suffering from chronic back pain that has derailed her acting career and isolated her from her skeptical colleagues. When her students rebel against her choice to stage Shakespeare’s "All’s Well That Ends Well," preferring the tragedies, Miranda meets three mysterious men who offer her a drink that instantly cures her physical agony. The narrative follows her descent into a surreal world where her newfound vitality demands a heavy price. She manipulates her cast and navigates a landscape where her physical relief manifests as suffering for those around her.
This book serves readers interested in the relationship between chronic illness and social gaslighting. It attracts those who study how women’s pain is dismissed by the medical establishment and the professional world. The reader gains an understanding of the desperation caused by invisible disability and the transactional nature of recovery. It provides a look at the costs of maintaining a facade of wellness in a society that only values productivity and cheerful compliance, leaving the reader to question the morality of personal comfort.
Insights from All's Well
“I am a person in a body that wants to die.”
Miranda's chronic pain in her hip feels like a ghost that won't leave. People only start believing she hurts when her luck miraculously changes.
“Whatever happened to her? they whisper. As if I am not right here.”
The way those drama students look at her is so brutal. They see a broken teacher instead of a person who used to shine.
“I feel a strange, cold humming in my limbs.”
Taking those golden pills from the strangers in the bar felt like a deal with the devil. Suddenly the world is bright but everything feels wrong.
“I put on my face. I zip myself into a person.”
Watching her force a smile while her body screams is heartbreaking. It shows how much we perform wellness just to make others comfortable.
- Published
- 2021
- Publisher
- Marysue Rucci Books
- ISBN
- 9781982169671
- Language
- EN
