Thank you very much @netgalley for the Advanced Reader Copy of Find a Place for Me by Deirdre Fagan. This is a beautiful and heartbreaking memoir about Deirdre’s life when her husband is diagnosed with ALS. She takes us through the before and after, how she struggles to be there for him, for their kids, and for herself. It is so sad and horrible but there is also humor. I am really glad i read this book.

Find a Place for Me by Deirdre Fagan, is a truthful account of facing a spouse’s terminal illness, and impending death from early onset ALS. Deirdre and Bob have only been married for 11 years, and have 2 young children, when at the age of 43, Bob is diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). This story is filled with honesty and love as Deirdre and Bob navigate this unforeseen journey. This book is raw and honest as it presents both the hardships and the love that a terminal diagnosis brings to a family, and a marriage. This book was conversational and engaging and impossible to put down. While heartbreaking, the love that Bob and Deirdre have shines through these pages. This could happen to any of us, and I can only hope that I would face this with the grace and bravery that this couple displayed. “Till death do us part” is never more clear and honest, than in a book such as this. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance review copy in exchange for my honest review.

Absolutely loved this book! I know what it is like to be by a loved one's side while they take their last breaths. God Bless Deirdre for to do this with her husband and for putting her thoughts, feelings, struggles and private conversations on paper for us to read. Their story made me tear up several times and made me laugh. I didn't want to keep reading as I knew what the end would bring, but also, could not stop.

What a masterful storyteller Deidre Fagan is - I could not put this book down! She sews hope into heartbreak with the recounting of her last few months with her husband. ALS is a torturous disease that has taken far too many far too soon. Understanding the depth of purpose and care that loved ones must exude gives a whole new perspective on how we can come alongside those who are experiencing an illness like this. I can't recommend this book enough!

This was a beautifully written, candid, and tragic memoir where we follow Fagan and her family as they learn of her late husband, Bob’s, terminal diagnosis of ALS, its rapid progression in the months that followed, his ultimate death, and the effects it had on his family and friends.

This memoir was challenging to read at times because of how honestly Fagan addressed the reality of ALS; however, the Irish gallows humor that was scattered throughout brought a sense of levity and joy during a heartbreaking situation.

This is not only a story of ALS, but one of overcoming fears, courage, communication, marriage, and friendship. I loved how honest and realistic Deirdre and Bob’s marriage was. It was heart-wrenching to read about them discussing Deirdre finding another partner someday, but I think it was necessary for them to move forward.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing a free ARC in exchange for my honest feedback!

I loved the fact that this book is both heartbreaking and full of irony and humor. And joy. A portrait of a beautiful marriage and a courageous family. Vividly detailed and well written.

This book is a poignant, open, truthful, and sad memoir of the last months of the author’s husband’s life. Diagnosed with ALS, Bob knew exactly what was in store for him as he slowly lost control of everything except his mind. ALS is a heart wrenching disease. It is always fatal. The progression to death is inevitable and affects the entire family and circle of friends. I had a friend who died from this disease.

My own father died a horrendous death from pancreatic cancer when he was 51. My mother, like Deirdre Fagan, had children at home and in college after he died, and I watched my father literally disappear before my own eyes. Perhaps my own experience made it harder to read this book.

Yet I did, and I am glad I did. Although we did not tell my father his diagnosis (this was 1968 and secrets were the norm), my mother told me and eventually my 16 year old sister, but not my ten year old sister. In the family comprised of Deirdre and Bob and their young children, Liam and Maeve, as well as within their circles of friends, nothing about Bob’s diagnosis and progression was held back. The author is a writer and she has written a book remarkable not only in its truth but in its language.

I have to be honest: this is a challenging read because there is no doubt how it will end: there’s no magic cure pulled out of a hat. But in telling this story, the author brings us right into her family and she is brave to have done so. I don’t think I could write so openly about my father’s death from cancer and later, my mother’s from Alzheimer’s.

Highly recommended.

I received this book as an ARC from the publisher and NetGalley.

This memoir was well-written and was a quick read. The author does a great job showing the (often-surprising) glimmers of levity that can be found in a devastating situation. I found it particularly interesting the ways that the author processed her husband's impending death, and how her husband actively encouraged her to begin the steps of moving on, even while he was still alive. This book will give you a greater level of empathy and understand for people dealing with a terminal diagnosis.