Lori Hodges’ Shaking in the Forest is an inspiring and deeply reflective memoir that explores trauma, resilience, and the profound lessons learned in the face of life’s darkest moments. With raw honesty and a compassionate lens, Hodges weaves together her professional experiences in emergency services and her personal journey through loss and adversity, creating a narrative that is equal parts heart-wrenching and hopeful.

Content Overview

The book opens with a harrowing plane crash and closes with the author’s confrontation with a life-threatening illness, framing Hodges’ thirty-year career as a firefighter, paramedic, and emergency manager. Throughout the memoir, she recounts the challenges of her profession—working with people at the worst moments of their lives—and how these experiences offered unexpected beauty and wisdom. Hodges also shares her own struggles with trauma, offering a deeply personal perspective on grief, healing, and finding meaning in chaos.

Strengths

Hodges’ writing is both candid and poignant, capturing the raw emotions of crisis and the quiet strength required to navigate through it. Her ability to connect professional lessons with personal growth makes the book deeply relatable, even for readers outside the field of emergency services. The memoir’s central message—that human connection and shared vulnerability help us overcome life’s trials—shines through in every chapter.

The anecdotes from Hodges’ career are gripping and thought-provoking, providing a behind-the-scenes look at the emotional toll of disaster response. From life-saving moments to heartbreaking losses, each story reveals not just the challenges of the job but also the resilience of the human spirit.

The book also excels in its exploration of trauma. Hodges doesn’t shy away from discussing the lasting impacts of her experiences, but she balances this with a hopeful narrative about finding light in the darkness. Her reflections are practical and empowering, offering tools for anyone struggling to cope with their own challenges.

Themes

Shaking in the Forest is a profound exploration of resilience, connection, and the power of perspective. It emphasises the importance of relationships—whether fleeting or enduring—in helping us endure trauma. The memoir also challenges readers to find meaning and beauty even in moments of tragedy, highlighting the strength that comes from embracing vulnerability.

Critique

While the memoir is undeniably powerful, some readers may wish for a more linear structure, as the timeline occasionally jumps between professional and personal stories. Additionally, the book’s focus on emergency services may feel niche to some, though its universal lessons about trauma and healing are accessible to all.

Conclusion

Lori Hodges’ Shaking in the Forest is a moving testament to the strength of the human spirit and the power of connection in the face of adversity. Blending gripping stories from a career in emergency services with vulnerable reflections on personal trauma, Hodges offers a guide for thriving through life’s toughest challenges. This book is a must-read for anyone seeking inspiration, comfort, or a deeper understanding of resilience in the face of tragedy.

I found this book extremely interesting and was an incredibly written memoir, although it went from past to present at different moments I found this worked for how it was written.

Wow! This book was everything I needed and I didn’t know I did! This author shares her experiences as a paramedic and firefighter and her life lessons! Wow some of these stories were truly gripping and others had me chuckle a little some stories brought forth emotion! You never know what is behind the smile! This was an amazing memoir with so many lift lessons and honorable mentions! Thank you for sharing these great stories and moments with the world! Thank you netgalley for allowing me to read it! Highly recommend this book and looking for to other works by this author!

In "Shaking in the Forest: Finding Light in the Darkness," Lori R. Hodges articulates her significant journey through the realm of emergency services, commencing with her participation in a search and rescue operation for a downed aircraft at the age of 13. This pivotal experience profoundly influenced her comprehension of life's inherent unpredictability and the necessity of preparedness for adverse circumstances. Despite her exposure to tragic events, Hodges sustains an optimistic outlook, cherishing the beauty of mundane moments spent with loved ones. Her reflections encapsulate a harmonious blend of acceptance and appreciation for both the favorable and unfavorable aspects of existence, emphasizing how these experiences shape her perspective.

Hodges' narrative is characterized by the myriad challenges she confronted, including familial struggles with alcoholism that instilled a pervasive sense of dread during her formative years. Her innate instincts and resilience propelled her toward a career in paramedicine, wherein she faced harrowing scenarios, such as responding to a drowning incident involving an infant. Through these experiences, Hodges underscores the emotional burdens associated with such calls while maintaining a compassionate emphasis on the human dimension of each tragedy. Her storytelling eschews sensationalism, instead foregrounding the intrinsic value of empathy in emergency response contexts.

Throughout the memoir, Hodges engages in a reflective examination of her personal evolution, shaped by her professional encounters and the significant individuals who influenced her trajectory. The text is organized into four distinct phases—growing, learning, becoming, and accepting—each elucidating vital life lessons and insights derived from her diverse experiences. Through a combination of humor and candor, Hodges delineates her transformation from extroversion to introspection, ultimately embracing a life devoted to honor and generosity. Her narrative not only illuminates the realities confronted by first responders but also stands as an inspiring testament to resilience and the profound impact of serving others.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advance review copy in exchange for my honest review.

Shaking in the Forest is a memoir by ex paramedic, firefighter and emergency manager, Lori.
Lori takes us through her service sharing her experiences on the job, both serious and lighthearted. She explains how important her gut instinct is, how her spirituality guides her and she tells of her past family and health traumas.

This was an interesting read. I found the non linear timeline a little confusing at times though and it felt a bit jumpy in places. The section about hope was very thought provoking for me, and probably my favourite part along with the suspenseful skiing accident chapter.
I found the author lacking a little in emotion though, I thought this book would be more moving than it was.

Thank you to NetGalley and Koehler Publishing for my advanced copy.

I expected to be swept away on a speeding ambulance, but instead I was left sitting on the couch. The story our paramedic tells is a bit here and there, past and present jumbled. I apologize, but I felt her story story, for me, was not told in a "grab you" style. I was always left wanting more of the story, only because of fragmentation. I thank NetGalley and Koehler Publishing for the advance read.

a very inspirational and beautifully written memoir. coming from a life of pain and suffering, the author moves forward with such grace and inspires readers to face the darkness and find the light in their lives

This is a great book I love the story how she became a paramedic EMT and how she had a blood clot that broke off into your lungs and was told her and how she had a big tumor mass and how she got told us what it was like being a lady in the line of work and how hard it is to deal with people thst didn't make it. Plus how hard the areas during snow season is to get up to the mountains and try t get the patience to the hospitals it's hard during snow season of wind a lot of skiers come up there this book was heartwarming educational and all different types of emotions and we get to learn how to become a paramedic EMT and learning what they do and and all the stuff if you haven't read this yet when it comes out you should it will recommended to read it,

Unfortunately, this book wasn’t for me. It felt very disorganized with a lot of back and forth in time. There was a fair amount of repeating of statements and sentences. The reference to “amygdala” was wayyyy overdone and almost caused me to DNF. Sorry…hope it finds its audience. Thank you to the author and publisher for the advanced reader copy.

With deeply personal stories the author wrote about her life in this book.

It is heartfelt, joyful, sorrowful, but most importantly full of hope. Hope for a better tomorrow, hope for better outcomes for people.

I thought that the book would be talking more about her calls as a paramedic, and there are some calls, but mostly about her life and what made her drawn to Emergency Management.

I loved the reflection that she provides on her life and insight on what makes her tick.

I hope that she continues to write. I would love to see more from the author.