Fight Back With Joy: Celebrate More. Regret Less. Stare Down Your Greatest Fears

“Fight Back with Joy: Celebrate More, Regret Less. Stare Down Your Greatest Fears” by Margaret Feinberg is a book that stays with you. It finishes with “Bonus Tracks” – “5 Things to Say When You Don’t Know What to Say,” applicable not only to a cancer patient but also to any serious situation; “8 Things Those Facing Crisis Can’t Tell You (But Wish They Could);” “6 Lessons I Learned from Crisis;” “A Letter from Leif,” Feinberg’s husband and chief caregiver; and a playlist of music to accompany each chapter. Each of the tracks (well, perhaps not the playlist) could have been books. Instead, they’re short, succinct summaries, wisdom learned the very hardest way – the wisdom that comes from living an experience that at many points could have ended in death. It was the bonus tracks, in fact, that punched home something I knew from the beginning of the book but which I don’t think I acknowledged. Books are objects, yes, objects you hold in your hands or view on an e-reader like Kindle. You enjoy them or you don’t; you learn from them or you don’t. Good books become part of you; the best books change your life. :Fight Back with Joy” is a giving book. Feinberg gives away a good part of herself in this book. One of the lessons she learned from her fight with breast cancer is that serious illness changes you. She may have been a giving person before it; she is a different giving person after it, a person who gives with God’s sense of giving. It is a generous book. That’s not a redundant statement. Feinberg is lavish with her giving in this book. Little is excluded. If you want to know what experimental chemotherapy is like, or what to expect when you first look in the mirror after a double mastectomy, you will find it here. Or what you experience when you hair falls out in clumps.You want to know how difficult a cancer fight is for the primary caregiver, you will find that, too. It is an honest book. Feinberg gets angry. She gets angry with God, with friends who don’t know what to say so they stop coming around, with her family, and with herself. There were days and times when she wanted to curl up in a ball and die. It is a courageous book. Even being on the other side of the cancer experience, and having survived the cancer, its treatment, and related surgeries, it is clear that Feinberg never quit, although there were times when she wanted to. She fought, she fought with everything she had, everything her husband had, what friends and family had. She fought, too, with what God had, and what He had from the beginning was no guarantee she would survive. She fought with faith. And “Fight Back with Joy” is a profoundly human book. Feinberg made a choice early on in dealing with the disease. She would fight with joy. There were days when there was no joy left, and yet it was still there. One of those days, when she found despair, led her to give away red balloons to fellow cancer patients and their families. She discovered the joy again, enough to continue the fight. And it is often the joy of a child, an adult who learns the joy of being a child of God. This is a book for those who suffer a serious illness, and those who don’t. This is a book for caregivers to learn what to expect, and for those who are never called upon to be caregivers. This is a book for women and for men. It is about shock, and fear, and joy, and depression, and despair, and faith, and giving in, and fighting on when there’s little left to fight with. This is a book that will change you.

I have the book and the workbook and my lifegroup at Church is watching the video each week. We all love it! Margaret Feinberg is living the tactics that she teaches in her book, video and workbook. She is captivating and exudes the joy of the believer that she is. I read a review here that it is "just an extended sermon". Well, it is an extended sermon, but it is certainly NOT "just an extended sermon". It is a sermon that keeps on giving. She is captivating, believable and simply human. She is sharing not only her testimony, but how to live through life's trials and sorrows by oddly fighting back with joy. We all need joy in this life because we get only one chance at this life. She makes you feel good, hopeful, equipped to go on and you have a much broader and deeper understanding of the the Bible. Thank You.

"Joy is one of those words that has been overused, distorted into a cliche." I nodded in agreement as I read that statement in the first few pages of this book. I confess I'm one of those people who doesn't really understand it and too often relates it to happiness and/or my circumstances. Besides Margaret's brilliant Biblical teaching, I was drawn to read her latest book to better understand "joy." Margaret drew me into her 18 month battle with cancer. We visit her doctors, the wards at the hospital, her standing in front of the mirror to inspect the surgeon's handiwork and the downtime spent with her husband and puppy, Hershey. My eyes were never far from tears as my heart cried out for her but always awestruck at her bravery at sharing such details of the battle. As I read this inspirational book I was constantly reminded of Brene Brown's words, "Numbing the pain numbs the joy" as I believe that is how I've lived much of my life. Margaret stepped into her battle mindful of this and sought to discover joy. "No one is immune to sorrow, and only those who learn to grieve well can recapture the healing it brings." and "Running from sorrow will only take you to scary places." Embracing our pain and sorrows enables us to experience joy. The sense of being intentional about experiencing joy was a key point I took from the book. Whether it's in choosing to be alert to how we numb our pain, to loving intentionally with simple gestures as "thank you" and "I'm sorry," or something grander like giving everyone in the hospital ward a red balloon as Margaret did, grabbing a hold of joy is a choice we make. Often a challenging read, this is one of the books that lingers long after you've read it. As you'd expect, it's full of relevant Biblical illustrations, Margaret's sense of whimsy and brave storytelling. It also comes with some added extras at the end including tips on what to say to people going through a battle when you don't know what to say and from Leif, her husband, on how a caregiver should care for themselves.

There's something very special about this book. This book isn't another cotton candy-don't worry and be happy-just smile and all-will-be-well book. The author bravely shares the trials she's been through and how God's joy sustained her. She directs the reader back to God (Father/Son/Holy Spirit) and to the Bible. I will need to re-read this book to better absorb its truths.

Absolutely delightful book following the authors journey with breast cancer and her attempts to fight back with joy. Easy to read. Loved it.

I love all of Margaret's books. I love the way she writes; how she interweaves her stories with the lessons she plans to teach within the book. She is such a blessed writer.

I enjoyed reading this as a reminder of the bible study I did a couple of yours ago. It reminds of some aspects and is well written, but does not go as deep as the bible study, so if that’s what you are looking for, it would have only three stars.

A MUST read!! Regardless of your season in life; everyone's journey at some point is filled with sorrow or pain. This book is so inspirational; not only to help with your own grasp of grief but how to be empathic to others. Tears are shared by all. Never be fearful of death; but be fearful if you ever forget God is with you always!!

This book met all my expectations. Feinberg writes from experience and a faith that feels real. This is the first book on joy where I could learn about the practical as well as the spiritual. It did my heart good... this gets a BIG recommend!