Resilient is a memoir of extraordinary power. It educates and challenges the reader on every level, pulling you in deeper with every page, until the realization hits: You can’t stop reading this harrowing and gorgeous story, and you’ll be devastated when it ends. I truly believe Resilient should be required reading for every person interested in any form of advocacy in our current tumultuous times.

My last review from 2021 has taken a long time to write because I needed time to put my thoughts together. This is the most vulnerable memoir I have ever read.

In her memoir, Katherine Turner bravely faces difficult memories from her past to cover topics such as race, poverty, addiction, abuse, and child sexual abuse. Eventually, she and her sister are placed in a foster home in the countryside, but it’s clear that there are faults in the system.

In resilient, each chapter starts with a quote about trauma, childhood, sexual assault, etc. I really loved seeing which quote Turner chose to represent each chapter. resilient is visceral, graphic, and courageous. It shows the emotional impact of so many things on a child. It talks about emotional processing for guilt, confusion, anger, and disgust. I absolutely loved Turner’s symbol of “electricity” for fear and anxiety.

I sprinted through the first half, until everything caught up to me and I could only digest small portions at a time. My advice- take it slow.

LOTS of trigger warnings for this one:
Self harm, suicide, rape, abortion, drug use, child abuse, CSA

I will never think about the word resilient in the same way again. I felt honored to read every word.

I will definitely be reading Turner’s next memoir, which picks up where resilient left off- due in 2023.

5 STARS ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

(Note: thank you to the author for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.)