Julie Yip-Williams lived a life defined by effort and incredible self-reliance. But in this searing memoir of increasing vulnerability, she dismantles and then reconstructs what it means to be triumphant. Her writing examines not only her disability and illness — and their cultural, medical and narrative constructs — but love, authenticity, hope, egotism, even rage. I didn’t know Julie, but in these pages, I grew to love her.

Powerful and beautiful.

[When] Yip-Williams was diagnosed with stage-IV colon cancer at the age of 37 in 2013, she decided to write her story, which resulted in this inspiring and remarkable work that chronicles her immigration to the US and her final five years… [her] wise and moving account of her battle with cancer is an extraordinary call to live wholeheartedly.

This memoir is so many things — a triumphant tale of a blind immigrant, a remarkable philosophical treatise and a call to arms to pay attention to the limited time we have on this earth. But at its core, it’s an exquisitely moving portrait of the daily stuff of life: family secrets and family ties, marriage and its limitlessness and limitations, wild and unbounded parental love and, ultimately, the graceful recognition of what we can’t — and can — control...

Hold On to Your Kids is full of easy tips for avoiding calamity

This book is so perfect! I have bought it as a gift for many of my friends. They have then, in turn, given it to others. It’s been written so honestly and carefully by someone I know and trust. No one else has covered all the areas that Andrea does in her book and covered them so fully and in such an appealing and funny way.

Andrea has put her heart and soul into this book ... a bible for all things menopause.

I’ve bought this book for three of my close friends for Christmas. It’s such an honest and refreshing read that really helps you to understand the menopause.

Consider this book a very dear friend as you navigate the menopause... It’ll hold your hand through the difficult bits and keep you smiling through the rest.

As a young-ish woman experiencing the bewildering, unsettling and sometimes extreme symptoms of peri menopause, all I’ve wanted is to be able to talk to a girl friend who understands the journey. Someone who’s been there, seen it, done that. Someone who can hold your hand, tell you not to worry, and reassure you that you’ll come though the other side in time. That is exactly what Andrea has achieved with Confessions of a Menopausal Woman. Her warmth and characteristic sensitivity shine through in her honest account of her own suffering - not to be a bleeding heart, but to be a guiding light for other women who are right behind her. Part memoir, part self-help, this book is must-have-menopause-manual for every girl who wants to feel her best in a time of change.

Confessions of a Menopausal Woman has given me all the valuable information and insights I need to make an informed decision about HRT, diet and exercise. Reading it felt like talking to my best friend - all the questions I had were answered and I am now a very happy menopausal woman! I highly recommend this book to any woman going through the change. It really does hold your hand through the minefield that is the menopause.

In fact, I'd say Philippa Perry is one of the wisest, most sane and secure people I've ever met

she writes with an inquisitive elegance rarely found in parenting guides (...) the book is still firm with parents but also forgiving (...) it is forgiving and persuasive - God, it's persuasive. I've yet to meet a parent who hasn't altered their parenting to some degree after reading it, myself included

I'm going to be honest Philippa, this has genuinely had such a positive impact on my life and my relationship with my daughter - so thank you very much for that

A wise book on parents and children

The main message is that is that it's best to acknowledge, rather than dismiss, children's feelings (...) and that parenting is not about perfection

I've had the most wonderful feedback from this episode. People stopping me on the street to say how much they've love the book's advice. Philippa's wisdom and delivery has resonated with many parents out there. I can't thank her enough for her time and energy

It is like a letter from a wise friend who happens to have done years of research (...) I am grateful for it

A wise book on parents and children

The main message is that is that it's best to acknowledge, rather than dismiss, children's feelings (...) and that parenting is not about perfection

[Segal] is a natural, fluent writer and, in this book, the reader will feel confident in her hands even as she explores a shattering episode in family life… Segal is brilliant at conveying the tedium and the trials of life in the ICU and beyond. In short, Mother Ship is simply compelling

Hopeful, harrowing…and darkly funny, Mother Ship has you laughing, crying and frantically turning the pages to discover how it all turns out

[Segal’s] words are a powerful, poetic and deeply affecting reminder of how precious are life, health and the everyday

Segal's moving memoir reveals not only what it takes to keep premature babies alive, but also what it means to be human and a mother

Mother Ship is a huge achievement for Segal, who has produced a memoir that promises to linger with you like a literary earworm… an extraordinary testament to the power of human survival

Vivid, fearless and inspiring… This is an intimate and electrifying memoir. It is a hymn to the sustaining power of women's friendships, and a loving celebration of the two small girls – and their mother – who defy the odds

A deeply moving, yet also witty and heart-warming account

[Segal] captures beautifully the complexities and contradictions of the human body

An ode to the companionship of the women on the neonatal ward in the darkest, most volatile days, it is moving but never mawkish

A song of praise to the beleaguered, indomitable NHS, with writing at such a pitch that it lingered with me all year

A heart-tugging account… this is one of the year’s most exquisitely written books