Mackenzie’s Mission
How One Mother Turned Tragedy into Hope and Love
Rachael Casella
“Rachael Casella is one of the bravest, kindest people you could ever meet… This book is the story of her daughters, her struggles with conception, pregnancy, genetic defects and ultimately death. But it is also the story of triumph over adversity, the strength that can be found in kindness and the power of one woman to affect positive change.”
I requested this book because I’m a geneticist and I’m always excited about genetic disorders (remind me at our next dinner party if you want to hear about my mechanic’s son’s disorder). Unfortunately for me, this book had less about the science and some inaccuracies in it. Fortunately, that’s not really what this book is about.
Casella brings out her story and intertwines it with moments of both hope and horrible pain. She and her husband didn’t really know anything about genetic testing before having their severely disabled child, Mackenzie. Since then, Casella has overcome or equalled her grief with the powerful need to promote more widespread genetic testing.
If you are a family that has suffered from the loss of a child, this book could remind you that you aren’t alone. Anything that promotes discussion of still births and miscarriages, and acknowledges family grief, is a worthy read. I’m not sure that you necessarily need to reread it, but it’s worth a single read.
This book reminds me how fortunate we are in Australia that women can have access to medical abortions if they need them. Also, that people are slightly more open about miscarriage and IVF journeys without ever reaching their destination. My personal opinion however is that there are other options than having your own biological children, and there are lots of kids out there that need a loving home. But I digress…
Somehow this book escaped my rigorous recording of when it came in the door and who the publicist was. In addition, I could swear that I had reviewed it, but alas, my beginning thoughts were lost. Fortunately for this book, I don’t have to give it stars (yay, non-fiction!) but I wouldn’t necessarily go for this book as a gift in time for Christmas anyway.
Allen & Unwin | 1st June 2020 | AU$29.99 | paperback
This novel initially had a lot going for it. I read ‘
This is a combined review from my daughter (11 years) and myself. She’s still getting the hang of book reviews, but I have great hopes for the future! Her comments:
This nugget of a book takes each element of family life and breaks it down into how you can change the way you think about waste. It is basically essential that you have children to be thought of as a ‘family’ here. I think this book is best aimed at families with young(er) children, although it does have some hints about waste for teenagers. I think that if you actually sat down and tried to turn into a zero waste family in only 30 days, you’re going to feel overwhelmed by it all, despite Anita’s book being “gentle”.
A Spotlight on No Place to Hide
Written by a highly acclaimed motivational speaker and success coach, the book offers profound life lessons, wrapped in an engaging, fictional story that presents an opportunity for the audience to grow alongside the protagonist, without even realizing that it has happened. Whether you want to embark on a personal quest for self discovery or just want to curl up with an action-packed mystery, “No Place to Hide” has something in it for everyone. The story is easily consumable and can be appreciated on many levels. It’s a gripping novel that also has the ability to leave a lasting impression.
Just because you can write, that doesn’t mean you should write. Equally, even if everyone else in your family has written a memoir, that doesn’t mean you need to. There needs to be something unique or exciting, some motto that someone else can gain from your life. This book had none of this.
Part guidebook, part travel diary, this book explored backpacking with two young children in tow – and that it can be done! One thing that made no sense to me was that the family had a whole heap of debt, and basically had nothing at the end of their trip. Yet they were sure their jobs would still be there when they got home? I couldn’t imagine going overseas with so little cash that a flight out might actually could have been impossible. Also, the last chapter jumps forward a year, and I felt cheated that I didn’t hear about how they readapted to living in a Western society.
What was with Simon’s grandfather? Reality vs non-reality was really quite confusing. And the ending was too neat to be true. In a true dystopian setting, this wouldn’t have happened. I didn’t want there to be a happily ever after. I had engaged with the characters to the extent that I actually empathised maybe a little bit too much with the ‘bad guys’? I never liked Simon that much, so I would have been happy to see him killed off.
I somehow didn’t have as much empathy as I could have for the Children. Real AI, that knows it’s alive and can think for itself? That hasn’t freaked me out for a while, I accept the inevitability of robot overlords eventually! And I’m quite cruisy with the idea from 
The opening scene of this novel took me off guard, because I didn’t really want to read about a self-absorbed rich kid who had a giant nose. I couldn’t have cared less about whether he was 6 foot and sunbathing naked on the lawn. I definitely couldn’t have cared less about the fact that his parents didn’t like him, and that his dad took his driving iron to his expensive, fancy gear.