Reviews
"My Dear Jasmine is a book that will not let you go. The emotions it springs to life won’t simply wash away and leave you to carry on your life as before. You will feel, through author Norma Garcia’s words, unbearable grief. You will feel pain, fear and doubt as you travel with Ms. Garcia through the unimaginable: the death of her daughter, Jasmine.
You will also feel love. It pours through every page. From the moment you read the first diary journal of Jasmine to when you see the photos of Ms. Garcia and her daughter, the feeling of love for mother, daughter, father, son, brother, family, friends and life itself permeates this story of loss.
My Dear Jasmine is a collection of thoughts, journals, poems and family pictures that guides you through Ms. Garcia’s dealing with the death of her daughter and finding the strength to simply breathe each day while ultimately finding a sense of purpose and faith from an event that seems so senseless and unjust.
The personal nature of the narrative voice brings the reader so close to Ms. Garcia, her son Sam¬my and Jasmine that it is impossible to be unaffected by their story.
Ms. Garcia keeps the reader interested by jumping from moments of joy to moments of sadness and back again. In one chapter we learn about Jasmine through her own words and then are brought back to Ms. Garcia’s intimate thoughts on dealing with her daughter’s death and the all-encompassing grief.
Ms. Garcia challenges the reader with the questions of life, death, grief, faith, tragedy and joy. These questions are presented raw and without simplistic solutions to complex feelings. The book is not a direct guide or sermon on what to do in dealing with tragedy but rather a chronicle of Jasmine’s story. It may help one reader deal with loss while remind¬ing another reader about the unbridled joy of life through a child’s eyes. To others it may be a call to action bringing new purpose to their lives.
Ms. Garcia’s narrative and Nina Duran’s editing take hold of the reader’s emotions throughout the book. We don’t simply read about Jasmine or Kassandra Smith, the recipient of Jasmine’s heart. We come to truly know them through this book. In a world where we often have no recollection of the news story we heard only minutes before, My Dear Jasmine stands apart.
The book triumphs in that, through organ donation, Jasmine was able to save the lives of others. The book also brings to light what a simple way people, through tragedy, can save others from the same grief. But where it really triumphs is the story of the human spirit and the gift of life. Nowhere is this felt more than through the words of Jasmine herself through her diary entries, poems and letters. Each word makes the reader mourn the fact that world has lost such a wonderful light. However, in Jasmine, the reader finds a wonderful example of how we should all embrace life and appreciate how Jasmine was able to give the gift of life to others.
Too often butterflies are used as a metaphor for our own existence in this world. Ms. Garcia uses the butterfly in her narrative as well. But this time it feels true and honest, and as the reader goes from journal to poem to narrative it becomes clear that the world has never seen a butterfly like the one it had in Jasmine, and we are lucky to share in her story.
~ David Zanardi, NSIDE MD Jun - Jul 2008 Book Review
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“Norma gives powerful voice to the difficult journey traveled by parents
who lose a young child. Her gentle, passionate, honest exposition is just
what someone who is enduring such indescribable grief needs to hear—
not a sugar-coated pep talk so often offered to those who are grieving, but an honest and loving description of the difficult journey she has traveled. It is a wonderful book that I strongly recommend to anyone.”
~ Walter Graham, Exec. Director of UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing) in Richmond, VA
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“No one who reads your heartbreaking story can remain unmoved by your love both for your daughter and humanity. Your response to a crushing tragedy is an inspiration. Let me hope that knowing you have saved other families from devastation will give you some consolation as you live day by day with your memories.”
~ Reg Green, Author of The Nicholas Effect
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“My Dear Jasmine reads like a personal diary of a mother’s heartfelt journey of shock, sorrow and grief after the loss of her loving child. One can almost feel the healing that takes place as you read Norma ’s painful yet brave ordeal.”
~ Lionel Sosa, Author of Think and Grow Rich: A Latino Choice, one of the 25 most influential Hispanics in America by Time Magazine in 2005