First Chapter/First Paragraph: In Every Moment We Are Still Alive

A prize-winning, bestselling debut of love, loss, and family—based on a true story—that’s winning readers around the world.

When Tom’s heavily pregnant girlfriend Karin is rushed to the hospital, doctors are able to save the baby. But they are helpless to save Karin from what turns out to be acute Leukemia. And in a cruel, fleeting moment Tom gains a daughter but loses his soul-mate. In Every Moment We Are Alive is the story of the year that changes everything, as Tom must reconcile the fury and pain of loss with the overwhelming responsibility of raising his daughter, Livia, alone.

By turns tragic and redemptive, meditative and breathless, achingly poignant and darkly funny, this autobiographical novel has been described as ’hypnotic’, ’impossible to resist’ and ’one of the most powerful books about grief ever written’.

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros is a weekly meme hosted by Diane at Bibliophile By the Sea. Each week, participants share a paragraph (or two) from a book they are currently reading or are planning to read soon.

Today I’m going to share excerpt of the first paragraph of In Every Moment We Are Still Alive by Tom Malmquist. This first paragraph is about two pages long so I’m going to shorten it a bit. I’ll be posting my review in February as part of the blog tour.

CHAPTER ONE

“The consultant stamps down the wheel lock of Karin’s hospital bed. In a loud voice he addresses the intensive care nurses, who are cutting open her tank top and sports bra: Pregnant woman, week 33, child reportedly in good health, started feeling ill about five days ago with flu-like symptoms, fever, cough, slight shortness of breath yesterday which was put down to her pregnancy, condition severely deteriorating today, acute respiratory difficulties, arrived at the maternity ward about an hour ago. With powerful hands he unscrews a cartridge-like bottle and continues: sats about seventy ambient but responds to oxygen with higher saturation, RR about forty to fifty, BT a hundred and forty, HR a hundred and twenty. The midwife who helped with the oxygen in the ambulance stops in the doorway. She gently takes my arm…”

What do you think? Would you continue reading?

Even if I had’t read the blurb, the nurse in me understands that this woman is in trouble. I think it’s a pretty compelling beginning and I’m looking forward to reading more of this book.