She Danced with Lightning

My Daughter's Struggle with Epilepsy and Her Boundless Will to Live

By: Marc Palmieri

Narrated by: Marc Palmieri

Length: 7 hrs and 24 mins

Publisher's summary

Part family memoir, part medical mystery involving severe epilepsy, She Danced with Lightning follows one girl's battle to persevere as a competitive dancer, culminating in a terrifying decline, a courageous performance, and an eleventh hour, life-saving brain surgery.

Eleven-year-old Anna has lived all her life with severe epilepsy. Despite the ravage of thousands of violent seizures and heavy medications, she has thrived at school, athletics, and her greatest passion—dance. As she approaches her twelfth birthday, Anna's condition takes a dire turn. Her health declines quickly and a new diagnosis is revealed, leaving the family only one excruciating choice. A parent's memoir about the medical mysteries of epilepsy and the personal suffering of raising a child with a deadly health condition, She Danced with Lightning is told from the perspective of Anna's dream-chasing father, who comes to learn from her a strength and courage he never imagined possible.

©2022 Marc Palmieri (P)2022 Tantor

A loving story of father and daughter told with dignity and insight

Bravo to Marc and his daughter for making this amazing story accessible to all of us.

A remarkable story!

This is the first time I have ever read a book via audio. I loved it. Not only the story, but also the unique opportunity to listen to the actual author retell his story. It allowed me as a reader to feel a part of the book and truly made me feel for each of the characters.

This story is beautiful and although heartbreaking throughout much of the book, the author has a way of also making you laugh.

She Danced With Lightning is a relatable journey for any parent or family member that deals with illness or a disability and gives hope that with family, faith and modern medicine anything is possible.

A wonderful masterpiece!

A touching story of a family’s struggle beautifully written and narrated. She Danced with Lightning allows the listener a glimpse into their journey. I laughed, I cried, I prayed, and I rejoiced. Highly recommend!

Remarkable

Such a great listen as a mother to a child living with epilepsy. Strikingly relatable and well written.

Informative, intense and warm

I loved to this book because my granddaughter suffers from seizures related to a severe form of epilepsy, Dravet syndrome. If you love somebody with epilepsy, or if you do not know anything about it, this is a great story.

Raw Emotion and a Real Parent Point of View

Inspiring read. Thank you for your raw candor and honesty in telling Anna’s story and giving hope to a diagnosis that often feels hopeless. Prayers for Anna, Kristen, Nora and you Marc.

Mary Lanari

This book is beautifully written and recorded by the author (which made it even more amazing)! She Danced with Lightning will make you laugh, cry, and hold your babies closer as he takes you through his (and the family’s) journey with his young daughter and her battle with epilepsy. He brings his own life story onto the pages giving humor to some experiences and sadness to the heartbreaks. The humor, the love, the realness! I couldn’t stop listening. Great book.

Raw and beautiful.

Thank you Marc Palmieri for sharing your story and your daughter's story.
I highly recommend this book, especially if you love books about people who overcome adversity.

My review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I will say I might be a bit biased since I personally know the author. That said, this book was gut wrenching. How many people do you know who are willing to share their raw, authentic story with the world? I am not a parent but I cannot imagine how difficult it must be to watch one's daughter suffer with epilepsy. It is not something, one can but a band-aid on. As Marc and his family traversed this unfamiliar territory we see a range of emotions. He shows us how important is to have a strong support system. He also shows us the imperfections of being a parent, not always getting it right and being scared and a range of so many emotions. With humor and wit, we get to see the journey through Marc's lense. Wonderfully written and beautifully raw. Thank you Marc for sharing your story and your family's story as you traveled the road of epilepsy with your daughter.