The Sky Was Falling

A Young Surgeon's Story of Bravery, Survival, and Hope

By: Dr. Cornelia Griggs

Narrated by: Dr. Cornelia Griggs

Length: 5 hrs and 48 mins

Publisher's summary

NATIONAL BESTSELLER

The dramatic, unforgettable, and ultimately cathartic diary of a young pediatric surgeon and mother working on the front lines as the COVID-19 pandemic hit one of New York City’s busiest hospitals.

In the spring of 2020, many of us were sequestered in our homes, attempting to teach our children and learn to bake while the pings of news alerts and wails of sirens reminded us of the devastation outside. Dr. Cornelia Griggs’s experience was nothing like ours.

A pediatric surgery fellow in New York City, Griggs was entering the final victory lap at the end of nine grueling years of training. She was set for a big graduation celebration and looking forward to spending some real time with her husband and two toddlers.

When COVID-19 arrived, Griggs initially encouraged her friends and family not to panic. But as mysterious cases began showing up in the hospital, and then hospital supplies started disappearing from shelves, she couldn’t hold back the feeling that this was going to be worse than she had thought. Out of frustration and fear, she penned a startling op-ed in The New York Times that went, for lack of a better word, viral. The piece was read by over a million people, and Griggs appeared on CNN.

Now, she is completing her story. The Sky Was Falling is her day-by-day account of the staggering case numbers, dwindling respirator supply, and lack of clarity on how to treat this new disease. Harrowing and deeply personal, it reads like an all-too-real white-knuckle thriller and describes how healthcare professionals went beyond what they thought they were capable of to heal their patients, and themselves.

©2024 Dr. Cornelia Griggs (P)2024 Simon & Schuster Audio

Thank you

To say I couldn’t stop reading is an understatement. Thank you Cornelia Griggs for your raw honestly about what it was like be a woman in pediatric healthcare during the pandemic. Thank you for putting words to feelings I have struggled to describe...For anyone who has a loved one in healthcare wondered what it was like be at the bedside during those months, Cornelia explains the experience perfectly. While I’m not a surgeon, those of us in the rooms were more connected than ever during a frightening and unprescedebted time. Thank you for sharing it so we never forget, and those of us who still carry trauma and grief can begin to grieve and heal.

A most profound look!

A most profound look at what was experienced during a global pandemic. A look at how broken, parts of the US healthcare system was and unprepared for the onslaught of Covid. The ineptitude of the federal government to respond to the needs during a pandemic, which was exacerbated by the governments denialism of what they were being told by the scientists. An outstanding memoir of the suffering and loss of many that could have been avoided had the government had better leadership.

An amazing detailed life of being a first responder surgeon during the pandemic 

The bravery and lifetime commitment of this dedicated surgeon is beautifully, detailed during Covid, most challenging time in history

Why revamping our healthcare system is so very vital to all of us.

Appreciate her documenting and sharing her experiences of what so many front line workers of every level of our healthcare system lived, sacrificed and died through. The message of the dysfunction of our health care system is so important and needs to be heard. Thank you for speaking out

Renewed appreciation for Healthcare workers

This is a must read (or listen), s o we never take for granted the value of those who are committed to saving lives and how Covid impacted and continues to impact or lives.