Bedside Manners

A Novel

By: Heather Frimmer

Narrated by: Randye Kaye

As Joyce Novak’s daughter, Marnie, completes medical school and looks ahead to a surgical internship, her wedding, and a future filled with promise, a breast cancer diagnosis throws Joyce’s own future into doubt. Always the caregiver, Joyce feels uncomfortable in the patient role, especially with her husband and daughter. As she progresses through a daunting treatment regimen including a biopsy, lumpectomy, and radiation, she distracts herself by planning Marnie’s wedding.

When the sudden death of a young heroin addict in Marnie’s care forces Marnie to come face-to-face with mortality and her professional inadequacies, she also realizes she must strike a new balance between her identity as a doctor and her role as a supportive daughter. At the same time, she struggles with the stark differences between her fiancé’s family background and her own and comes to understand the importance of being with someone who shares her values and experiences.

Amid this profound soul-searching, both Joyce and Marnie’s futures change in ways they never would have expected.

©2018 Heather Frimmer (P)2019 Heather Frimmer

A real people type story

I was given an opportunity to listen to this on Audible and really enjoyed it. Joyce is a hero! I highly recommend to people who enjoy mother/daughter stories and definitely to breast cancer survivors who will relate to Joyce. The book reads as real people in real life. I thought the narrator did an excellent job.

Loved it!

Really enjoyed this book! As a mom, wife, and physician, I could relate to so much about the main characters and the story. I listen while I commute and found myself sitting in the car for a few minutes at the end of each drive just to hear a little more. Highly recommend!

great story!

really enjoyed this story!
Bedside Manners shared the perspective of a woman dealing with a cancer diagnosis very realistically. it also showed the perspective of her daughter, a medical student. Really enjoyable and eye-opening!