Diary of a Dying Girl, Mallory Smith
Diary of a Dying Girl, Mallory Smith
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Diary of a Dying Girl
Adapted from Salt in My Soul

Author: Mallory Smith

Narrator: Mara Wilson

Unabridged: 14 hr 8 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/07/2024


Synopsis

This collection of one girl's real, unflinching diary entries about slowly dying of a terminal illness is an unparalleled exploration of the human spirit and what it means to truly live.

Many of the feelings I write about are too difficult to share while I'm alive, so I'm keeping everything in my journal password-protected until the end.

Mallory Smith was no ordinary girl, and this is no ordinary story. At age three, Mallory was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis--a disease that attacks the internal organs and would eventually kill her.
    Despite living on borrowed time, Mallory pursued her passions: volleyball; writing; the environment; her boyfriend, family, and friends. Most importantly, every day she chose to embody the mantra "live happy."
    Mallory also had her struggles--everything from love and sex to living with illness and just being a human on this planet. And she chronicled every bit of it, writing thousands of diary entries before her death in her twenties.
    This is the poignant, true story of a young woman who refused to be defined by chronic illness. Her light and her life are shared here in her own words to encourage everyone to live life to the fullest, as she did, even as she was dying.

About The Author

Mallory Smith was a freelance writer and editor specializing in environmental, social justice, and healthcare-related communications. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Stanford University and worked as a senior producer at Green Grid Radio, an environmental storytelling radio show and podcast. Her radio work has been featured on KCRW, National Radio Project, and State of the Human. She died at the age of twenty-five on November 15, 2017, two months after receiving a double lung transplant.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Mallory on May 06, 2024

I must confess I totally picked this book because of the author’s name being the same as mine. Let me tell you this was dumb because based on the title I knew how the book ended and it was weird to read about a dying Mallory Smith. I was very intrigued about the journals of someone with chronic illn......more

Goodreads review by Sarah on December 26, 2024

not my go to genre, but it was still good......more

Goodreads review by Linda on March 31, 2024

So glad I got to read an advanced copy of this book! You will be changed, in a good way, by reading it. It's a page turner about a teenager dealing with all issues teens face - but knowing that she has a disease that will likely kill her. That in itself is not the reason to read this book though. Yo......more

Goodreads review by LiteraryMarie on April 14, 2024

Diary of a Dying Girl is a collection of Mallory Smith's unflinching diary entries about slowly dying of a terminal illness, Cystic Fibrosis. Many of her feelings were too difficult to share while alive so she kept them in a password-protected journal. Diagnosed at age three with an illness that att......more

Goodreads review by Jessica on February 19, 2024

Thanks to the publishers at Random House Children's and NetGalley for letting me read this book and write a review. Mallory Smith's stories will continue to be told through her diary entries. The book is written in a diary format. It also shows how Mallory grew up with Cystic Fibrosis and how she ma......more


Quotes

★ "Moving [and] heartfelt....Readers will mourn her death, empathize with her and others living with cystic fibrosis, and admire her for her courage in living life to the fullest." —Booklist, starred review

"Illuminating and heartbreaking." —Kirkus Reviews

"The writing is raw and honest, detailing things any young adult could relate to.... A gripping, authentic window into the soul of a young person." —School Library Journal