Sun Shine Down: A Memoir
by Gillian Marchenko
“I know of other mothers who have children with disabilities, and right away they loved them and decided to fight for them. that isn’t my story.”
In this slim little gem of a memoir, Gillian Marchenko recounts the birth of her third daughter by emergency c-section in Ukraine – far away from her family in her native Michigan. Soon after her daughter’s traumatic birth, Gillian and her husband learn that not only is their new baby very ill, she also has Down syndrome – and this in a country where babies with Down syndrome are still routinely institutionalized from birth.
After leaving their missionary work in Ukraine and moving back to the states, Gillian struggles to come to terms with Polly’s diagnosis. Weighed down by depression, she turns to alcohol for escape and solace, all the while trying to keep up appearances as a good mother, and a pastor’s wife.
Stark and beautiful in its honesty, this is a very human story of a mother struggling to cope with a new reality, and ultimately of a baby who lights the way.
I’ve read a lot of Down syndrome memoirs, and this jewel rises to the top as one of the better ones.
turnthepagelisa.com 
[…] As you may know, T.S. Poetry Press recently published a new memoir: Sun Shine Down—called a “jewel [that] rises to the top” of the category of Down syndrome memoirs. Yes, we have an interest in bringing beauty to light, […]
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[…] As you may know, T.S. Poetry Press recently published a new memoir: Sun Shine Down—called a “jewel [that] rises to the top” of the category of Down syndrome memoirs. Yes, we have an interest in bringing beauty to light, […]
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[…] can read my review of Gillian’s book, Sun Shine Down, here. Leave a comment below and you will be entered to win a free copy of Sun Shine Down! I’ll […]
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I’d love to read this book!
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Go leave a comment on the book giveaway post on my other blog, Life As I Know It, and that will enter you in the drawing for a free copy 🙂
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[…] As you may know, T.S. Poetry Press recently published a new memoir: Sun Shine Down—called a “jewel [that] rises to the top” of the category of Down syndrome memoirs. Yes, we have an interest in bringing beauty to light, […]
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[…] As you may know, T.S. Poetry Press recently published a new memoir: Sun Shine Down—called a “jewel [that] rises to the top” of the category of Down syndrome memoirs. Yes, we have an interest in bringing beauty to light, […]
LikeLike
[…] As you may know, T.S. Poetry Press recently published a new memoir: Sun Shine Down—called a “jewel [that] rises to the top” of the category of Down syndrome memoirs. Yes, we have an interest in bringing beauty to light, […]
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[…] [Originally posted on September 5, 2013 here] […]
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