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Life, Death and Biscuits
- Narrated by: Anthea Allen
- Length: 8 hrs and 48 mins
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Life, Death and Biscuits
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Summary
THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
‘A heart-breaking story of courage and compassion from the front line of the toughest battle our nurses have had to fight. Anthea Allen’s writing is raw, honest and full of love for those she cares for.’ Susanna Reid
An extraordinarily powerful memoir based on the diaries of intensive care nurse Anthea Allen, who worked on the front line of one of the largest hospitals in Europe during the Covid crisis.
A nurse for 25 years, Anthea thought she had seen it all. But with Covid came the greatest trial, personally and professionally, of her life. Thrust into hourly challenges – many a matter of life and death – while on the Critical Care units of St George’s in south London, Anthea processed her shocking experiences through writing. It started with an email to request biscuits. But her appeal to help boost the morale of her fellow nurses soon turned into a series of astonishingly moving stories detailing the realities of being a front line worker.
It wasn’t long before Anthea’s accounts were circulating far and wide, capturing the attention of the nation and being feted by the likes of Richard Branson and Good Morning Britain’s Susanna Reid.
In Life, Death and Biscuits, Anthea reveals the human story behind Covid, sharing tales of hope, fear and laughter from both her ‘family’ of nurses and the patients she encountered. Forged in a crisis, this deeply affecting memoir offers a unique and inspiring perspective on the pandemic that simultaneously tore the world apart and brought us together. Both heart-wrenching and uplifting, it serves as a testimony to love, resilience and the human spirit.
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Critic reviews
‘[These] words will live on as an important history of Covid for generations to come’ – Sir Richard Branson
‘Vivid, loving, raw, opinionated. There have been several very good books written by doctors during the pandemic, but nothing as visceral as this.’ – The Times
‘A moving and awe-inspiring account’ –
Daily Mail
What listeners say about Life, Death and Biscuits
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mark Smith
- 28-02-22
Excellent read/listen
This is a wonderful book with heart-warming stories and beautifully read by the author. 100% recommend :)
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Ingrid Cooper
- 03-12-22
True and heartbreaking
I am an ex critical care nurse, I couldn’t carry on after covid it broke me and so many of my colleagues, who still suffer from the fall out too. This book describes in fantastic detail the fears and the emotional rollercoaster all nurses experienced. I have listened to this book and identified with so much it has helped me to start untangling the mess I have parked in the back of my brain, thank you Anthea for sharing your experience with so much integrity and honesty I admire you so much for being able to carry on nursing and being “mummy” at work.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- AnnieB
- 19-07-22
Excellent, fascinating, inspirational
I am in awe of everything these super humans have done, indeed continue to do, so from me a huge thank you to you all. You are all truly dedicated individuals, and my hope is that the powers that be realise your worth and you get that long awaited substantial pay rise.
This is one very memorable book I recommend that you give it a listen.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Cheryl Louise
- 04-01-23
I wanted to love this book
As a nurse who worked through the pandemic and as a veteran I found this book incredibly irritating,
This book was repetitive and would have benefited from more robust editing. At times I had to check that I hadn’t lost my place as I felt sure I had already read the current page.
The pandemic was not war and I feel that suggesting it was takes away from those who have experienced war. Yes there were similarities and the pandemic in its own right has had catastrophic consequences but this was not war. Feel free to recognise these similarities but do not ever suggest that this was worse for nursing staff than it was for troops at war (yes this was strongly implied).
All nurses and other staff who worked to support others throughout the pandemic (too many to note) are absolutely amazing and should be celebrated. The author came accords as egocentric adding to the irritation.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 16-06-23
I wanted to learn something of the experiences of patients and their nurses
I was irritated and disappointed by this book. I wasn’t there physically when my mother died and I wanted to get a glimpse of what life might have been like for her and the other patients and the nurses caring for them
Instead, this seemed to be a repetitive ‘nurses are great’ polemic.
I was disappointed. Though perhaps it is a great read if you are a critical care nurse.
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