Cancer. When a diagnosis is first made, the victim and his or her loved ones are seized with panic and dread. But while the cancer patient is upheld emotionally and spiritually by cards, gifts, visits, and hugs, the family members are often overlooked. Bea Hoek remembers ho her battle with cancer took a toll on her husband and children. “In some ways a cancer patient’s family has a more difficult struggle,” she writes. “The patient is ‘allowed’ to express troublesome feelings like fear, despair, and grief, whereas the family feels the heavy burden of keeping a positive attitude, being ‘brave’ and encouraging.”

In this sensitive, encouraging book, Hoek lends empathy and insight to those facing a family’s worst nightmare. The “invisible victims” of cancer learn to:

• handle and relieve stress of having a loved one with cancer
• become a “wounded healer” to others who are hurting
• confront the power of fear
• be alert for signs that a child is feeling jealous and neglected
• express their feelings constructively
• minister sensitively to other family members

Most important, Bea Hoek reminds readers that God can take a devastating, life-threatening experience and work it out for something positive and good.