Reviewed by Scarlett Jensen for Readers' Favorite

Bloom in Barren Soil: A Memoir of Creativity and Healing by Susan Montgomery is not only about pain and suffering but also about her love of creativity and how she uses it to cope and heal. She shares her experience with severe ulcerative colitis and two colorectal surgeries. These life-altering changes continue to cause her problems, but she is proud to turn her pain into power and scars into stories while focusing on her art, writing, and music. All the books she published and the illustrations she created are a big part of her story. She continues writing poems, documenting, and making sketches based on her medical experiences. She remembers the darkest moments when it felt like her body was betraying her. Her diagnosis of ulcerative colitis was combined with anxiety, depression, chronic pelvic pain, fibromyalgia, and rare ear conditions. She likened her struggle to seeds that struggle to grow in barren soil. Just as a garden can be beautiful with a few imperfect blooms, she learned to appreciate her growth and beauty, even with the imperfections. She had a lot of mental work to do to unpack years of hurt and fear.

Susan Montgomery's ultimate success is proof of her resilience and ability to cope with setbacks. This memoir will help us understand what it is like to live with a psychologically and emotionally challenging condition. Her advice is to take up new creative hobbies to cope with a chronic illness that tries to steal your joy. Susan hopes to inspire those navigating their health journeys to explore creative avenues that bring solace, hope, and strength. Her paintings demonstrate her belief in her creativity as the key factor in truly feeling better. As she looks back on her journey, she sees a canvas that has layers of colors, emotions, and experiences, each stroke adding depth and meaning to her life. Her wish to readers is to find their healing amidst the turbulence and embrace their journey, blooming everywhere. Her paintings made her bubble up with excitement and took her to another place, one free of pain, building courage and the spirit to face the challenges ahead. For me, Bloom in Barren Soil by Susan Montgomery is a very detailed work, offering a recommended scheme of opportunities for creative play, imagination, and wonder. There is merit in its content, and it is a worthy read for all, including healthy persons.