Bald, Fat & Crazy

A “hard chickpea-sized” lump turns out to be Stage I breast cancer for Stephanie Hosford. Thirty-seven years of age at the time she is diagnosed in 2007, Stephanie is undoubtedly overwhelmed by the drastic change in her life. Chemo treatments are scheduled and hair loss is inevitable. Stephanie also discovers that she’s pregnant. Although she is highly encouraged to terminate her pregnancy, one doctor at City of Hope (a comprehensive cancer center) thinks otherwise. With Stephanie’s new bald and bulging appearance, more craziness enters the scene when she and her husband adopt a seventeen-month-old Chinese girl, as well as purchase a new home. Bald, Fat, & Crazy is an unforgettable memoir of one woman’s whirlwind yet miraculously life-altering journey.

Mother of three and now member of the Speaker’s Bureau for the City of Hope National Medical Center, Stephanie Hosford combines candidness and comedy to relay her convoluted story dealing with cancer and beyond. Hosford’s narrative opens with her five-year checkup in 2012 before flashing back to when it all began with her devastating prognosis in September 2007. Aptly titling chapters after popular rock tunes from a host of artists, one can almost hear the music in the background as Hosford shares the intimate side that most people don’t want to see. Indeed, Hosford doesn’t mince words divulging vulnerable moments during a time in her life when the last thing she wants to think about is dying — and not just her, but the life of her unborn child.

Because there are a number of situations taking place during her cancer treatments, Hosford has more than enough information to keep her readers engaged. Alternating between doctor opinions, her medical appointments, home life, and her personal struggles, Hosford has a keen ability to take uncomfortable subject matter and lighten it with a slew of hilarious commentary. Whether readers have experienced cancer or not, Bald, Fat, & Crazy is one story that will strike a chord for all!