“27 Days in November – Daisy’s Story” could not be written by Daisy herself. During her life, Daisy has recovered from a malignant brain tumour, a fat embolism in her lung that developed after a simple broken leg, which caused acute respiratory failure resulting in a 27 day stay in an Intensive Care Unit (much like what happens to the worst affected COVID-19 patients) and twenty years later, a stroke. Her survival, achievements, and triumph of character in the face of such experiences are remarkable. Our society doesn’t usually see or acknowledge lives like Daisy’s, and stories like hers are rarely told.

Daisy’s story moves back and forth in time to show how the past continues to resonate in the present day, and its fragmented structure reflects the incalculable effect of serious illness. There are letters, hospital literature and excerpts from medical papers to show the complexity and strangeness of Daisy’s experiences, and of the person who tells her story, her mum.

This is the story of what happened to our daughter, Daisy. It is a story of illness, of treatment, of recovery, of collapse, of the aftermath. It is an attempt to answer the question - what did happen to Daisy? And it is a tribute to Daisy, the survivor.

Excerpt from the Book:

“Tim picks Daisy up from the farm. It’s very strange. She doesn’t seem to recognise him properly. At home in Brighton, we lie her on the sofa downstairs in case she gets out of her bed upstairs and falls. She’s not fretful, or troubled. As usual, she’s happy to be home but is strangely subdued, almost peaceful. She sleeps.

The next morning, she wakes up puzzled, almost surprised but pleased to find herself at home, pleased to find William our dog has been sleeping beside her downstairs too. She is cheery, quite Daisy again, and wants to go shopping.  Daisy and Tim go into Brighton together and have a good day out, with many stops for coffee, of course.

In one line, the letter from the doctor at Sturts Farm was to be the basis for many years of drug misery for Daisy. Disturbingly and amazingly, it can still appear in Local Authority documents.

Here’s a note about epilepsy and the aftermath. Again, we took as little notice as possible of this, far too absorbed in other things, and probably still believing, hoping, that Daisy had had enough serious illness:  we didn’t want any more.”

“27 Days in November:  Daisy’s Story” by Sue Hodlin is available in paperback at:

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