Mistaken Identity: Two Families, One Survivor, Unwavering Hope

I would strongly recommend reading this book. A tale of unforgettable tragedy helped me reconnect with the Lord. I stumbled across this book on accident, and this is one of the best mistakes I’ve came across. In my early teens I was very in touch with the lord and how to live a holy life dedicated to God. As I went through high school I lost my way and picked up bad habits of a typical high school teen. When I found this book I wasn’t excited to read it because I had stayed so far from the path of the Lord, I felt guilty of the poor relationship I had developed with him. As I began read the tale of a horrific accident that claimed 5 lives I found connection with my God again. This book brought me back towards the path of riotousness. Now, how can this book about an awful mix up bring me closer to the Heavenly Father? Well, I saw how the families handled the situation and I reflected and thought about how I would handle a situation like this. I wouldn’t have faith in God; I would be angry and miserable, possibly even depressed. Reading about how the family put everything aside and prayed for a better day, for God to show them the good in all things, to recognize the bad things and understand that they have happened made me think about how bitter and negative I had become. As these two families asked for God to make them strong and help them understand that horrible things had happened to them, their faith stayed strong and helped them stay calm. The Van Ryn’s stayed in the hospital day after day with the blonde haired girl they called Laura, they wrote down bible verses that came to mind as they sat there and watched her slept, and the Cerak’s prepared for the funeral for a girl they called Whitney. The Cerak’s dedication to the lord was extremely predominated. They did not ask for materialistic items, besides for Whitney to come back, but they asked for strength to over come the time of sadness. When the discovery of the misidentification of the bodies came to be true the families did not become hateful of the police and other who identified the bodies, nor did they become resentful of God. These families only had questions and they wanted answers to them. The faith with in these families made me realize that I too can continue to have a close loving relationship with God even when things become difficult and I don’t know how to handle the situations.

Well, I am two minds about this book. First, it is simply an amazing story that manages to be both distressing and uplifting at the same time. Two girls who resembled--but didn't know--each other were in a horrific accident together when their Taylor University van was struck by a truck that crossed over the center divider. Laura Van Ryn died and Whitney Cerak lived, but they were misidentified as each other . . . and neither family detected the error. So the Ceraks buried Laura and grieved for her as their own, while the Van Ryns spent five weeks at Whitney's hospital bedside, willing her back to life. It was only as she was emerging from her coma and the effects of a traumatic brain injury, that Whitney was able to print her name and the truth finally emerged. While it seems impossible that this mistake could endure for so long under such close scrutiny, it obviously did happen and the book helps to make some sense of this. But in the end, the two families traded places, and the Ceraks literally had their daughter "back from the dead" while the poor Van Ryns who had been heroic throughout this ordeal suddenly had to come to grips with the loss of theirs. Whitney, in the end, recovers much of her former self, but not all; she remains a changed person. Although her comments in this book are relatively few, they are certainly thought-provoking.Second, however, the reader should be forewarned that ALL of the principals in this story are evangelical Christians, with Taylor University (a religious school) being the common link. So the two girls and both their families, all the other victims, all their friends and significant others, etc. are of this persuasion. Accordingly, on almost every page there is some mention of God, Jesus Christ, prayer, scriptures, Bible study, Bible camp, and so forth. While you appreciate deeply that it was their faith that sustained them through this terrible trial, if you are not of the same ilk, you may be put off. Indeed, the families explain the crash as "God's will," noting that as their incredible tale was spread worldwide many people following the news and the Van Ryns' (and later Cernaks') blog converted to Christianity. And they say that all the victims would have happily chosen to die to promote this spread and strengthening of faith. While that may be going a bit too far, it is undoubtedly true that these two families' belief in a heavenly afterlife gives them solace in the face of the unthinkable and that their strong religious community gave them the support to get through it all. All in all, I enjoyed the book, but I could have done with a little less of the creed.

This book was fascinating to read about the situation that happened. Knowing that the Van Ryn family was all along thinking they had their daughter alive, while knowing that one day they would realize that their daughter was really deceased and buried made me feel so much sadness for them. I honestly cried for them while reading this book. The sadness that Whitney's family endured thinking their daughter was dead brings sadness to me as wel. Knowing they would soon learn their daughter was alive and that they would have a joyful feeling that most people will never experience because of this strange occurrence, left a good feeling to balance things. Highly recommended to read!

I thought this was a movie, I guess I didn't read the descriptionl

I was a bit concerned after reading some of the reviews about this book. As a non-Christian, I was worried that it would be too religiously based. However, I was pleasantly surprised. I thought it was a great book. I read the entire book in two days! At times, it did seem to be a bit heavy on the religious aspects, but overall I think it is worth the time to read. It was amazing that people were able to have such an enormous amount of faith at such a trying time in their lives. Although it was mentioned several times that some people became Christians after reading the blogs, I did not find this offensive. Everyone has the right to believe as they wish. I did not feel like the emphasis was on "converting" anyone in this book. I have already passed this book on to a friend.

So hard to believe something like this could really happen. I enjoyed the book a lot but at times it got a little confusing as to who they were talking about. All in all I say it was well worth the read and It was one of those books you just can't put down.

Good book.

Excellent deiliever of the book actually faster than expected. Loved the book...

This true story is great, don`t know what I`d do if this situation ever happened to me! I love it!

Love this book..