Hayley Arceneaux wins Christopher Award for Debut Memoir “Wild Ride”

Memphis, Tenn.-based author Hayley Arceneaux has been honored with a Christopher Award for “Wild Ride: A Memoir of I.V. Drips and Rocket Ships,” (Convergent Books/Penguin Random House). The debut book is one of 12 for adults and young people tapped by The Christophers as the Christopher Awards program marks its 74th year.

“Wild Ride,” takes readers through Arceneaux’s and her father’s battles with cancer. She writes about her journey towards her dream job as a physician’s assistant at St. Jude’s Research Hospital where she was treated for pediatric bone cancer and an invitation to be a St. Jude ambassador in space. She encourages readers to “fight for the life they want,” according to the book’s website and advises: “You have to hold on, because you don’t know what great thing can come and change your life. Take the chance and you will feel, and learn, and grow, and become even more you. Following your dreams can take you to dreams you didn’t know you had.”

Arceneaux committed to her career at 10, after surviving bone cancer. At 29, she joined SpaceX’s first private spaceflight, Inspiration4, which launched on September 15, 2021, and successfully water-landed three days later, making her the youngest American to orbit the earth, the first pediatric cancer survivor in space, and the first astronaut with a prosthetic body part.

Christopher Awards were also given to creators of 10 TV/Cable shows and feature films.

The Awards celebrate authors, and illustrators as well as writers, producers and directors whose work “affirms the highest values of the human spirit” and reflects the Christopher motto, “It’s better to light one candle than to curse the darkness.” Christopher Awards were also given to the creators of 10 TV/Cable shows and feature films.

Tony Rossi, The Christophers’ Director of Communications, said, “The stories we’re honoring acknowledge that the struggles we endure in life coexist with beauty and hope when we work together, despite our differences, to add love and healing to our world.”

The Christophers, a nonprofit founded in 1945 by Maryknoll Father James Keller, is rooted in the Judeo-Christian tradition of service to God and humanity. The ancient Chinese proverb—“It’s better to light one candle than to curse the darkness”— guides its publishing, radio, and awards programs. More information about The Christophers is available at www.christophers.org.