If you don’t hear the message of author Alastair McAlpine’s literary début Prescription: Ice Cream , then life must have badgered tone-deafness into your daily state of being. It’s powerful and makes you think. It also plucks at the heartstrings in a melody of sadness, joy and importantly, hope.
Prescription: Ice Cream shares the wisdom and unexpected joy discovered in the lives of terminally ill children. It’s a memoir, grounded in the stark realities of paediatric palliative care. The book unearths the essential truths about what it means to live fully, even when life itself is fleeting.
In 2018, McAlpine, working in Cape Town as a palliative care paediatrician, shared a series of insights from his young patients on Twitter, now X. “I asked some of my terminal paediatric palliative care patients what they had enjoyed in life, and what gave it meaning. Kids can be so wise, y’know.
Here are some of the responses,” he tweeted. This thread, brimming with the children’s simple yet impactful reflections, quickly went viral, capturing the hearts of millions around the world. McAlpine’s intention was never to become an internet sensation.
Rather, he sought to share the wisdom of children who, despite their dire circumstances, managed to find beauty and joy in their everyday lives. From aspiring doctor to battling addiction Before reaching this point, McAlpine’s life was a turbulent journey marked by immense personal and professional challenges. Growing up in J.
