5 comments about Making Peace with Autism: One Family's Story of Struggle, Discovery, and Unexpected Gifts.

1. This is a good read for young families first struggling with a new diagnosis of Autism. Also good for families with siblings, with advice about how to care for their needs.



2. After reading countless books on autism, mostly about theories and treatments, this book is a breath of fresh air! It was so encouraging to read an honest, open life story of a family living with autism on a daily basis. It doesn't give false hope, nor do the family members act like little stoics. They're just real people who are dealing with life every day, and who try to find real happiness in just taking life one day at a time. I admire Susan Senator's positive attitude. She admits that she has a tough time, but picks up the pieces and goes on from there. I thank her for sharing such a personal story; it will help countless families.



3. Sue Senator's autism book is not just another parent's story about facing autism. She has something to say, useful information to immpart, and she is not looking to find or share a miracle cure. She is a little ahead of the curve on the autism epidemic - her son is nearly grown - and thus her perspective is very useful for parents with younger children (and typical siblings) wondering about the future and coping with diagnosis and the larger issues of long-term advocacy.



4. This book was honest and heartfelt. Our family is at the beginning of our journey on the autism spectrum, but there were so many things in this book that we could relate to already. I couldn't put it down when I read it. It was refreshing to read about how another family has coped with this tragedy and how it has survived and even grew stronger without the affected child having necessarily been "cured." It has helped me realize that the most important thing for any family is acceptance.



5. The approach of accepting autism would have been enough on its own for me to like the book, but Susan Senator's writing is exceptional, and that is why I love this book. I laughed, I cried, I truly felt she's been through the same trenches I have. She understands. And she exudes a level of empathy through her words that brought me more comfort than any other book about autism I have read.
   
   The book is presented in a mostly chronological format, discussing her son's early years, her reaction to the diagnosis, going into depth about her emotions and listing all the questions that those of us who have been through it also asked. Senator includes a sidebar in this chapter called "Suggestions for Getting Through the Early Days, After Diagnosis," which lists some helpful tips, along with other topics such as "Beginning the Healing Process as a Couple" and "Making Crisis Storybooks for Your Child," known as 'social stories' in some areas. The following chapter describes the various early school programs in which her son was enrolled, and includes tips on preparing for IEP meetings, and what to look for with school placements. This information is invaluable for parents whose child has been recently diagnosed. I found myself wishing this book had been published in the 90s!
   
   The book addresses sibling interactions and traveling, including tips for successful family vacations. Following that is a chapter on sleep problems and the use of medication, with a thoughtful debate on whether to medicate or not. Basically, Senator urges parents to trust their instincts and educate themselves. She also lists strategies for dealing with problem behavior. The remaining chapters deal with more family issues, such as preparing for a new baby in the house and nurturing your marriage. Senator also mentions important information about leaving your child with others and making sure to carve out time to rest.
   
   My favorite part of the book is when Senator discovers that her son is trying to connect with her by laughing. I, too, made this discovery with my own son years ago. My son's sometimes annoying fake laugh is really the way he reaches out, wanting to have fun like everyone he sees around him. He is not completely closed off, in his own world. He has autism, but he is still there with us, interacting. Just on his own terms. It was so affirming to read that other families delight in this discovery as well.

1 comments about Living in the Lightning: A Cancer Journal.

1. I read this book a few days after my doctor told me he was "very concerned" I may have a very rare and aggressive form of cancer. I found the easy style of the book was something I definitely needed while my mind was racing in a million directions. I loved that I could identify with the author on silly things like what to wear to my next doctor's appointment. The lightness yet meaningful style of the book helps in a time when so much is going on around you.

2 comments about Silent Thunder.

1. Silent Thunder is a book that once in your hands you can't put it down. It's a true story of a Deaf football player that Played foe the 2000 National Championship OU football team. He over came domestic and child abuse and witnessed first hand unbelievable violence. But he did over come and eventually succeed in his dreams. A five star review no doubt waiting on the next book!!!!



2. As a life-long University of Oklahoma football fan (and alumni of the school), I was intrigued to learn about this book. Due to injury, the author never made much of a public impact as a player in the OU football program, but, his story certainly sounded very courageous.
   
   I'm sure the author is a remarkable young man, but, the more of this book I read the more unsettled I became, not because of the content, but, because the author was obviously out of his element in attempting to write a full-length autobiography on his own, as most of us would be. A real publisher with any integrity, interested in assisting in the telling of this tale would have made an attempt to secure a ghost-writer.
   
   Kudos to Eric Thunader for his courage and perseverence. Shame on Tate Publishing & Enterprises for, apparently, trying to make an easy dollar at the expense of this young man.

5 comments about Elegy for Iris.

1. I read Iris Murdoch's The Sea, The Sea, (which won the 1978 Booker Prize) on Dec 4, 1983, and her Under the Net (which was no. 95 on the Modern Library panel's list of the 100 greatest novels written in English in the 20th century) and was under-enthralled with both. So I wa not expecting much when I undertook to read her husband's memoir of his life with her (written during the last days of her life, she having died Feb. 8, 1999), especially since I could not believe it would be great to read about someone having Alzheimer's and of caring for such a person. I was very pleasantly surprised. Bayley's memoir is great reading, full of interesting information as well as a thoughtful and truthful-sounding account of their life as husband and wife. Illustrative of the former, on page 118 we learn that Aldous Huxley believed that Piero della Francesca's Resurrection was "the greatest painting in the world" (and it is great to go to the computer and see the painting!) and on page 164 et seq. we have a very uncomplimentary account of the 1981 Nobel-prize-winner Elias Canetti (his name is never mentioned, but there can be no doubt of his identity since the computer will tell those of us who did not know that Canetti is the author of Die Blendung). We have mention of Montague Rhodes James (and can go to the computer to read his some of his ghost stories, including "The Treasure of Abbot Thomas", the story referred to by name in this memoir). Since Bayley is an eminent literary critic (as the jacket describes him) the book abounds with interesting tidbits such as this, and almost persuades me I should read another Murdoch book! I found this book a great reading experience.



2. A mysterious lady. A dashing young suitor. A love that overcomes all obstacles. Sound like Disney's latest flick? Not so. It's John Bayley's narrative Elegy for Iris, a stunning memoir for his wife Iris Murdoch. In this real life fairy-tale story with a not so fairy-tale ending, Bayley recalls his life with Iris before Alzheimer's robbed her personality of it's usual depth, as well as the change the disease wrought in her, and in his life with her.

   Elegy for Iris is the wonderfully detailed, lovingly written story of Iris Murdoch's and John Bayley's life together, told from Bayley's point of view. It tells of their meeting, the growth of their relationship, their unusual marriage, and the change in their lives after Iris became afflicted with Alzheimer's. From Bayley's "lady on a bicycle" to swimming in seemingly every main river in France and England; from Iris' diary entry "St. Antony's Dance. Fell down the steps, and seem to have fallen in love with J. We didn't dance much." to their unusual marriage of solitude; Bayley has written his story to enchant and amaze.

   Bayley's attention to detail, even seemingly those that are minor or irrelevant, can be seen throughout the book. His descriptions, for instance, of his various outings with Iris make the memoir much more realistic. "Our first swim was in a river of the Pas-de-Calais, a deep, placid tributary of the Somme...The next was much farther south, in a steep and wild-wooded valley, with pine and chestnut growing up the mountains. The water was warm, and the stream so secluded that we slipped in with nothing on", is only a part of Bayley's extensive descriptions of their honeymoon. Water plays a large part in their lives; whenever Bayley and Iris go somewhere new, they find someplace to swim there. Water seems to be a symbol of change, of their changing lives throughout their years together.

   Bayley's attention to detail can also be a detriment to the reader, however, as it makes the story-line difficult to follow at times. When he begins to tell one particular tale, he often will break into many tangents, that can entangle the reader and detract from the focus on the main narrative. "Our host, who had been getting lunch, was quite a time getting to the door. He was a brilliant green eyed doctor named Maurice Charlton...Maurice Charlton probably worked harder than either of us, or than both of us put together, I should say....Maurice Charlton died young, of cancer, I believe, more than twenty years ago." This can be somewhat confusing, and occurs throughout the book.

   The description that Bayley gives their marriage is a striking one, and is a continuous theme throughout Elegy for Iris. He describes "one of the truest pleasures of marriage [as] solitude", using the words of Australian poet AD Hope that marriage is designed to `move [the partners] closer and closer apart.' This unusual description runs contrast to most peoples' beliefs on marriage, yet serves as a perfect description for Bayley's own marriage. "Such ignorance, such solitude! They suddenly seemed the best part of love and marriage. We were together because we were comforted and reassured by the solitariness we saw and were aware of in the other." This attitude seems predominant throughout the narrative, even after Iris is afflicted with Alzheimer's. The only difference, in Bayley's eyes, is that "the closeness of apartness has necessarily become the closeness of closeness." Bayley's view on marriage is a refreshing change from the normal stereotypes.

   This book is thoroughly enjoyable and heartwarming, yet at the same time poignantly sad. To watch as Bayley slowly loses the woman who was his wife to a woman who recalls almost nothing of their life together, yet continues to cling to Bayley as if he were her last hope, is slightly depressing. Yet, as his memories show, Bayley and Iris lived a rich, full life together- it is heartwarming to watch them fall in love, marry, and grow together in their relationship. Bayley runs the full gamut of emotions in this personal narrative-and what's more, he makes the reader do the same.




3. I've spent the last 3-4 years writing a memoir (Baby Catcher). Therefore, I'm immersing myself in creative NF and memoir, and this is one of the best. Only a consummate writer such as John Bailey could have pulled this off. I've heard others complain about his rambling style, meandering between distant past, near past, and present (and I haven't seen the movie yet), but I found the transitions seamless and the flow of time as effortless as thought itself. Bailey shows all phases of the caretaking of someone with late-stage Alzheimers, regret, humor, irritation, rage, impatience, love, silliness... Would that each of us be accompanied on our trip to life's end - however it may present itself - by someone similarly compassionate. And articulate. May John Bailey himself be equally eulogized.



4. This book is the story of a marriage, a life together of two enormously intelligent writers, John Bayley and Iris Murdoch. Bayley tells the story of their forty - two years of marriage at the same time he describes more closely the four last years in which Iris Murdoch suffered from Alzheimer's. He writes with humor and quiet understanding, and his obvious admiration and love for his wife speak throughout the work.
   The cruelty of Alzheimer's is somehow underlined when the one who suffers is a person of extraordinary mind , a devotee of the life of the mind . Bayley honestly and painfully portays the strange kind of blankness and absence which the Alzheimer sufferer often displays. He does this against a background of the story of two lives, each of one has been lived in part in the great solitude of outstanding creator endeavor. But he also very good relating their shared experiences.
   Bayley is also tactful and restrained about a certain assymetry in their relation, relating probably much more to the early years when Iris was involved with others. One nonetheless feels Bayley's restrained anger in his description of the ' master figure ' who for a time seemed to be a center of Murdoch's intellectual life.
   What however impresses and makes this work remarkable is the steady gaze of love and intelligence with which Bayley sees , envelopes and protects Murdoch . This book is a work of love and pain, and of great beauty. It also provides much valuable insight into that terrible condition when the person is physically present but mentally lost.



5. John Bayley CBE and Dame Iris Murdoch were married for almost 50 years. Their relationship was truly unique, special, and hard to replicate. They trusted each other, nurtured each other in literary criticism and writing, Their union was brought together during their time at Oxford where they lived for the remainder of their years together. JOhn writes lovingly about Iris even during her illness of Alzheimers which deteriorates the brain matter. Iris relied on her mind to write, analyze, and plan elaborate novels which were multi-storied and engaged the readers to think themselves. She was also a philosopher, college professor, etc. It's hard to imagine that Iris was no grand beauty but she had both inner and outer beauties. Sadly, her disease would rob them of so much more. Iris became more childlike and unable to care for herself while John became the primary caretaker. John who was in the shadow was now in the forefront without much help. It's hard watching the film without shedding a tear or reading this book without feeling something for somebody we never personally knew but by reading this book, we do learn about this amazing couple. We learn about their triumphs and failures. How they were just happy to be together and go swimming, if only happiness was that easy to find nowadays. John was a wonderful husband. I admire his truth, candidness, and revelations that their marriage was not always about sex and that Iris didn't care for it in general. They didn't have any children and neither seemed to mind that outcome of their marriage.

5 comments about Here and Now: Inspiring Stories of Cancer Survivors.

1. What characterizes this book is its intellectual and emotional honesty, and in that spirit, this reviewer acknowledges he knows one of the authors.

   The book tells the stories of 38 cancer survivors-38 very different individuals with very different stories to tell about how they first learned of their cancer, how they coped with it, how it changed their lives, how they face the world now.

   There is no false sentimentality, there's no polyanna, no posing. This is truth, not always pretty, but real. The two authors, themselves cancer survivors, have produced something that is greater than the sum of its 38 brief narratives. There is a powerful cumulative impact on the reader that lingers.

   What I was left with was a recognition that all of the very intense personal experiences these people had, making each one of them so very special, ultimately makes them very ordinary, just like you and me. And the scary, diagnostic names of their cancers also become strangely ordinary in their hideousness.

   These survivors tell us about themselves very simply; they demystify themselves. And they demystify the pathology of cancer. Ultimately the reader gets to see beyond the emotional fall-out of confronting cancer--the fears, the feelings of hurt and unfairness, of rejection, of loneliness, and so many more.

   This is a fine book. I'm sure it will have special meaning for both cancer survivors and cancer victims alike. But just as importantly, for many of us who are neither of these, it also helps us better understand ourselves. "The proper study of mankind is man," said Alexander Pope. You might adapt that truism to the study of mankind through this book.




2. Everything the earlier revieiwers have said is true. This book inspired me to live my life more fully. You do not need to be a cancer survivor to be touched by these stories. They are stories about being human, and being ALIVE.



3. I am a cancer survivor and a personal coach for cancer survivors (rle444@yahoo.com). I have recommended this book to all of my clients. The stories tell it like it is: the good, bad and ugly. It's so important for current cancer patients to see the possibilites through the angst of having cancer and cancer survivors to have examples of the various tribulations and exhilaration of "cancer after life." cancer (little "c") is what you have, not who you are. I thank the authors for this beautiful and powerful evidence of the human spirit.



4. If you are looking for another most inspirational story about a cancer survivor, read Tapestry: The Journey of Laurel Lee. CBS turned her hospital journal into a movie several years ago. Tapestry is her entire life story - it is filled with laughter, tears, hope and grace.



5. I am a patient currently going through treatment for stage 4 Lymphoma, and this book was SOOOOOOOO depressing. Yes, it tells it like it is, and sometimes you don't need to hear that. And if that's what the book is about it, it shouldn't be listed as "inspiring", because the only thing it inspires me to do is give up the little hope I have. My copy is holding a lovely spot in the trash.

5 comments about Tiny Titan.

1. This is an inspiring, humbling book. As a fellow adoptive mother of a special needs child, I can relate to many of the emotional ups and downs that are described here. However, the immensity of the challenges taken on by this family, the anguish they go through as systems fail them, and the dedication they show to their children inspire awe and deep respect. This book is hard to put down, and also is very informative on the topics of Noonan syndrome, which the sixth biological child in the family was diagnosed with, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, and Reactive Attachment Disorder, all of which are, sadly, extremely common in adopted children (my daughter also has all three, as well as an alphabet soup of additional diagnoses!). This book will be extremely meaningful to anyone touched by adoption, and fascinating and informative to others.



2. Almost unreal perseverance by the mother of this Tiny Titan! This book should be read by every social worker and Department of Health employee in every state. The failure of the "system," whether from lack of training, lack of funds or just plain lack of caring, is often devastating to families and disabled persons. Fortunately, our family also had the help of the Yurcek's "guardian angel," seemingly the only person who knew the what, when and especially how of getting help for our adult disabled son. Too often families don't have the perseverance of Ann Yurcek and lose hope while going through the endless loops of the health system, leaving the disabled person much less than what he or she could be.



3. Ann Yurcek's "Tiny Titan" is a memorable story. The constant struggles of the family, Ann, Jim and the children were nearly exhausting to read. The tenaciousness of this family overwhelms me. Having their sixth child be so desperately ill might have fractured other families. Becca just made their's stronger. Way to go Yurcek's! While I admire the dedication, blood, sweat, and tears of raising up their adoptive children, I had to wonder how they thought they could ever do it. I felt badly for them that so much potentially important information was withheld from these loving, giving parents. While I'm glad those children now have a 'forever' family with the Yurcek's, I feel they might have been better served in a black home where they had more of a familiar cultural and extended community experience. I applaud the Yurcek's, every one of them for their abilities to share, care, and work hard to get there. My only criticism I have about the book is that it seemed to be authored (especially near the end) almost entirely by a voice recognition system. I can understand that as Ann is an extremely busy person. However, a good proof-read for grammar and incorrect word usage would have made this good book a terrific book. I'm surprised it was published at all without having been given a little spit and polish.



4. Congratulations to an amazing family with an amazing story. A thank you to the Yurcek's on a life well lived and an award well earned. Let your light shine for others who need to believe in miracles and the strength of family.



5. The Mom's Choice Awards® honors excellence in family-friendly media, products and services. An esteemed panel of judges includes education, media and other experts as well as parents, children, librarians, performing artists, producers, medical and business professionals, authors, scientists and others. A sampling of the panel members includes: Dr. Twila C. Liggett, Ten-time Emmy-winner, professor and founder of Reading Rainbow; Julie Aigner-Clark, Creator of Baby Einstein and The Safe Side Project; Jodee Blanco, New York Times Best-Selling Author; LeAnn Thieman, Motivational speaker and coauthor of seven Chicken Soup For The Soul books; Florrie Binford-Kichler, Founder of Patria Press, Inc.- an award-winning independent publisher and Member of The Children's Book Council; Tara Paterson, Certified Parent Coach, and founder of The Just For Mom Foundation(tm) and the Mom's Choice Awards®. Parents and educators look for the Mom's Choice Awards® seal in selecting quality materials and products for children and families. This book has been honored by this distinguished award.

4 comments about The Years of Silence Are Past: My Father's Life with Bipolar Disorder.

1. This is one of the best books on any topic I have read lately. Anyone who knows anyone with a psychological problem (that's all of you with a pulse, by the way), should read The Years of Silence are Past. The title refers to the silence that descended on Stephen Hinshaw's family in the face of his father's bipolar illness (manic-depression). The book is so resonant because countless families with a mentally ill family member live with the same deafening silence. Hinshaw manages to tell the story of his father's battle with bipolar disorder in a compelling, compassionate, unflinching way while also communicating clearly and thus educating about this devastating illness. This book puts a human face on a problem that is too often still stigmatized in our society. I hope this book will help put an end to the collective silence that amplifies the stigma and associated pain for people with mental illness and their famlies. I also hope it leads people with mental illness to seek and benefit from treatment.



2. This is an excellent book that anyone interested in bipolar disorder or mental illness in general should read. Hinshaw is an excellent writer and brings the details of his father's struggle with bipolar disorder richly to life. The effects of the disease on his father's entire existence are profound and complex- many details and nuances of the illness are described. The book is partly an indictment of the entire mental health field for not providing better care for his father. An interesting and complex read. Avery Z. Conner, author of "Fevers of the Mind".



3. Stephen Hinshaw demonstrated exceptional courage and scholarship in this passionately written portrayal of his father's struggle with bipolar disorder. Blending scientific perspectives with personal insights, Hinshaw provides a tour of his father's obstacles and triumphs. It is a compelling story about the far reaching implications of severe psychopathology yet it is firmly rooted in inspiring messages of hope and resilience. Hinshaw somehow manages to find the appropriate "voice" with personal accounts narrated within a larger context of science, philosophy, and public policy. It is exemplary in its passion, analysis, and vision for the future.



4. As the other reviews here accurately explain, this slim volume encompasses much more than an insightful look at how his father's long-misdiagnosed mental illness affected the author and his family. That would be quite enough.
   
   Yet, while some scholarly writers have one idea and puff it out in volume after volume, Dr. Hinshaw deftly delivers much more than the title suggests, weaving autobiography and biography, this country's checkered history in diagnosing and treating bi-polar disorder, the genetic and environmental factors of brain disorders, personal insights and scientific data, and much more.
   
   That Dr. Hinshaw pulls this off so cogently and compellingly for the layperson strikes me as remarkable, given that he is a highly respected academic, clinical scientist, and professor who chairs the prestigious department of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley.
   
   As a lay volunteer in the AD/HD community, I first learned of Dr. Hinshaw through his contributions to a landmark study on ADHD in children. In my experience, it is rare to find a psychologist who can help the average person bridge the knowledge gap between behavior and neuroscience, and I am grateful for this window to understanding.
   
   This is the first in Dr. Hinshaw's outstanding trilogy examining stigma around mental illness--and how our society might go about easing it. The other two books are The Mark of Shame: Stigma of Mental Illness and an Agenda for Change and Breaking the Silence: Mental Health Professionals Disclose Their Personal and Family Experiences of Mental Illness
   
   Gina Pera, author and advocate
   Is It You, Me, or Adult A.D.D.? Stoppingthe Roller Coaster When Someone You Love Has Attention Deficit Disorder
   ADHDRollerCoaster.com

5 comments about Detour: My Bipolar Road Trip in 4-D.

1. I picked up this book about 1 1/2 years ago thinking that I'd find something that I could relate to, as I'm a 30 bipolar woman. Unfortunately, I could not relate to Lizzie Simon. She is elitist and she is very self-congratulatory. It is so embarrassing to read about her relationship with Nicholas, and somehow she thinks that she's the only one who could understand him. He can't understand himself!!! Needless to say, I don't understand what all the hype is when reading this book. I think there are plenty of people out there who have written excellent books on their struggles with mental illness (i.e Kay Redfield Jamison, William Styron). This book, though entertaining, is very base.



2. I thought that I would be able to relate to Simon's book as I have a few things in common with her. I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at nineteen after experiencing a manic episode induced by antidepressants. I too have felt quite lonely at times; I've found myself wishing I had a friend who could relate to my experiences with bipolar disorder. I thought the book would be encouraging, and in a way it is. After reading it you remember that you aren't alone, that other teenagers and young adults have struggled with this disorder and they've survived.
   
   I think that memoirs of this type can be misleading. I've read Jamison's book and Patty Duke's book to name a few and I have the same problem with these books as well. Anybody reading these books might think that the answer to bipolar disorder is simple enough, you need to take Lithium. Don't get me wrong, Lithium is an amazing medication; it brought me out of a manic high in about a week. And I took it for about two years and then it lost its effectiveness. Lithium can save lives but it isn't always the answer and it definitely isn't a perfect solution.
   
   I finished the book feeling that medications are the answer to bipolar. But what about people like me who don't respond to Lithium or who can't tolerate the horrendous side-effects of the other mood stabilizers and antidepressants? There is no answer to this question in her book. And that's fine, I suppose, that isn't what she wanted her book to be about but she doesn't need to put down people who go the alternative route. In one section she is at a support group looking for "successful" bipolars and they are going around the circle describing their personal situations. Simon writes: "Next is this crackpot bipolar nutritionist lady who says that at the Parsons Institute they taught her how to change her diet and do eight million behavioral adjustments so she doesn't need so much medicine. She is fifty-nine, not young enough for my purposes." After I read that I wasn't at all convinced that it was the woman's age that deterred Simon from interviewing her but rather it was her "crackpot" nutrition.
   
   In the same section she describes a woman whose son has bipolar schizoaffective disorder; the woman is there trying to gather information about treatment. Simons writes: "She has no clinical diagnosis herself, but I identify her immediately as a real nut.'. The woman says that her son gets put on all types of different medications and he isn't getting any better, he just sits in his room and does nothing. Simon doesn't verbalize her opinion in the group but thinks to herself: "Maybe he just hates you".
   
   Simon seems quite conflicted. On the one hand she does a good job at expressing her disgust with the stigma surrounding bipolar disorder. On the other hand she is quick to use derogatory language. It's as if by using such language she is contributing to the very stigma that she is trying to fight. I found this particular aspect of the book unsettling.
   
   Anyway, despite my criticisms of the book I would still recommend that you give it a try, it's interesting enough. But here's my warning: please don't feel bad if you find that you don't fit into Simon's definition of a "successful bipolar", she's a hard marker.



3. Detour provides another perspective for those who are bipolar or have a loved one who is bipolar. There are other books out there that cover the science and case studies of the disorder. This is a much more personal book. I certainly don't think it is the only book you should read on the subject. Beware that the focus is on the under 35, college educated, relatively recently diagnosed bipolar person. If you are that person you need to read this book. It is a very quick read and well worth the effort.



4. I've re-read this book twice since discovering it. I continued to admire its emotional authenticity and intellectual clarity, which wind up allowing the reader to get beyond the wealth of misconceptions that surround bipolarity. This book goes way deeper and further than most personal-experience books on medical/emotional conditions.



5. I admire the courage Lizzie Simon has to peel away- everything- and show us all the inside of her brain!
   
   This is the memoir of her journey to find other young successful people like herself who suffer from bipolar disorder. She interviews seven different people who have similar stories to tell.
   
   "Everybody has stories about being misdiagnosed, mistreated, misunderstood and disrespected by the medical community.
   
   Everybody has spent long stretches of time as zombies waiting for medicine to work. Most of us have been good sports about humiliating side effects like weight gain, bed-wetting and drooling.
   
   Everybody experienced a time when it didn't look as if they were gonna make it. Everybody did make it."
   
   How brave of her to write this honest and eye opening memoir about the struggle and the stigma associated with mental illness.
   
   I was so impressed by her ability to communicate the sadness but especially the mania. She was so unflinchingly direct with not one word of psychiatric jargon. This was a very real and often raw account of her cross-country adventure.
   
   This was not a scientific study, this is the story of Lizzie's experience, it's a hopefully story. I feel the people she interviewed were very fortunate most of them had good parents who educated themselves and helped their children through their crisis.
   
   Of course this could have been a very different story if Lizzie had chosen to write an objective scientific study about people suffering from bipolar disorder in America. I most likely wouldn't have read that book. I'm thankful she wrote this story, I found it very insightful.

1 comments about Blue Sky July: A Mother's Story of Hope and Healing.

1. Joe appeared perfectly normal at birth...or so the Apgar scores indicated. But within two hours of his birth, Joe is whisked away to the newborn intensive care unit in grave danger. He is thoroughly tested and found to have severe cerebral palsy. The specialist gives Nia and Alex, Joe's parents, little if any encouragement. The experts all seem to agree that Joe will be blind and unable to speak, move or even recognize his mom and dad.
   
   Nia and Alex are devastated but unwilling to accept the life sentence the doctors have given their infant son. Their lives are filled with a seemingly endless round of visits to specialists, therapists and healers. Nia is even more adamant than Alex; she simply refuses to accept the prognosis so often repeated to her. The doctors suggest she is in denial, but there is absolutely no denying that Nia will do whatever she possibly can to see that Joe has a life worth living.
   
   Light therapy, oxygen therapy, patterning, tapping, music therapy, sensory therapy, Reiki, crystals, Chinese herbs --- Nia tries them all. In fact, it seems there is nothing she won't try. The baby book, purchased in happier, more hopeful times, remains empty the first year. There are no milestones to record.
   
   Nia reduces Joe's drugs for epilepsy, against the advice and orders of the neurologist. Later, when the neurologist mentions that there are no traces of epilepsy on Joe's latest examinations, he still won't admit there is no need for those drugs at all.
   
   A milestone, so long hoped for, finally occurs. Movement! Joe reaches out, actually moving the muscles in his left arm for the first time. Nia and Alex, however, are drifting apart. Though their goals are similar --- giving Joe as normal a life as possible --- their lives are going in opposite directions. Alex has a job to occupy much of his time, and Nia is so focused on Joe that there is practically no time or energy for anything else.
   
   One day, when Joe is two years old, he raises his arms --- both stiffly and not at the same time, but he does reach them around Nia's neck to hug her. This is major progress. Not only is he beginning to move his limbs, he can now express emotion. Joe learns to tap --- once for yes, twice for no. At last, some real communication. Alex feels that Nia has no time for him, and he moves out, but continues to visit three times a day to assist with Joe's patterning exercises and to play with him.
   
   Joe's progress is agonizingly slow, but Nia has wonderful support from family and friends. And now she has a helper --- a respite worker named Sian, who brings joy and hope each time she visits.
   
   Shortly after his third birthday Joe rolls over for the first time. With every painstakingly slow bit of progress that he makes, Nia is more hopeful and determined than ever that her son will continue to improve. Another eye specialist diagnoses cataracts, so Joe has surgery and is fitted with glasses. Now there is real hope for his sight. His first word is "more," and he is happy when he hears music. The little victories and milestones begin to accumulate; Nia's hopes are not in vain.
   
   BLUE SKY JULY is a testament to the unconditional love, hopes and dreams that every mother has for her child. Nia has courage, patience, determination and the ability to continue moving forward even when the experts are telling her it is hopeless. Beautifully written, the book is by turns heartbreaking and hopeful. It is the amazing true story of a young mother who will do anything within her ability to give her son the full and happy life that is every child's birthright.
   
   --- Reviewed by Carole Turner

3 comments about A Journey Round My Skull (New York Review Books Classics).

1. In the spring of 1936, Frigyes (Frederic) Karinthy, a popular Hungarian poet, heard locomotives rumbling, reverberating, dying away. He knew there had been no trains on the streets of Budapest for 40 years. After long, exhaustive examinations Budapest neurologists told him that an egg-sized cyst webbed with tiny blood vessels was sprouting on the right side of his brain, back of his cerebellum. Karinthy's wife took him to Stockholm and Dr. Herbert Olivecrona.
   
   Oliver Sachks asks: "Were doctors in Budapest in 1936, worse than doctors in, say, New York or London seventy years later? ... [O]ne needs to remember ... how difficult and delicate an art it was, seventy years ago, to diagnose and locate a cerebral tumor." Ether could not be used -- it would congest brain blood vessels. Karinthy remained awake during the operation. This book is the first patient's account of a brain operation in medical history.
   
   Much of the book is autobiographical, but in chapter "Avdeling 13" Karinthy describes the operation itself.
   
   "I felt them wheel me under the lamp. I felt a succession of little pricks in a wide circle ... on my head. Then . . . one long horizontal incision at the back of my neck. This did not hurt me either. I felt soft gestures, as if my flesh were being opened and folded back.
   
   "There was a sudden jerk as if [Dr. Olivecrona] had seized the opening with a pair of forceps. It was followed by a straining sensation, a feeling of pressure, a cracking sound, and a terrific wrench. . . . Something broke with a dull noise. . . . Each cracking sound reminded me of taking the lid off a jamjar, while the process as a whole was like splitting open a wooden packing case, plank by plank. . . .
   
   "A veritable fury of destruction seized hold of me. Break it up! I wanted to shout. Smash away! Bust it to bits! Everything had gone red in front of my eyes. If I had had an axe or a lump of iron in my hand I should have hit out with it and smashed up myself and everyone else with the wild recklessness of a maniac.
   
   "Once the trephining of the skull was over . . . my mood underwent a change. There was a sound of pumping and draining and I could hear the drip, drip of a liquid. Although my brain didn't hurt at all, it did hurt me when one of the instruments fell on to the glass with a sharp, metallic sound. A certain idea passing through my mind hurt me too. It had nothing to do with my present situation. . . ."
   
   Three hours after the operation began, the poet lost consciousness. Three weeks later, Karinthy went back to his Budapest cafés, and heard no more nonexistent locomotives.
   
   His report from the operating table is compelling, and the autobiographical sections are also interesting as. "I felt absolutely at peace. This was no longer my whole life; it was just one afternoon. It might be that I was very ill. Perhaps I was even going to die. Yet this had nothing to do with that afternoon, nor I with the man born to sorrow from the day he came into the world."
   
   And again: "Throughout nature, every living body has two aspects--one connected with its private functions and individual life, and one which we may call the sexual. Each of our organs has likewise two aspects, adapted for completely different purposes. Thus, the eye is not merely an instrument of vision, but an alluring jewel, an ever-burning lamp, whose sparkle inflames the opposite sex."
   
   Finally: "Reality as a genre requires no helping hand from the artist."
   
   This book makes a great companion to My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey by Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor who writes about her journey inside her brain. Both are compelling reading.
   
   Robert C. Ross 2008



2. A Journey Round My Skull appears (based on reviews and cover blurbs) to be a classic of the 'sick patient' genre. I'm not exactly sure why. I found it to be a little challenging to stick with to the end. Part of the problem is the stilted translation from Karinthy's native language. It never flows well and reads very much like a translation inasmuch as the english phrases seem awkward, rough and not-quite-right. I almost never forgot that I was in fact reading a translation -- surely a sign of a less than stellar job.
   
   That aside, Karinthy's style never really caught on with me. What I expected to be a straight-up tale of what happens to a patient with a brain tumor saddled with diagnosis and treatment using only mid-20th century technology, turned out to be a more dreamlike, stream of consciousness experience that was often a little confusing. Also surprising was Karinthy's baffling attitude at being stricken with a brain tumor. Never did he admit to self-pity, sadness or fear for the future. Instead he tells his story from a detached, "what will be will be" perspective. It's rather hard for me to imagine facing blindness and possible death with such a cavalier attitude. I question if he really did either.



3. I purchased this book because, upon browsing it in the bookstore, it mirrored much of my experience with seizures and brain surgery. His descriptions and the unreal experience of having a brain disease hit the bulls eye. The floating, stream of conciousness-like storytelling brings home the feelings involved with such a curious experience. I'm enjoying it immensely.