1 comments about Seasons of Grief and Grace: A Sister's Story of AIDS.

1. I live in Lubbock, Texas, where much of this story takes place, and I happen to know some of the people Dr. Ford mentions. But that was hardly the only reason I wanted to read this compassionate biography. Dr. Ford shows how her brother bravely faced AIDS and the bigotry related to it.

   Despite its subject matter, this book is never depressing. Instead, Dr. Ford captures the inspirational aspects of her brother's life and how it touched the lives of people around him. I found her poems about his struggle especially touching and hope she'll share more of those in another book.

   Duane Simolke .....

No comments about A Peculiar Child: Reflections of a Mad Woman.

1 comments about Beyond the Red Door.

1. This is an excellent book....To me, loss of vision would be the worst disability to suffer.
   
   Janet lost one eye as a baby due to cancer, and was told she would lose vision in the other eye in the near future. She was put into a blind school (which had a red door) when she was a child, and didn't understand why she was there. She was 33 when she finally lost her other eye - it had finally succumbed to the aggressive radiation that she was given as a child.
   
   Janet was also adopted as a baby, and wanted to find her natural parents to see if the retinoblastoma was hereditary. When she was 18, she met her mother, who said she didn't want anything to do with her. Her father is a high-profile media personality in Australia. He finally accepted Janet as his daughter, and they now keep in regular contact.
   
   This book is about Janet's journey through her childhood, and into adulthood with a vision disability. Worthwhile reading.

No comments about Shades of Blue.

1 comments about Precious in Her Father's Eyes: Carla Marie 1992-1995.

1. As someone who has fostered a severely brain-damaged child, and who has spent a year working in a classroom for the severely and profoundly handicapped, I appreciated Cindy's candor as well as her viewpoint in writing about this sensitive subject. She consistently emphasizes what many people don't see about caring for these little angels -- that being required to give deeply of ourselves is a blessing. The book is written with tenderness and a mother's love, and also with humor and hope, and is a good read (though it's necessary to keep a box of tissues handy).

1 comments about Confessions of a Brain-Impaired Writer: The ALA Notable Book Author of Where's Your Head?.

1. Dale Carlson captures wih ferocity the dilemmas experienced by people who have right hemisphere learning disabilities in her CONFESSIONS OF A BRAIN-IMPAIRED WRITER. She exposes the most intimate details of her life and loves...her gift with words demonstrates with stark realism how people with such social learning disabilities compensate for struggles to negotiate and manage relationships to become a wife, lover, prize-winning author. She is gifted and disabled. -- Dr. Kathleen Laundy, Psy.D., MSW, Yale School of Medicine

1 comments about The Bullet Meant for Me: A Memoir.

1. This is an excellent memoir about growing up in Texas, manhood, the aftermath of violence, and the long journey of recovery. The Bullet Meant for Me is intelligent and insightful-highly recommended!

3 comments about When the Music Stopped.

1. When The Music Stopped was a heart-wrenching book, as the reader could feel the helplessness and hopelessness in each stage and step along the way of this disease. As a "veteran" caregiver myself, I could certainly empathize with Mr. Wright. When a loved one is terminally ill, many try to find the "magic bullet" to cure such disease. We all know there's usually no such thing as a magic bullet, but we can't help but grasp for any straw that might prolong our loved one's life even if only for a few days. A terminal illness is a roller coaster ride that takes one on such highs and lows and the end result is always the same.



2. This is a MUST read, even for those of us who haven't had a loved one with ALS!! Mike Wright is an inspiration to us all and his stuggles are some we all can relate with. Thanks to him for getting more information out there for ALS families. May God bless him richly!



3. "When the Music Stopped" is the touching story of the faith and courage of Patti, a beautiful and talented woman with ALS, (Lou Gehrig's Disease) and an "ordinary man's journey " of 3 ½ years as her caregiver. Mike Wright tells his story with compassion, startling honesty and humor. The reader shares the impact that this devastating terminal illness has on every aspect of life. The author's objective is "to encourage those who must walk a similar path.."

   Unlike "Tuesdays With Morrie" this book deals with the 24/7 challenges that the caregiver faces as one muscle group after another fails. Wright gives many practical and creative ways he found to deal with the constantly changing needs that ALS presents. Anticipating Patti's needs was one of his greatest challenges. The author gives suggestions to caregivers such as: "picking your battles, pace yourself, sleep a moment at a time, cry if you need to, and share laughter."

   Wright emphasized the importance of accepting help when you need it. He describes a group of 15 friends he called Patti's Angels who assumed the caregiver roll in the afternoons so he could work part time.

   Admitting that the physical and emotional exhaustion was often overwhelming for both of them they found that a sense of humor was a key to survival. Wright describes his first awkward attempts at learning how to put on panty house and apply makeup. Helping Patti to try on clothes in a cramped ladies dressing room in the mall when she was unable to move her arms or stand without assistance provided laughs for months to come. Humor helped the couple deal with many difficult situations.

   The Wright's college aged son and teenaged daughter each wrote a chapter describing how they coped with their mother's terminal illness. Their honesty mirrors that of their father.

   The book describes the grief process following the death of Patti
   and the difficult road to recovery ending with his remarriage four years later.
   This book is not only an inspiring story of a courageous woman but it's a tribute to her caregiver who was anything but ordinary.

No comments about All the Kings Horses, All the Kings Men.

2 comments about Kill The Child.

1. The life of Anne and her mother takes you through the life of Multiple Personality Disorder. Grief, confusion, suicide, miscarriage, marriage, lies, war and rape all gave birth to a struggle that still continues.
   While not suffering as she suffers I was able to find parrallels and understanding through her plainly spoken words and experiences. More than anything "Kill the Child" explains the reasons for multiple personalities and the importance of nurturing, therapy and acceptance.



2. Since this book is the real life, double biography of two women, mother and daughter, who are dissociative (Multiple Personality Disorder), as told by the daughter, this book would enable others to understand the anguishing, inner world of the mind that dissociatives live in.