5 comments about Man Made: A Memoir.

1. A prolactinoma is a pituitary gland tumor that produces excessive amounts of the hormone prolactin. This slow-growing tumor accurs in both men and women and is often not identified as the source of health problems until it has grown to a rather large size. In a male, excessive prolactin has an emasculating and feminizing effect. Testosterone levels decrease, the sex drive all but disappears, and erections are practically impossible to achieve. To make matters worse, when prolactin reaches high enough levels in the blood, it can cause males to lactate.

   At least 10 years of Ken Baker's life was spent in the confusing world created by his prolactinoma. He was unable to understand why the rest of the guys around him were so sex-obsessed. He could not figure out why 500 sit-ups a day didn't flatten his stomach even though his fellow hockey players were able to build up their bodies with less dedication. He didn't understand why a young athletic male such as himself could rarely ever achieve an erection. He didn't know why his headaches were getting worse, and he certainly had no clue why he was lactating. But to designate Ken Baker's years living with a prolactinoma in his head as an emasculated hell would not do justice to his profound experience. He has had the rare opportunity of observing the members of his own gender with the mindset of someone somewhere between male and female. He saw us for what we are. The obsession with sex, the never-cry-in-public manliness, the male chauvinism, and other characteristics we as males possess, Ken Baker could not relate to. When finally diagnosed and treated (most importantly, when sex drive and erections returned), he was finally able to understand why so many men possessed the characteristics that he had disdained for so long.

   This book several other storylines besides the chief one of the author's struggle to understand his "emasculation." He describes his relationship with his father who he loved very much despite the fact that he was often unsupportive, tempestuous, and even racist. The descriptions of his relationships with his brothers invoke both laughter and sadness.

   I recommend this book to anyone who accepts the fallacy that male attitudes, sex drive, and the such are solely under the control of the mind and that males just choose to be what they are. Ken Baker is proof that a little hormone called testosterone has quite a bit more to do with it than you think.




2. As a man diagnosed with the same malady as the author, reading about someone who had endured the same misery as myself was both shocking and reassuring. Ken Baker describes his journey in compelling and sometimes painfully honest prose. His description of a descent into a torturous abyss is rivaled only by his ascent from the very depths of despair. Most of my family and closests friends have read this book and have a new found understanding for the hell some of us have endured. Mr. Baker's book is a worthy example of the power of the human spirit.



3. Many women seem not to recognize that men can go through much of the same sex-related anguish that they themselves must suffer. While we may not be as vulnerable as women, cultural confusion, ignorance, shame and stinging embarassment are all in the mix for most men to whom sex is not always the big joke we make it out to be. It is often a great frustration, even for the well-adjusted. Mr. Baker's story highlights these issues through his own severe case (thank God it's rare) giving hope to anyone who has ever felt like the only one in the world who isn't getting any.



4. Ken Baker's Man Made takes you into the world of a boy searching for his own manhood in a world that tries to dictate it for him. It is well written. Humor is peppered throughout what was a tormenting experience for the author. It is about a disease but it is not a book about being sick, but rather a book about living and overcoming the obstacles life presents.



5. I could not put this book down. The writing is superb, the story truly amazing. What an incredible story told so well.

1 comments about The MUSIC OF LIGHT: THE EXTRAORDINARY STORY OF HIKARI AND KENZABURO OE.

1. This is the best book I've read this year. It covers so much: a family's love for their brain damaged child and their commitment to the grueling, challenging years raising him in a society that wants him to just disappear. It is at once literary criticism, classical music criticism, cultural commentary, biography, pschology, psychiatry, medicine and a touchingly told love story between man and son. By the end of this book you will have fallen in love with Hikari the sweet savant from Kobe and his wonderful father, Kenzaburo.

3 comments about The Earl Campbell Story: A Football Great's Battle with Panic Disorder.

1. I turned 40 six months ago and suffered my first panic attack shortly aftewards. I was rushed to the hospital, thinking it was a heart attack. I was lucky. The ER doc diagnosed it correctly as a panic attack.
   
   I went to my family physician the next day and he gave me a thorough exam, then recommended a psychiatrist to help me with my panic attacks. He also recommended I read The Earl Campbell Story. I had no idea who Earl Campbell was, since I am not a sports fan but I read the book. Mr. Campbell, your book really helped me. I found the front of the book very helpful, because it described who you were and how great a football player you were. Then when the panic attacks started, I thought I was reading about my own experience.
   
   I think it took a tremendous amount of courage for you to step forward and write this book. It really helped me and I can't thank you enough.



2. I thought the book gave good detail on Panic Disorder and how it can affect anybody. The first couple of chapters went on to long about how he grew up and gave no information on his disorder until later in the book. I believe the book should have began when he started to develope Panic Disorder.



3. Be forewarned that panic does not come into this book until page 83 (of 208). Also be forewarned that it's written at maybe a sixth-grade reading level. (Neither of these is necessarily a bad thing.)

   It's a simplistic and lengthy testimonial. There are some reconstructed dialogues that feel artificial, some of the chronology is hard to follow, and people appear out of nowhere or disappear after being identified in detail.

   The first 82 pages are mainly football, with lots of numbers and stats. There's an entire chapter on his sausage business that reads like a promotional pamphlet: "All of our meals are precooked and specially sealed with a newly developed technology to keep them fresh. Customers only have to pop them into a microwave oven for three minutes before serving. These meals have become big sellers for us because they are convenient and taste great" etc. (p. 153). And not only that, but "Today I feel as confident about my ability to make a great-tasting meat product as I used to feel about my ability to run with the football. I think both are God-given talents" (p. 153). There's nothing to tie this to the supposed theme of the book.

   We get glimpses of Campbell's "pride" (anger at a doctor's suggestion that he try Prozac, sudden disgust with one who asks him to ingest caffeine as an experiment, lashing out at doctors who, attempting to arrive at a diagnosis, inquire whether he uses drugs), glimpses of his warm feelings, and mere hints at "fear of failure" and an "emotional man". Just when he starts to tell us something interesting, he quits and moves on.

   You get the feeling this guy wants to talk about it but he doesn't want to talk about it.

   This is also hinted at by some contradictions. In one chapter he can't attend banquets because crowds bother him, but a few pages later he says "My panic disorder has no effect on my ability to function in the business world" (p. 149). If these are both true, some discussion would help.

   Many panic sufferers would like to wave this book around as evidence that panic does not equate with general wimpiness. It's just disappointing that more substance isn't given here.

5 comments about Show Me the Way to Go Home.

1. My mother was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's Disease at fifty years. I found Larry Rose's account of what was happening to be a wonderful way to relate to her in a way that she was unable to describe to me. This book will be a "hard to put down" account of daily life for those facing similar experiences along the way through this dibilitating illness that robs so much. Larry finds a positive light to shine on purpose in life and to keep on living. He is truly a courageous story that should not be missed. A big five star read with a human approach.



2. This is a fascinating story actually written by an Alzheimer's patient in the early stages of the disease. Larry was diagnosed at age 54. This came after his getting lost on a trip, driving more than a hundred miles out of the way of the route to his destination before realizing it. Larry tries to see the good in this, writing that he has "more compassion for people, birds, deer, and the like" and he says "If when you read this book you feel a certain sadness...let yourself be sad, but not for me...I have had a good and prosperous life...Most of all, I have had the love of some beautiful people...and I have loved them, too."



3. I bought this book shortly after my husband had been diagnosed with Alzheimers. At that time he was 54 - the same age as Larry Rose. I found the book to be helpful & giving us both a positive outlook after being told of this dreadful diagnosis. Larry Rose allowed us to see into his life, showing us so many things that we could recognise from dealing with our own day to day problems, and always writing with a sense of humour & dignity. This book has now been passed on to my family, enabling them to better understand my husbands emotions & feelings. It will be highly recommended to the people in my support group.



4. I picked up Larry's Book, "Show me the way to go home", quite by chanceat a local book store. I was interested in Alzheimer's disease because my mother died from it a few years ago. I could not put the book down until I had read the last page. I read it again the next day and then again and again. Then I sat down and cried for a week. I found that I had fallen in Love with this handsome, dashing, man. If you have a friend or relative that is afflicted with this disease, you must read Larry's Book. He has achieved the impossible. He has given us an insight into the mind of person afflicted with this terrible disease. After reading his book and looking at his picture on the back cover, I feel that I know him well enough to call him Larry. Thank You, Larry, for your book and God Bless!Kathleen



5. Rose poignantly describes his painful experiences of living midlife with Alzheimer's disease. He recalls the early warning signs and symptoms; the process of medical diagnosis and treatment; telling friends and family; coping with the confusion, fear and anger; and family involvement in decisions of property, caregiving and support. Personal quality of life issues are addressed as the author's awareness of the beauty in the ordinariness of life is increased through this experience. A highly individual, personal experience with universal appeal. Recommended for general public library collections.

No comments about Life After a Head Injury.

No comments about The Pits and the Pendulum: A Life with Bipolar Disorder.

1 comments about Breakdown Lane, Traveled: An Anthology of Writings on Madness.

1. It's a remarkable set of stories. The author is in remission after decades of severe illness, and looks back at her own past. The stories, individually, range from the comical and embarassing to dark and disturbing. As a collection, they seem to form a research notebook, trying all the different ways to make sense of the facts of her life. There seems to be a lot of truth in each story and a lot of fiction. It's not always clear how much of each, but I don't think that really matters. If you have any empathy at all, it's not an easy read. It may well be worthwhile, though.
   
   //wiredweird

5 comments about The Me in the Mirror.

1. As a disabled woman, I really loved this book, and could identify with many aspects of Connie's life. An educating book to those who are not disabled.



2. I read this book a few years a go and loved it. I think it was an honest book. I know it is because I have SMA like the author so I am a good judge of the subject. This book is not "Preachy" or filled with religious meaning like some disabled books. Nor does it make the disabled look needy or helpless. It's just about her life. It's not supposed to go in to great detail of specific disability issues...that's what essays and textbooks are for. Even so, I do think it does give the average "walkie-talkie" insight of disabled culture. Everything from care, school, career and romance. The writing is in everyday language and shows her humor in dealing with her struggles. The main flaw is the poor edit job. I didn't find it too distracting (if you can handle reading a personal journal you should be OK with this book) and the book is a quick read. There is a great need for books on adults with born with disabilities and disabled women. I'm glad this book made it!



3. I finished this book last night, and I was frankly infuriated by some of the earlier reviews posted about this book. This is probably the most illuminating book about the day to day existence of an extremely disabled person; which holds back nothing, that has ever been written. Panzarino, who, despite her disability was a powerful force for chance in the way the disabled are treated in society, passed away on the 4th of July of this year. Her passing only makes this book more poignant. Panzarino's style is eloquent and engaging; her story both heartbreaking and inspirational. This book is a MUST read for anyone interested in reading fascinating biographies of women who have truly helped to change the world, as well as a great tool for understanding what those with disabilities go through in a world that wasn't designed with them in mind. This book changed my view of the world profoundly. I am planning on buying it for all my friends as Xmas gifts--and hope that Connie's incredible courage wil inspire them as much as it did me.



4. I could barely finish this unorganized story told in plain language. The topics covered are important. Yet, the writing and selfish spin of the book left a very bad taste in my mouth.



5. Ms. Panzarino presents an accurate and passionate account of an absolutely remarkable life. She survived the disability that should have killed her as a child, the terrible pressures of her home, where she and her mother were trapped in a dance with no help for either. She fought her family and the "abled" world for her independence and THRIVED as a whole womin in a society which assigns a half-life to the disabled adult. I am new to the disabled community, having suffered a major stroke at the age of 49 and two small ones since. They have left me nearly speechless but I cannot even imagine the world Ms. Panzrino has had to live in. I can only admire this brave womin's strength, fortitude, intelligence and candor. The reviewer who did not see the life story and daily life of a disabled person did NOT read the same book I read!! This is and excellent read by an enlightened individual! My only disappointment is that there has not been a follow-up book since this wonderful tome was written!

2 comments about Aidan's Way.

1. This book is not your typical book about a life of a disabled child. There are no miracle breakthroughs for Aidan, not moments of sudden amazing feats, nothing like that. Aidan is profoundly disabled, and that is not really the reason for writing this book. Instead, we are shown how his life, however it might seem to others, has affected his father, his classmates and the community, through his simply being. The author often quotes ancient Chinese writings, which I thought would not really be something I'd want to read, but instead, I found much in them to speak to me. My children attend an inclusion school. There are children in their classes with severe disabilities, and I can say wholeheartedly those children give my children much more than my children give them. This book is also about the power of thinking locally. Aidan brought his father more into his local community, and helped him bring about change for all children. A beautifully written book.



2. Every now and then a book comes along that wakes us out of our drab routine lives and makes us reevaluate essential questions: what is important? Am I doing something worthwhile with my life? What is life's meaning? Trite as it may sound, "Aidan's Way" does just that, but in a way that is subtle and avoids self-indulgent breast-beating. At its core, "Aidan's Way" is a resounding affirmation of life. Sam and Maureen Crane are the parents of Aidan, who is profoundly retarded mentally--he cannot walk, talk or see. At every turn, they face the possibility that he may die. Pneumonia assaults his lungs and grand mal seizures force him to rely on a feeding tube for sustenance. Adversaries come in human guise as well, with the Cranes heroically combating outrageous abuses by their HMO, doctors stereotyping Aidan as "one of THOSE kids," and a heartbreaking moment of frustration when an indecisive nurse fails to administer a drug in time to stop Aidan's seizures from permanently damaging his already fragile brain. There are heroes, too--a doctor with cerebral palsy who doggedly probes the causes of Aidan's condition while others write him off, a younger sister who brings hope and joy to the family, and countless therapists, journalists, and teachers. Aidan touches hundreds of people. There is even an amusing vignette about Aidan's role in a row involving his father and, of all people, the Singaporean Prime Minister.

   Crane's prose is saturated with vivid imagery and he effectively conveys both the heart-rending pain and sheer joy that is Aidan's way. Drawing upon ancient Chinese texts, particularly the Tao Te Ching and the writings of Chuang Tzu, Crane explores the lessons that Aidan offers to all who come in contact with him. We, the readers, follow Crane's journey as he struggles with ideas of science, human worth and purpose, and the dichotomy of active, rational analysis and intervention, and passive being.

   All in all, an inspiring book by a talented writer who has obviously poured into his words not only his heart, but also that of his son's.

No comments about The Week the World Heard Gallaudet.