OUR SCORE: ★★★✩✩✩✩✩✩✩
GENRE: Medical Fiction
Selected by Pamela - September 2018
SYNOPSIS:
An accomplished concert pianist, Richard has already suffered many losses in his life: the acrimonious divorce from his ex-wife, Karina; the estrangement of his daughter, Grace; and now, a devastating diagnosis. ALS. The relentlessly progressive paralysis of ALS begins in the cruellest way possible - in his hands. As Richard becomes more and more locked inside his body and can no longer play piano or live on his own, Karina steps in as his reluctant caregiver.
Paralysed in a different way, Karina is trapped within a prison of excuses and blame, stuck in an unfulfilling life as an after-school piano teacher, afraid to pursue the path she abandoned as a young woman. As Richard's muscles, voice and breath fade, the two struggle to reconcile their past before it's too late.
STORY BEHIND THE BOOK:
Pamela:
I’ve read all of Lisa’s books and in each one I’ve learned about a disease via a person who suffers with it and how it not only affects the person but also the family and friends around them. Her books are not only accurate with the gruelling gut wrenching factual details of the disease itself including the developmental stages, the care involved whilst not leaving out any of the painstaking realities. So when I discovered this book I knew I would enjoy it and so selected it for my next book choice.
THE DISCUSSION: (Contains spoilers)
We started with Pamela reading us a quick recap of the novel and giving her viewpoints and opinions. We then all stated what we personally felt about the book. Unfortunately the majority of us didn't have the same thoughts and opinions as Pamela this time round. We all agreed that we didn't know much about the disease before reading the book and actually by the time we had finished reading we knew the medical details and progression of ALS, which saddened us.
We thought the initial story line was fascinating. Imagine relying on your hands for your livelihood and to suddenly loose all function must be horrific. What a cruel twist in life that would be. So for Lisa Genova to have written a story where the main character was in that predicament was an interesting concept. One that should have drawn the reader to feel compassion and perhaps even be emotionally connected right from the beginning. For us this did not happen. We agreed that actually we didn't really connect with any of the main characters, especially Richard who we thought was a selfish and cruel man. Saying this, Lisa Genova didn't actually paint his past in the most glowing light so maybe she purposely wanted a character that you were not initially warmed to.
The same could be said of Karina, we weren't initially fond of her. For us we expected them to fall back in love. What did happened however, was they both learnt to let go of the past and forgive one another. I guess in reality this made it a more realistic ending but one that was a bit boring. Whilst Richard's character slowly got weaker due to the disease, Karina's character became stronger and more decisive. We found the other characters in the book far more robust and likeable.
Some elements of the book made us frustrated. We couldn't understand why Karina would want to look after her ex-husband especially since their relationship was so damaged. We questioned why Richard went out alone or why the carer would have allowed it. We understand that he was still in denial but by then he had lost complete use of his arms, he knew that if he was to fall he would not be able to get back up and would need to rely on a neighbour to let him back into the flat. Surely these points alone would make you stay in and wait for assistance.
Pamela agreed that this book wasn't as good as others she had read by the same author but said she enjoyed it nonetheless. Nic recommended the book This Is Going To Hurt, written by a junior doctor about his experiences as a GP.
QUESTIONS:
1) Do you think Karina was right to take Richard in? Why do you think she even considered this?
2) Do you think if Richard had sent off his original letter to his father they would have rekindled their relationship?
3) What are your thoughts on Richard's relationship with his daughter?
REVIEW:
Pamela's Thoughts:
To say I enjoyed this book seems bizarre - however to learn about the day to day life about those suffering with or dealing with Motor Neurone Disease including toileting, the specialist equipment, the BiPAP cart, the Headmouse to name but a few along with the medical experts involved I found intriguing and engaging.
As well as the medical story, I enjoyed the story that include Karina her life and the irony of in spite of being Richard's carer it allowed her to move on after her divorce from him. The inclusion of love, family, regrets and forgiveness at times made light relief from the medical heaviness.
Gemma's Thoughts:
I didn't particularly enjoy the last Lisa Genova novel we read, as I'm not really a fan of medical dramas so I wasn't looking forward to this read. Whilst I found it insightful, as I didn't have much prior knowledge of ALS/Motor Neurone Disease, I found it lacked pace and a strong story line. The book was more of an outline of the progression of the disease, which was depressing. I didn't feel much sympathy towards any of the characters and although Richard's decline was upsetting it was the disease that caused me the most heartbreak rather than the character it was effecting. I did like the ending. I found it a fitting end, predictable but heartfelt.
Nic's Thoughts:
I didn't enjoy the novel and felt like I may have been reading a medical book.
Sandra's Thoughts:
I found this a depressing book which I didn't enjoy. I felt it went on and on and just hoped it was going to get better. I kept wondering why Karina had taken him in, why would you even consider it? At the end of each chapter I thought he had died to then find he was still alive. I did find the voice recording really interesting and wondered if you would prepare for this at the early stages of the disease.
THE SCORES:
Gemma: 4
Kim: 3
Nic: 1
Pamela: 6
Sandra: 3
Average 3
Let us know what you thought about this book. We would love to read your reviews and hear what you would score it.
If you enjoyed this book why not try:
Wonder by R.J Palacio
The Shock of the Fall by Nathan Filer
Left Neglected by Lisa Genova
The Man I Think I Know by Mike Gayle
Happy reading!