A luminous portrait of a life that transcends constraints.
A mentally disabled man feistily perseveres in this wry, heartwarming memoir.
Born with cerebral palsy after he was deprived of oxygen during a troubled delivery, the author’s brother “Wendy” Jacobson suffered partial paralysis and permanent mental retardation. (To top it off, he developed epilepsy in his teens.) Rejecting doctors’ advice to institutionalize him, his parents raised him as normally as possible, and he grew into a man of limited intellect, halting speech, spastic gait and expansive soul. Writing with a limpid prose style and a clear-eyed empathy, Jacobson pens an evocative portrait of his brother and the blessings and burdens of his existence. Now in his 70s, a grizzled coot with the mind of a child, Wendy is often stubborn and exasperating (especially on matters of personal hygiene) and obsessive about pestering people on the phone. But he also has an open, welcoming attitude toward others and himself—“good-lookin’ man like me” is his cheerfully ironic characterization of his own off-beat looks—a stern work ethic and an exuberant, garrulous charm that makes friends of everyone he meets. Jacobson is frank about Wendy’s limitations, which are severe and at times heartbreaking, but he also shows us the meaning and satisfaction his brother draws from simple pleasures. Wendy’s triumphs are as inspiring as they are commonplace—in a miracle of patient resolve, his father manages to teach him to ride a bike even though he can barely walk—and the impact of his life on those around him significant. Jacobson’s account of Wendy’s long, tender relationship with a woman even more handicapped than himself is especially moving. The author draws homespun morals from his brother’s struggles, but they are hardly needed; there’s plenty of uplift just watching Wendy play the difficult hand he was dealt with gusto.
A luminous portrait of a life that transcends constraints.Pub Date: Aug. 25, 2011
ISBN: 978-0615492957
Page Count: 122
Publisher: Lyle Jacobson
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2011
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
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