Lucky Man: A Memoir [Englisch] [Gebundene Ausgabe]

Die Autobiographie "Lucky Man" von Michael J. Fox bietet nicht nur interessante Informationen zum Thema Parkinson, sondern ist die schonungslos ehrliche Lebensgeschichte eines sehr sympathischen Stars. Der Leser erfährt viel über die Familie, die Karriere und die persönliche Entwicklung dieses humorvollen Schauspielers. Auch ohne die Diagnose "Parkinson" hätte Fox schon eine lesenswerte Geschichte zu erzählen: Sehr offen und häufig voller Ironie stellt er das "Tollhaus" Hollywood und dessen Gefahren dar. Doch auch sich selbst sieht er sehr kritisch, erzählt von Alkohol- und psychischen Problemen und den zeitweise sehr schwierigen Beziehungen zu seiner Frau und seiner Familie. Dass er seine Krankheit letztlich als Geschenk und sich selbst als "Lucky Man" sieht, versteht man nach der kurzweiligen Lektüre.
Ein sehr empfehlenwertes Buch - nicht nur für erklärte MJF-Fans!

Lucky Man is a stylishly written, self-deprecating memoir that will be irresistible to Michael J. Fox fans and those who have a loved one suffering from Parkinson's disease. The book has the same witty approach that you would have expected from any of the comic characters Mr. Fox played during his distinguished career.

I was drawn to the book both because I admire Mr. Fox as an actor and because my father recently was diagnosed as having Parkinson's disease. I thought this book would help me understand more about the disease and how to cope with it. My high expectations for learning more about Mr. Fox and his acting career, and understanding more about the experience of Parkinson's disease were vastly exceeded.

Mr. Fox begins the memoir with the experience of discovering his first tremor. He was recovering from an alcoholic binge the night before, a frequent occurrence in that stage of his career, and was inclined to think that somehow the two were connected. That's just the beginning of a long period of denial during which he avoided working with a neurologist, even after he accepted the diagnosis.

From there, the book travels backward to his youth in Canada and the frequent moves that his family made because of new assignments his father received while in the military. You find out how a kinetic, precocious and diminutive youngster found himself frustrated by high school and dropped out before graduating to take on the challenges of television. Not surprisingly, his meteoric career left him unprepared to handle the new challenges and responsibilities. Mr. Fox candidly describes the various bad decisions he made without wallowing in them. He had a series of epiphanies throughout his life to date that have informed him of what he was doing wrong. He has had the courage to act on those epiphanies, and has been rewarded for taking those actions.

The memoir's main theme is how Parkinson's disease turned out to be a blessing in disguise, forcing him to address many of the weaknesses in his life, which included boozing, delegating the details of day-to-day responsibilities, being over-focused on the commercial side of his career, not being enough of a family presence and not facing his demons.

If you have liked Mr. Fox on the screen, you'll probably like him better after reading this fine memoir. He has a strong sense of family, and you will meet a remarkable one in the Foxes through him. His wife, Tracy, is very special too, and you will see the kinds of support that can really help a patient with Parkinson's disease.

The disease and its potential for a cure are well described. All of us should be grateful to Mr. Fox for taking on a public role as an advocate in which he has been willing to let us all see the deterioration that the disease has brought to his neurological control over his body's movement. In fact, I decided to read this book after seeing a television interview that Mr. Fox did during the NBA playoffs this year in which he unconcernedly chatted on in an amiable way while his body twitched and jerked uncontrollably. It was a remarkable example of true grace and poise. Through his visibility, Mr. Fox's foundation has raised millions and helped accelerate the use of many more funds to speed the developement of a cure.

I agree that he's a lucky man. More importantly, he's a fine man. I'm glad he shared his story in this outstanding and open way.

I also wish him well in finding that cure, and being able to use it in his own life.

Where in your life has a setback turned out to be a blessing? What are you struggling with today that could be helpful to you? What are you not facing up to yet? Those are the questions that this memoir will and should raise in your mind.

Ich habe das Buch gelesen, da mich MJF mit seinen Filmen durch meine Teenager-Zeit begleitet hat und es mich interessiert hat, was "hinter den Kulissen" in dem Leben eines so sympathischen Schauspielers passiert. Das Buch zeigt, daß Krankheiten auch nicht vor Prominenten halt machen und im Umkehrschluß, daß Prominente eben auch nur Menschen sind wie du und ich. MJF beschreibt sehr schonungslos auch die nicht so rosigen Seiten in seinem bisherigen Leben. Auch wenn es etwas gedauert hat bis sein Leben trotz diverser Probleme eine positive Wendung vollzogen hat, ist seine Geschichte sehr ermutigend für alle Menschen, die von unheilbaren Krankheiten betroffen sind. Es wäre schön, wenn es mehr Bücher dieser Art gäbe, die zeigen, daß es immer Hoffnung gibt und Möglichkeiten auch aus einer vermeintlich ausweglosen Situation etwas positives zu machen.