Review: Me Again by Keith Cronin

• Hardcover: 322 pages
• Publisher: Five Star (August 17, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1432825038

Thirty four year old Jonathan Hooper awakens. Not from a brief nap but a stroke-induced, six-year long coma. The stroke has removed most of his memory. Additionally, he has to learn to talk, to walk, to write again. The coma has caused his body to wither away, a shell of what it used to be.

The stroke, and the ensuing coma, have transformed Jonathan into a completely new man. The man he was before was dishonest, criminal, lacking any real sort of relationship with his family. While he remembers nothing of his family, it warms him to understand they are there for him despite his previous behavior.

Without a doubt, all of these changes and revelations are also extremely isolating. The only true friend he has now is Rebecca, a woman he meets in the hospital’s long-term recovery unit.  She, too, is a victim of a stroke.  Her husband doesn’t recognize the woman she is now.  To be honest, she doesn’t want to be the person she was: a showy, materialistic, trophy-wife.  Instead, she much prefers to continue to be the quiet, meek woman she’s become.  Despite her knack for saying the exactly wrong thing at any given time, Jonathan is drawn to her.

With Rebecca’s help, in addition to that of other individuals from his past, Jonathan is able to overcome the many hurdles the fall into his path to recovery.  This includes a number of secrets, both recent and decades-old, that his parents keep from him, all in an attempt, seemingly, to protect him.

Me Again is a beautifully uplifting tale of recovery, rediscovery, and change. While there is a great deal of humor within this novel, several serious themes lay buried just below the surface.  It is a book that will make you laugh, cry, shout out in anger, but above all, reflect and contemplate on your very own life. Cronin is such a talented writer; it astounds me that this is his debut novel. Where has this man been hiding?  I guarantee, without a doubt, that this is an author we’ll be hearing a lot from, for that I am hopeful! Destined for the screen; I’m already plotting the actors to play the main characters in my mind. Highly recommended!

Thank you to TLC Book Tours for giving me the opportunity to participate in this tour. Please be sure to check out the other stops:

Monday, September 12th:  girlichef
Tuesday, September 13th:  Bibliophiliac
Thursday, September 15th:  Stephanie’s Written Word
Monday, September 19th:  Lit and Life
Wednesday, September 21st:  Book Club Classics!
Thursday, September 22nd:  Unabridged Chick
Monday, September 26th:  Sarah Reads Too Much
Thursday, September 29th:  Girls Gone Reading
Monday, October 3rd:  Life in the Thumb
Wednesday, October 5th:  Coffee and a Book Chick
Thursday, October 6th:  Well Read Wife
Monday, October 10th:  Estella’s Revenge
Tuesday, October 11th:  Caribousmom
Thursday, October 13th:  Book Reviews by Elizabeth A. White
Monday, October 17th:  A Cozy Reader’s Corner
Tuesday, October 18th:  Rundpinne