Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

First, I have to take issue with an unthinking criticism that a few readers have leveled at this book. This is the story of a woman who loves animals; if you read the whole book, it's obvious -- she even loves the animal who was involved in her near-life-destroying injury. Ifyou look at those reviews below, you can see that Vallance does something hard and heartbreaking (no spoilers) about the third of the way through the book that apparently convinced those few readers that the author must be a cruel person who hates animals. In response, I'd say 1) read what the author has to say about that particular event and look at how it impacts her future decisions 2) read the damn book ***all the way through***. If you think that the awful episode is just author-being-horrible, then you haven't' read it nor been aware that autobiographers can leave things out to make themselves look better, and the fact that this author didn't leave this out tells you a lot about her story and about her love for other creatures. Second: As an M.D. I get tired of feel-good stories about near-death experiences or near-fatal illnesses that have a clean and easy arc involving a savior (a doctor, a treatment, God, a lover, whatever) and eventual reconciliation with the illness or to death via said savior. Serious illness and injury are not like that, and this book is not one of those easy-feel-good books. That's what makes the story so remarkable and worth reading. The book delves into the difficulties, the ups and downs, the periodic helplessness, the moments of hope that people with serious injury or illness go through as they accommodate and battle a recalcitrant body. This is the truth of serious illnesses, not a pretty and easy story. Vallance is honest about how hard her injury is and how TBI affects every part of her life (her love life, her family, her education, her career, her living situations). She's also very clear about how little we know about human neurology and how so much of what's done to help/manage TBI and other neurological illnesses (e.g. Alzheimer's) are piecemeal, guesswork, case-by-case, and trial-and-error. Similar to certain cancers, we don't have a simple, easily-identifiable cause, or an obvious mechanism and progression of illness. Having to learn to live with that, to put a life together around something so life-changing, to do what you think is right to retool your brain -- it's one of the hardest things a person can do -- and harder still when it's unclear what your long-term prognosis is. Vallance tells this story honestly, but never at the expense of the story. The book is beautifully written, factual information gently added to the recounting of her adult life, so that anyone interested in what it's like when your brain changes on you will find both a moving story and information on what we know about TBI. Intelligent, thoughtful, and emotionally honest, this is one of the best books I've read this year.