Six years can go by so quickly for some people. For Jonathan Hooper, the protagonist in Keith Cronin’s new novel Me Again, those six years changed his life, for he was in a coma that he was never expected to awaken from.
Experiencing a stroke in one’s twenties isn’t a common occurrence, but that was Jonathan’s fate, and as the years passed with him remaining in a coma, the doctors did not predict a recovery. But sometimes things happen unexpectedly, and the day that Jonathan woke up marked a “medical miracle,” as well as the beginning of a long journey for him. The damage on one’s brain from a stroke is inconsistent, and while some areas of memory and ability may remain, others can be completely erased. For Jonathan, much of his memory is gone, and at the heart of it all, the biggest mystery lies in figuring out who he is.
While the past remains a blur, Jonathan begins his new life during his recovery in the hospital. It is here that he meets Rebecca, another young stroke victim working to reclaim her life. Rebecca’s experience differs from Jonathan, though. Not having gone into a coma means a much less drastic physical deterioration for her, so her physical therapy time is significantly shorter than his, and she retains her memory in whole. Though she remembers her life, she feels like a completely different person since her stroke- her personality, her likes and dislikes, the entire essence of her. For Rebecca, this causes the biggest challenge to her recovery, because she is no longer the person she used to be, making her a complete stranger to the man she married.
Jonathan and Rebecca are drawn to each other in recovery, for the support and understanding they can each bring the other. Their friendship blossoms, and Jonathan struggles with his growing romantic feelings for her, not wanting to disrupt a marriage. They each must restart their lives, but neither knows where to start.
Cronin clearly has done his research on the medical side of this story, for the descriptions and depictions here are accurate and detailed. In fact, in his acknowledgments, he makes note that 25% of proceeds from the sale of the book will be donated to the American Stroke Association.
Heavy on dialogue, Me Again reads like a television movie– some cliched phrases, but engaging main characters who readers will cheer for. With some additional side stories about family, the focus remains on relationships, and the vast majority of the story is told through conversations between characters. At times throughout the book, I couldn’t help but feel that the writing could have been less repetitive– some passages echoed others– but it was entertaining enough to stick with it to the end.
Dawn loves the escapism that can be found in a novel. Books, kids and blogging away at my thoughts exactly fill her days.