Fallen: A Trauma, a Marriage, and the Transformative Power of Music

by Kara Stanley

Overview

Part recovery narrative and part love story, interwoven with the latest research on the brain, Fallen describes the aftermath of a life-threatening brain and spinal cord injury.

In 2008, Simon Paradis stepped backward on the scaffolding where he was doing construction work and fell two stories to the hard stone tile below. Landing on his back, head, and spine, he suffered a severe brain and spinal cord injury. Doctors warned his wife, Kara Stanley, that he probably would not survive, and that if he did, his mind and his body would never be the same. In Fallen, Kara Stanley chronicles the effect of this catastrophic accident on both Simon and her and on their marriage.

Combining the heart-wrenching narrative of Simon’s recovery with the latest research on the brain, the book elucidates the resilience of both the human heart and the human mind. It also describes the transformative role of music in Simon’s life both before and during his continuing rehabilitation and his hard-fought battle to return to work as a professional musician. At the heart of the story is the relationship between the author and her husband, as she explores what is essential in a marriage to allow it to grow and thrive even amid life’s inherent chaos and uncertainty.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781771641036
Publisher:	Greystone Books
Publication date:	04/20/2015
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	320
File size:	739 KB

About the Author

Kara Stanley holds a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing, and her writing has appeared in Fugue, HipMama, and Paste.

Editorial Reviews

03/30/2015
Stanley's debut book is a love story about the way the author's life changes after a traumatic injury leaves her musician husband, Simon, paralyzed from the waist down. It traces Simon's journey from his fall at a construction site to Vancouver General Hospital, where he reawakens from a coma, and along his long road to rehabilitation. The story moves between the past, as Stanley recounts the course of her life with Simon and their son before the accident, and a present filled with excruciating anxiety about Simon's health and future. It's a difficult story to follow, both because it is so painful for Simon and his family, and because they endure a laborious trek through the labyrinthine passages of the medical system, but the man whose portrait Stanley paints is endearing, and her love for him is resilient and unquestionable. Along with descriptions of personal healing experiences, including the important role of music in Simon's recovery, Stanley also includes some recent neuromedical research. This doesn't always feel like a natural fit and slows the book down, but otherwise this is a compelling story of strength and love. Agent: Carolyn Swayze, Carolyn Swayze Literary Agency (Canada). (May)

Publishers Weekly

"The man whose portrait Stanley paints is endearing, and her love for him is resilient and unquestionable ...a compelling story of strength and love."—Publishers Weekly

“A profound mining of the depths of loss and pain and an unflinching distillation of the daily textures of acceptance, accommodation, gratitude, and yes, celebration—all exquisitely told by an astonishing partner and writer.”—Bonnie Klein, director of Shameless: The Art of Disability

“The book's wisdom and compassion earn it a spot right next to Joan Didion's The Year of Magical Thinking.”-Angie Abdou, author of Between

“Fallen offers critical insight into resilience, brain plasticity, and the redemptive power of music and insists on a truth we prefer not to acknowledge—that life can change in the space of a single breath.”—Rachel Rose, author of Song & Spectacle

“To understand and care for her husband, Kara Stanley was forced to become an expert in neuroanatomy and physiology, knowledge which she shares with us in a generous and engaging way.”—Michael C. Klein, Emeritus Professor of Family Practice and Pediatrics, University of British Columbia

From the Publisher