The book: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, by Jean-Dominique Bauby
What is this book about: Bauby was the editor-in-chief of Elle magazine, then he suffered a stroke. When he awoke from his coma, his mind was there but his body was completely paralyzed except for his left eye. He learned how to communicate by blinking as the alphabet was read to him in an order which reflected the frequency each letter was used in French. He blinked out this entire memoir in two months.
Why did I read this book: A few months ago, I saw the movie of the same name. The book is exactly the same as the movie, but I wanted to see just how much blinking he had to do. I wanted to hold that much blinking in my hands.
What did I think of this book: When I think about this book, I think mainly about what I would do if I were in the same situation. As much as I like my little blog and expressing what rattles around my brain, I just don't know if I could do that much blinking, or have that much patience, or even get through a whole sentence before my mind starts to wander and I forget even what I was going to say. I mean, look at the complexity of this part, when he describes how the letters of his special alphabet dance around the room at night:
"The jumbled appearance of my chorus line stems not from chance but from cunning calculation. More than an alphabet, it is a hit parade in which each letter is placed according to its use in the French language. That is why E dances proudly out in front, while W labors to hold on to last place. B resents being pushed back next to V, and haughty J--which begins so many sentences in French--is amazed to find itself so near the rear of the pack. Roly-poly G is annoyed to have to trade places with H, while T and U, the tender components of tu, rejoice that they have not been separated."
It's so descriptive. It must have taken so much blinking. I would have gotten distracted and ended up with a memoir completely free of adjectives and metaphors.
On an unrelated note, normally I'm a purist in terms of not seeing movies before I've read the book, but this was an exception. I'm glad I saw the movie first, because seeing a dramatization of how this book came to be written made the book that much more impressive.
What was my favorite part of this book: The movie. And also this pretty interesting article about the movie: http://www.salon.com/ent/feature/2008/02/23/diving_bell/index.html. Not that I'm saying the book was bad or didn't have interesting parts. I just probably wouldn't have read it if I hadn't seen the movie.
What did I learn from this book: That I probably don't have the patience to memorize passages and then blink them out, letter-by-letter to a scribe. Even if it was just an email, let alone a memoir. I hope I don't get locked-in syndrome.
What grade do I give this book: B+
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