Steve Nuttall
Review of Lucky Man by Michael J. Fox
Overview
Lucky
Man by Michael J.
Fox is a personal and detailed autobiography of life before and after his diagnosis
of Parkinson's Disease (PD). Through humour, reflection and fact, Fox takes the
reader on a journey of growth, both professional and personal, recounting the
details of childhood, rise to fame, and day to day life with PD. The memoir begins
with the first sign of trouble- a twitching in his pinkie. Before getting too deep
into details, Fox revisits his childhood as an army brat before his family
finally settles in Vancouver, British Colombia. Growing up as an artistic
trouble maker, Fox struggled with the academia of school, seeking the asylum of
performance art. His first paid acting job comes while still in high school,
leading him to drop out. This of course was not due to his illness, which of
course hit him in his late 20s, but is worth noting because it serves as a reminder
that not every student is going to have the same experience in school. Fox
builds up to his big break in Hollywood, three years after moving there, including
a break up and living check to check swamped under bills. Once he lands his
role as Alex Keaton in Family Ties,
his life drastically changes for the first of two times in the book. Later, he
marries a co-star from the show, Tracy Pollan, and his life is very much on the
upswing following the birth of his son Sam. However, things quickly start to
fall apart, when the death of his father in January of 1990 follows his PD
diagnosis later that year. Fox falls into alcoholism while trying his best to
keep his condition from the general public, and trying to outrun the 10 year
limit given to his acting career. The rest of the book deals with acceptance
and learning to live again, ending with his then current (2002) political
aspirations in the fight to fund PD research. Though he begins and ends with
details of PD, Fox is careful to not define himself by the limits of his disability.
Personal Response
I
chose to read Michael's book because I was very familiar with his work. Growing
up and to this day, I love(d) the Back to
the Future movies, and though his Parkinson's was well known when I was
younger, I did not really understand it. I knew that it caused him to retire
from acting, but I did not understand his struggle. For starters I thought it
was pretty crazy that he was able to hide it from the public for as long as he
did, roughly 8 years. Not just because of the incredible effort it must have
taken him to always time his medication correctly before public appearances and
calls to the set, but because he felt he had to. It is completely
understandable that he chose to hide it. He mentions that when he talked to
other people with PD (of the early onset variety) anonymously in online chatrooms,
they too were hiding it. Considering that Fox is a celebrity, and we live in a
culture where image is everything, I have come to see why he would have felt
the way he did. No one likes to receive things out of sympathy, and given the
little control he has over the incurable condition, being able to hide it must
have given him some feeling of power over the disease, if only for privacy
reasons. It is very disheartening that we live in a world where disabilities
are seen by some people as something to be hidden from those around us, or a
source of shame and embarrassment. When he eventually does come out and say
that he has PD, the sympathy from the public has no effect on him; he has long
since accepted it and learned to live with it. What he does find, however, is
the support and thanks from other people with PD. His courage to go public with
his illness not only made it easier for others to do the same, but it brought
national attention to the disease. To this day he maintains that a cure is not
an "if", but a "when", and he has played a huge role in
advocacy for funding of PD research.
Parkinson's
Disease is not one likely to be encountered in the classroom, however, it has
been considered a form a palsy. Palsy is a debilitating condition that many
students may have to face throughout their education and their lives. Fox's
book is a nice reminder that people with disabilities do not have to stop
living their lives. Though it took him a long time and a battle with alcohol
that almost cost him his family, Fox too realized this. I think there is a lot
that can be taken from his writing, not just for those with a disability. I
think the fact that he still considers himself a lucky man says a lot about his
outlook on life. His eventual recovery from alcohol abuse and subsequent
decision to quit drinking altogether sets an example for his young fans. His
fighting spirit throughout his entire life post-diagnosis is equally inspiring.
Not wanting to quit his craft, Fox did not retire from Spin City until it was absolutely necessary. Even then, he has made
cameo appearances since retirement, and he even came back with a new series
last fall, which incorporates his PD into the fibre of the show. Initially not
wanting people to see him differently, Fox turned a 180 and threw himself in
the spotlight in spite of PD.
Reading
this memoir has also impacted my own view on life. No one is invincible, and
that lesson cannot be taught to the youth enough. It does not matter who you
are, disability does not discriminate between rich or poor, young or old. Having
a disability may slow you down, but it should never stop you. I really like the
fact that Fox does not spend the entire novel focused on an idealistic past, but
rather uses it tastefully to give context to the change in his lifestyle. He
never tries to brag about any of the achievements of his youth or solicit
sympathy from the reader. Instead, he is brutally honest and transparent,
coming across as one of the most genuinely nice guys in his industry. In that
sense, it is easy to feel bad for him, but it is not of his own doing. He is
just as happy to laugh at his affliction as anyone else, and his optimism is unmistakably
genuine. I really enjoyed this novel, but all things considered, it would have
been difficult for me- or anyone else- not to.
Conclusion
I would recommend this memoir
to anyone and everyone. I do not believe you have to be a fan of his work to
enjoy it, his humour and life experiences are enough to keep anyone engrossed
and entertained. It was really hard to put the book down, and I am very glad to
have read it. To anyone interested in reading it, I would recommend making sure
you have the free time to do so, because you will not want to do much else
until you are finished. My only complaint was a somewhat disjointed chronology
in his story telling, but by marking every section with a date, it helps to
keep the flow going. Given how well written it is otherwise, though, the
creative ordering can be overlooked. As one of the most uplifting books I have
read in quite some time, I can't help but keep its messages in the back of my
mind.
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