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One Hundred Names for Love: A Stroke, a Marriage, and the Language of Healing
Diane Ackerman
#UE4902
Hardcover, 336 pages; 2011
$21.56
For more than two decades, authors Diane Ackerman and her husband, Paul West, reveled in their shared joy of language. All that changed when Paul suffered a massive stroke. Suddenly the great wordsmith's voice was stripped of all but a single syllable: "mem." Traditional speech therapy produced exasperatingly slow results, and Diane despaired of ever recovering the man Paul had once been. But as weeks turned into months, she realized that by combining her scientific knowledge of language and her deep familiarity with Paul's personality, she could help him channel his creativity and retrieve enough language to write again. (In perhaps their most touching "therapy" exercise, Diane demanded Paul create new pet names for her, to replace the ones erased by the stroke. His chaotic word associations produced such tender gems as Blessed Little Smile, Jocund Sprite of the Dew, and Lovely Ampersand of the Morning.) Ultimately, despite the frustration, despair, and sheer exhaustion that plagued Paul's recovery, the couple was able to recapture the essence of their partnership. It is an inspiring portrait of a marriage.
(KG)
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