Brainstorm is the candid and powerful memoir of the author’s harrowing experience of an aneurysm and his road to recovery. It is a journey of love, devotion, and a clash of medical beliefs and countercultures. The fierce resolve of the author and his wife is extraordinary, inspiring, and matched only by the tremendous competence and care of the medical system—one to which the author initially stands in opposition, but that he later learns to admire and respect.
This book is for anyone who has experienced the fear and difficulties of a major illness. The themes, truths, and above all, the compassion that this book shares will be familiar not just to the nine million Americans affected by aneurysms, but to anyone whose family has been touched by a medical trauma. Filled with raw emotion, Brainstorm affords quiet but powerful support to those suffering similar circumstances and strives to tell them that they are not alone.
Worth Getting In Bed For? This is a tricky one, because Robert Wintner is not very likable and he will be the first to tell you this throughout these pages. He is confrontational and argumentative in a sarcastic way, with everyone. He talks about screwing and tits which screams at my somewhat adult and feminist sensibilities. As I read his memoir, I literally cringe.
Now that I have that off my chest, or ample sized tits, as Robert would likely point out, there is some merit to his method(s). His wife suffers a brain aneurysm and after a quick medical exam by a friend is put through the medical melee we refer to as our healthcare system. This is after she has beat breast cancer through non-invasive treatment and the couple has committed to an informed and health conscious lifestyle.
This is where Robert Wintner is not some annoying guy but a husband who knows it is important to be your own health advocate and/or that of your loved one. He and his wife, Rachel object to being pushed through a life-threatening emergency to insist on information and options. How many of us do this when faced with seemingly all knowing health professionals? How many of us should?
The other important note of this narrative is knowing the signs of a brain aneurysm and what to do. Admittedly, Wintner, like many, thought his wife was drunk. His chronicle just may save someone’s life. And that makes it worth reading, wherever you are.
About the Author.Robert Wintner has written twelve well-reviewed novels, including In a Sweet Magnolia Time, which was nominated for both a Pulitzer Prize and a PEN/Faulkner Award. He is an avid snorkeler, diver, and marine photographer, and is the founder of Snorkel Bob’s Hawaii. He resides with his wife in Hawaii.
Worth Getting in Bed For 