Kirkus book review of my memoir
PAINTING LIGHT IN POLIO’S SHADOW BY SHARON WHITE RICHARDSON ‧ RELEASE DATE: NOV. 23, 2021
In this memoir, Richardson recounts the physical and emotional trials of post-polio syndrome and her resulting struggle to continue creating her art.
In 1946, when the author was only eight weeks old, she was diagnosed with polio, and two months later, her doctors declared her fully recovered and healthy. However, at the age of 56, she began to suffer from a “cluster of disabling symptoms” that were eventually diagnosed as post-polio syndrome. The author was beset by a rapid decrease of strength in her arms, which threatened her ability to continue as a fine art painter: “The universe had flipped a lever and switched me onto a new track, one where I couldn’t behave as I always had. The scariest part was that I didn’t have access to the new rules.” Richardson had to retool her entire life to accommodate her newfound physical limitations, including training her left hand as her dominant one, as it had more strength and dexterity. The author’s story is heartbreaking and life-affirming, by turns. Over the course of this remembrance, she shows how she struggled profoundly, not only with her new condition but also with the anxiety and depression that ensued, and how she persevered despite these difficulties. She writes in admirably candid terms, sharing the fears that gnawed away at her in a confessional tone and conveying them in poignant, affecting language. Richardson also provides a thorough introduction to an affliction that affects many but is little known or understood: “We outnumbered all the people with Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and spinal cord injuries combined.” Overall, it’s a moving remembrance, by turns harrowing and inspirational.
A thoughtful recollection of a transformative journey.
The memoir is available at this link:
https://www.archwaypublishing.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/829060-painting-light-in-polios-shadow-one-artists-struggles.
You don't have to open an account. Just check out as a guest.
It's also on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
Most books about polio survivors focus on the direct effects of the crippling disease. Mine deals exclusively with post-polio syndrome (PPS) — the new muscle weakness, pain, and loss of control — that occur years after surviving the polio virus (56 years for me), and the drastic effects it had on my career as an artist.
PAINTING LIGHT IN POLIO’S SHADOW BY SHARON WHITE RICHARDSON ‧ RELEASE DATE: NOV. 23, 2021
In this memoir, Richardson recounts the physical and emotional trials of post-polio syndrome and her resulting struggle to continue creating her art.
In 1946, when the author was only eight weeks old, she was diagnosed with polio, and two months later, her doctors declared her fully recovered and healthy. However, at the age of 56, she began to suffer from a “cluster of disabling symptoms” that were eventually diagnosed as post-polio syndrome. The author was beset by a rapid decrease of strength in her arms, which threatened her ability to continue as a fine art painter: “The universe had flipped a lever and switched me onto a new track, one where I couldn’t behave as I always had. The scariest part was that I didn’t have access to the new rules.” Richardson had to retool her entire life to accommodate her newfound physical limitations, including training her left hand as her dominant one, as it had more strength and dexterity. The author’s story is heartbreaking and life-affirming, by turns. Over the course of this remembrance, she shows how she struggled profoundly, not only with her new condition but also with the anxiety and depression that ensued, and how she persevered despite these difficulties. She writes in admirably candid terms, sharing the fears that gnawed away at her in a confessional tone and conveying them in poignant, affecting language. Richardson also provides a thorough introduction to an affliction that affects many but is little known or understood: “We outnumbered all the people with Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and spinal cord injuries combined.” Overall, it’s a moving remembrance, by turns harrowing and inspirational.
A thoughtful recollection of a transformative journey.
The memoir is available at this link:
https://www.archwaypublishing.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/829060-painting-light-in-polios-shadow-one-artists-struggles.
You don't have to open an account. Just check out as a guest.
It's also on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
Most books about polio survivors focus on the direct effects of the crippling disease. Mine deals exclusively with post-polio syndrome (PPS) — the new muscle weakness, pain, and loss of control — that occur years after surviving the polio virus (56 years for me), and the drastic effects it had on my career as an artist.