Reviewer (text)
Carole Turner
To many who knew Gabrielle Giffords and Mark Kelly, they were thought of as a “power couple.” Two highly successful people with high-profile public service careers: Gabby, the dedicated young Congresswoman, and Mark, the Navy captain and space shuttle commander. Mark and his twin brother Scott, sons of police officers, were raised in an Irish Catholic family in New Jersey. Gabby and her sister were brought up by their artist mother and tire company owner father (who was Jewish) in the southwest.
"This book is deeply personal and beautifully written.... It is also poignant, heartfelt and hopeful."
Gabby and Mark first met on a trip to China; it was strictly professional and all business. Their next meeting was the following year, a follow-up to the first trip. They found they could talk easily to each other, and both were used to living a rather eclectic and interesting life. Their first official date was a visit to Death Row at the Arizona State Prison in Florence, a most unusual venue. Though their personalities and backgrounds were quite different, they had much in common and were quickly drawn to each other. They had a somewhat atypical, mostly long-distance courtship that culminated in their marriage on November 10, 2007.
With disparate career paths, their marriage often followed the same path as their courtship --- long distance --- with hours spent on the phone each evening. It later turned out that their ability to communicate well across great distances became a factor of huge importance during Gabby's recuperation and rehabilitation after the shooting.
The bullet did massive damage to the left side of Gabby's brain, and many delicate and critical surgeries followed. While the specialists did their very best, no one could guarantee that her brain eventually would be restored to its former level of functioning. The brain is still a great mystery, and although significant strides have been made in treating brain trauma, much remains unknown and perhaps unknowable.
With Mark and Gabby's mother, Gloria, as her constant companions and advocates for her recovery, and with an excellent team of specialists, therapists and caregivers in place, improvements in Gabby's condition came both by leaps and bounds, and what appeared to be at a snail's pace. Restoring language skills was very hard work, as was the intense physical therapy of learning to walk again.
For an outgoing, articulate young woman to have her main means of communication --- speech --- locked away and inaccessible, even temporarily, was a huge challenge and constant source of frustration. Though Gabby and Mark had only been married a little over three years when the shooting occurred, Mark knew his wife so very well that he was the perfect cheerleader and spokesperson for her. Gloria, with her common sense and her mother's instinct and deep love, worked tirelessly with Mark. They questioned the doctors and therapists to learn as much as they could about traumatic brain injury, and participated fully in Gabby's therapy, encouraging and challenging her. Many relatives, friends and colleagues also were instrumental in supporting Gabby. During this time, Mark prepared for and commanded the final mission of the space shuttle Endeavor, a monumental undertaking even during the best of times. That he was able to compartmentalize his professional and personal lives to accomplish such a feat is quite remarkable.
But the best efforts of the medical professionals and all the love and support in the world could not alone have done what Gabby herself has done. Tenaciously, painstakingly, and inch by inch and minute by minute, Gabby drew on her internal strength, positive attitude, strong will and courage, and has made what the doctors call a "miraculous" recovery.
Gabby walks unsteadily with a brace on her right leg, her speech is not yet completely restored, and she remains on the long road to recovery. Still, her progress has been absolutely remarkable. It is hoped and expected that she will continue to recover more as time goes by, though to what extent is not known by anyone right now. But it is certain that she will live a full, productive and good life, whatever form that may take.
This book is deeply personal and beautifully written, with the able assistance of Jeffrey Zaslow. It is also poignant, heartfelt and hopeful. Mark's love for Gabby jumps off every page, but the very best part is page 299, which Gabby herself wrote. Indeed, GABBY does have a "happily ever after."
Teaser
From one of the most admired and beloved couples in recent American history, GABBY is an extraordinarily moving story of public service, risk-taking, romance --- and the journey toward recovery.
Promo
From one of the most admired and beloved couples in recent American history, GABBY is an extraordinarily moving story of public service, risk-taking, romance --- and the journey toward recovery.
About the Book
As individuals, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her husband, astronaut Mark Kelly, showed Americans how optimism, an adventurous spirit, and a call to service can help change the world. As a couple, they became a national example of the healing power to be found in deeply shared love and courage. Their arrival in the world spotlight came under the worst of circumstances. On January 8, 2011, while meeting with her constituents in Tucson, Arizona, Gabby was the victim of an assassination attempt that left six people dead and 13 wounded. Gabby was shot in the head; doctors called her survival “miraculous.”
As the nation grieved and sought to understand the attack, Gabby remained in private, focused on her against-all-odds recovery. Mark spent every possible moment by her side, as he also prepared for his final mission as commander of space shuttle Endeavour.
Now, as Gabby’s health continues to improve, the couple is sharing their remarkable untold story. Intimate, inspiring and unforgettably moving, GABBY: A Story of Courage and Hope, provides an unflinching look at the overwhelming challenges of brain injury, the painstaking process of learning to communicate again, and the responsibilities that fall to a loving spouse who wants the best possible treatment for his wife. Told in Mark’s voice and from Gabby’s heart, the book also chronicles the lives that brought these two extraordinary people together --- their humor, their ambitions, their sense of duty, their long-distance marriage, and their desire for family.
Gabby and Mark made a pledge to tell their account as honestly as possible, and they have done so in riveting detail. Both Gabby and Mark have lived large public lives, but this book takes readers behind many closed doors --- from the flight deck of the space shuttle to the cloakrooms of Congress to the hospital wards where Gabby struggled to reclaim herself with the help of formidable medical teams and devoted family and friends.
Questions are answered with unvarnished candor. How do Gabby and Mark feel about the angry political discourse that was swirling in America at the time of the shooting, and that remains prevalent today? How do they see government living up to the highest possible ideals? And how do they understand and mourn the loss of the people who did not survive that day? GABBY is a reminder of the power of true grit, the patience needed to overcome unimaginable obstacles, and the transcendence of love. In the story of Gabrielle Giffords and Mark Kelly, we all can see the best in ourselves. As Mark and Gabby’s friends have said: “The two of them are America as we dream it can be.”
