Cherry Whip Book Review

    • Anonymous
      November 26, 2007 at 11:00 pm

      I just wanted to let everyone know about this great book I just finished reading. It’s called Cherry Whip, and the main character is a young Japanese jazz musician who comes to New York to make it big and ends up in the hospital with GBS. It’s a very introspective book, as Hiroshi has to give up his love of playing clarinet and re-discover himself and a new life beyond GBS. He gets himself into sticky situations but finds creative ways of getting out of them. I think a lot of you would be able to relate to the ups and downs of the story.

      The author who wrote it was actually my first boss when I first moved to Chicago in 2000. His name is Michael Antman, and he’s president of a public relations firm. When I asked him how he knew about GBS, he said his father had it back in the 90s. He works in the building next to my office, and we have renewed a friendship through our caregiving experiences. He’s helped me through a lot this summer, especially following Ben’s diagnoses of post-GBS in July.

      A screenplay of this novel is currently in the works, and a movie will be made of it. It may be the first movie about GBS.

      If you’re interested in reading Cherry Whip, here’s a link to its website:

      http://www.encpress.com/CW.html

      Enjoy!

      Shannon

    • Anonymous
      November 26, 2007 at 11:04 pm

      Hi Shannon,
      Thanks for the great book tip. I can’t wait to read it. How is Ben doing? Did he have his sleep study? Would love to hear his take on it. Hope you are both well.
      Linda

    • Anonymous
      November 27, 2007 at 9:01 am

      thanks for posting this. I was not going to ask for anyting for Christmas but I will ask for this book. I read a few reviews on Amazon and it sounds like a book I can relate to.
      Have a great day
      MJ

    • Anonymous
      December 2, 2007 at 9:30 pm

      Linda – Ben went to his consult, but hasn’t had the actual sleep study yet. The doctor doing the study is also a neurologist and told Ben he has a very complex case, and she’d be putting sweat equity into his case. She said that since he was completely paralyzed and on the ventilator and still has paralysis in the facial area, the nerves in his throat are most likely still paralyzed. He sleeps half sitting up with his head tilted all the way back and his mouth wide open, so she thinks he isn’t getting good quality sleep, and that’s partly why he’s fatigued all the time. He may have to go twice before she figures it out. It’ll be interesting to find out what’s wrong!

      MJ – I hope you enjoy the book! I know I did! It’s kind of unusual that in a city as huge as Chicago, my former boss would have written a book about GBS! It’s been great having a support system here though, especially since my family’s in Tennessee!

      Have a great night!

      Shannon