I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads. Jerry McGill is a former co-worker of mine, so I was delighted to have the opportunity to read and review his book. Since I know him as Jerry, I typically will be referring to him as "Jerry", rather than "the author" or "Mr. McGill".

Although I was currently reading another book, I couldn't resist opening Jerry's autobiography to read the first few pages, perhaps a chapter. The first chapter went so quickly that I didn't stop there; it is a very readable book. I made it through nearly half of the book before other duties called me away, and I returned to it later that night because I felt compelled to learn the rest of the story.

Jerry explains, "I didn't write this book for you, Marcus. I wrote this for a certain population of the world: Those who endure. Those who manage. Those who cope. Those who get out of bed every morning and continue to go on with the business of their lives knowing what they know. Those who look into the eye of the storm and step out of it battered, drenched, and unbeaten. Those who are determined to move on." I think this book will appeal to that audience, as well as those who feel lost or overwhelmed but want to continue on, or perhaps need encouragement. It is a book that could have a profound effect on the lives of people struggling in certain circumstances. It will inspire others. Jerry's perseverance through hardship is notable.

Now let me comment on his writing style. This is his autobiography, so naturally it is written in the first person, while I tend to prefer reading in third person, but it didn’t bother me at all in his. His writing flows smoothly, making it very readable. He creates amazing mental images with his depictions. One I cannot resist sharing - comparing Brownsville, Brooklyn, to the Lower East Side, Manhattan - is "In Brooklyn, the buildings all seemed to stalk over you like great cement scarecrows, blocking out sunlight and optimism simultaneously." When describing the hospital, he writes, "There is a subtle yet deafening moroseness to those alcohol-perfumed gray halls and white and blue uniformed folk who move about them." When I worked with him, I hadn't realized he had such a gift for writing. I relish how real he makes it feel.

When another person makes you the victim of his or her actions, as Jerry chronicles in his book, you wonder why me!, ask lots of what ifs! and puzzle through numerous unanswered questions for which you contemplate a series of possible answers. That is natural. But, how one responds beyond that varies by person. Being the victim of another person does not mean you must accept the "victim" role, which Jerry most definitely does not. When we worked for the same company, he absolutely did not give people the impression that he was a victim. Several of those he trained told me that he was their favorite trainer and they were amazed by him. I'm not sure the book provides an accurate perception of how remarkable he is. At work, he was always smiling, friendly, and encouraging. He gave the impression that no obstacle would stop him - he would find a way.

There are things I enjoyed about the book that appeal to me personally, such as his quotes from classic literature. I also appreciated the accuracy of the portrayal of adapting to being confined to a wheelchair, of how he described the thoughts, difficulties, and experiences of a sudden life-changing event of that nature. These include thinking that your friends will now view you as lesser and also needing help to use a toilet. My husband experienced similar self-doubts and difficulties after having had below-the-knee amputations. It is an honest, poignant portrayal of a significant life-changing event.

Perhaps what most appeals to me is when he explains to Marcus, "I want to make one thing perfectly clear in this whole scenario. With all this gratitude and appreciation for who I am and the person I became, it doesn't change one integral, salient fact in this matter and that is simply this: What you did was wrong. Inarguably, unequivocally improper." There are some people who, if I tell them I gained something from being victimized, think it is excusing the perpetrator, but it isn't - it doesn't change that what the person did was wrong. I appreciated his expression of that idea. It is a joy and a relief every time I encounter someone who understands that.

I definitely want to read any other books he writes, including fiction, because of his flair for descriptions and writing style. ( )

Check out my review at:
http://www.shannonsbookbag.blogspot.com/2013/07/dear-marcus-mcgill_31.html ( )

The title will draw readers looking for a titillating story of the streets, and while it is the true account of a teen growing up in the 'hood and the challenges that come with it, this is much more a story with several themes: forgiveness, inspiration, love, learning to accept and live with a disability, and a unique coming-of-age. This will widen perspectives and reach readers at their level of acceptance. ( )

At age 13 Jerry McGill was shot and paralyzed by an unknown shooter. Dear Marcus is Jerry's letter to the man who shot him, because the man was never found Jerry gives him a name and a backstory. Just thinking about how his life changed and what the shooter took away from this boy makes me angry, but Dear Marcus isn't about anger. Jerry celebrates the life he has now. He is full of passion and compassion, forgiveness and love. Dear Marcus is the book I will go back to when I am feeling like my life is unfair. Jerry's words will remind me that life is of our own making, and that someone else cannot take away what makes us who we really are.

September 2012


( )

How many of us ever get the chance to arrange for a reckoning with the person who most changed our life? And if we did, could we admit to ourselves that the change that came about was just as much our own doing as theirs?

Author Jerry McGill, who grew up in the poorest parts of Brooklyn and the Lower East Side (pre-gentrification), is shot by an unknown assailant at the age of thirteen. Although he spends a year in St. Vincent's (sadly, closed now) Hospital with the best nurses and doctors, Jerry still thinks he's going to walk out of the hospital and resume his prior life. But he's not walking out of the hospital - he is a quadriplegic.

Jerry doesn't have a large family. His mom had him as a teenager and her own mother is a cold and unfeeling alcoholic (so much for the loving grandma trope). His mother tries to help him but she, along with his younger sister, seems to be locked in permanent conflict with him.

But the medical personnel are able to raise Jerry's confidence enough to encourage him to keep on keepin' on, in fact, to accomplish more than he had ever dreamed. He goes to college, to graduate school, gets involved with theatrical groups, and travels the world on behalf of differently abled young people. Most importantly, he develops friendships that are so strong that they intercede where his family is missing in action.

Jerry also becomes a writer. In this manifesto, a communique to the unknown boy who shot him, whom Jerry names "Marcus", he tries to figure out the impact upon Marcus of Jerry's near death and paralysis. He actually cares about the unknown person who set Jerry's life on a rough yet blossoming trail.

Jerry's concern about and for Marcus, his speaking out directly and sympathetically to him, is what makes this amazing chronicle spring to vivid life. ( )