Helpful Score: 10
I really enjoyed this. Took me a little while to get into it, but once I did, I really liked all it covered - from MJF's childhood and learning about his family, to his challenges with not only Parkinson's, but dealing with becoming "richandfamous," alcoholism, and other areas. The way he describes his marriage with Tracy and their family makes the reader see how special their relationship is. Educating on more than one level.
Helpful Score: 9
Very engaging book, even more so if you have personal experience with PD. An interesting look at life as a celebrity and a fascinating story of Micheal's journey back to reality, through the vehicle of PD. Once you read the book, you will think about it for days afterward. The chapter about his surgery is especially riveting. (I dare you to read it without gasping.) Definitely a captivating and thoughtful book. (And I am not much for biographies!) :-)
Helpful Score: 5
This is a well written memoir called "Lucky Man'by Michael J. Fox. It could have been titled "Brave Man". He writes a very human story and it is well worth reading.
Helpful Score: 5
I thoroughly enjoyed Michael J. Fox's memoir. His writing is very accessible and enjoyable. He writes with honesty and frankness. One can learn a bit about Parkinson's Disease through his experience.
Helpful Score: 4
Michael is one of my favorite actors, and this book makes me love him even more. A very inspiring, and heart-warming story.
Helpful Score: 4
Great insight into Michael J. Fox's life and how he has dealt with Parkinson's Disease. Very enlightening.
Helpful Score: 3
An autobiography recounting a childhood in western Canada up and including the last ten years and his battle with Parkinson's disease.
Helpful Score: 3
Wonderful, uplifting book about meeting a problem without self=pity
Very interesting and enlightening read!
Helpful Score: 2
I enjoyed reading this memoir. I learned a lot about Parkinson's and about Fox's struggles to cope both physically and emotionally. I admire his candor and honesty as he looks back on his life before and after the diagnosis.
Helpful Score: 2
A fantastic book... lots of insight into Michael's life, and coming to terms with his disease.
Helpful Score: 2
An insightful look at Michael J. Fox as he came to terms with his illness and became a man.
Helpful Score: 2
This memoir is both intriguing and well written.
Helpful Score: 2
Great book!! I wish he'd write another one, he has so much to say.
Helpful Score: 1
I enjoyed this book immensely! It was very well written, engaging, and funny.
Helpful Score: 1
This memoir is very readable. Mr. Fox does a great job of giving us insight into his life without seeming exhibitionist and without sharing too much about others. He talks about his early life, struggles with fame and alcohol, and his Parkinson's diagnosis.
Helpful Score: 1
I actually almost didn't order this because I thought it would be very political. But it's not at all. It tells how he discovered that he has Parkinson's Disease and how he reacted, along with his family. It's very interesting. He's very easy to listen to and he teaches you so much about the disease and human reactions. He also leads you right through his acting career from the start and I found that very interesting.
Helpful Score: 1
The Second Best autobiography I've read - I learned how to react better in my own life and still apply things he said (ie: I don't know what to do - wait. More information will present itself.) Great read.
Helpful Score: 1
Absolutely fabulous! In fact, I'm wondering about posting it ... maybe I would listen to it again. Hmmm....
I enjoyed this audio book a great deal. It is spoken by Michael J. Fox and is an honest and unflinching look at his life prior to and after his diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease. I highly recommend this book especially as an encouragement to those of us who have chronic illness and for those who enjoy true life stories that compel us to look inside ourselves.
really insightful and interesting
I love this book. I do think I liked the sequel "Always Looking Up" a bit better but I love Fox's insight and realism. I also enjoyed learning about the life of a sitcom actor as well as the life of Michael J. Fox.
The story was great...red by the author. sometimes the story line would start to drag.
I wasn't sure if I would enjoy hearing about his own account of his life and how it was impacted by Parkinson's but it didn't take long to thoroughly enjoy the style and reading. This is so much more than yet another "hollywood" story. He is quite candid about the depression and isolation he felt from the illness. Now I can understand why he considers himself a "lucky man" while suffering from this terrible disease.
A nice abridgement of Michael J. Fox's memoir of his life so far, his childhood, rise to fame, as well as the years since his diagnosis with Parkinson's disease. I especially enjoyed hearing his voice narrating the story - it made it that much more immediate.
Really inspiring. Definitely a worthwhile ready
This is a well-written, engaging, and educational book that provides a real glimpse into Mr. Fox's life. You get a real sense of his personality and his challenges--personally, professionally, emotionally, and spiritually. I was particularly interested in the choices he made at certain crossroads in his life that didn't have anything to do with his illness. I highly recommend it.
I really liked this book a lot - I wasn't really sure what to expect, but he writes as if he's talking to you as a friend. Interesting insights into his Canadian childhood, becoming a star, starting a family, and of course the struggles with PD. I will definitely pick up his second book! A great guy - just like you thought he would be.
Tho I have not read this book, my sister did and enjoyed it and found it quite interesting.
Another memoir with too many words. Hard to get into. Author talks about luck way too much. We don't agree there, but man oh man, he must have had way too much time on his hands, researching words and phrases to try to impress the reader.
I love a good biography, but this is not on my list of favorites.
I love a good biography, but this is not on my list of favorites.
very insperational
Always Looking Up: The Adventures of an Incurable Optimist
By Michael J. Fox Reviewers Purchase 5 Stars
In Always Looking Up, Michael J. Fox shares all aspects of his life, before and after Parkinson's disease. I am amazed by his beautifully optimistic perception of life; as he shares personal stories from his career as an actor, life as a husband and a father of 4. Readers and fans see the genuine Michael J. Fox, as he passionately shares his stance on Stem Cell Research, political views, religious beliefs, and friendships ups and downs; including a few stories including personal friends we recently lost, Robin Williams to depression, and Mohamad Ali to Parkinson's disease.
MJF shares stories about his friends, also fellow celebrities, as real people. He talks about how they spend their free time, and money, to support their beliefs, and the many charitable organizations; helping everyone from all walks of life, with a variety of unfortunate diagnosis, or life situations. He brings everything to light in a positive way, with his wonderfully humorous personality; he even throws in a few jokes about his own "short comings" in several different ways.
I particularly liked a story he shared about an interview he had with Katie Couric to speak for Stem Cell Research. His purpose for going on the show was to explain the difference between the Stem Cell Research he's promoting and the research some extreme religious groups believe to be an abomination. His interview seems as though it may be shadowed by an insensitively rude comment recently made by an outspoken radio talk show host whom MJF hasn't even given a thought to. (in my opinion, this radio host has never really had an opinion of his own, but seems to have made a career of simply bashing the opinions and beliefs of others.) Instead of wasting time on him and his comment, Michael simply moves on to more important statements he wants to share. That's class and professionalism at its best.
I also personally related to later in that same interview with Katie; in speaking with of his symptoms, he admits it's not pretty when he's having a "bad day" but he's had his time of being pretty, all the teenage girls that had his picture on their walls gave him enough time of being pretty. I have to admit, I was one of those teenage girls; yes, I was into short guys back then. Just look at all my formal dance pictures for proof.
There's so much more I can say about Always Looking Up, but instead I'll just sum it up by saying. I LOVED LOVED LOVED this book; it's a HUGE 5 Stars for me. I'm going back to get all his other books, and I'm not just saying this because of my teenage crush on him either. He is a beautiful person; after this book, I have a completely new respect for Michael J. Fox, and his family.
By Michael J. Fox Reviewers Purchase 5 Stars
In Always Looking Up, Michael J. Fox shares all aspects of his life, before and after Parkinson's disease. I am amazed by his beautifully optimistic perception of life; as he shares personal stories from his career as an actor, life as a husband and a father of 4. Readers and fans see the genuine Michael J. Fox, as he passionately shares his stance on Stem Cell Research, political views, religious beliefs, and friendships ups and downs; including a few stories including personal friends we recently lost, Robin Williams to depression, and Mohamad Ali to Parkinson's disease.
MJF shares stories about his friends, also fellow celebrities, as real people. He talks about how they spend their free time, and money, to support their beliefs, and the many charitable organizations; helping everyone from all walks of life, with a variety of unfortunate diagnosis, or life situations. He brings everything to light in a positive way, with his wonderfully humorous personality; he even throws in a few jokes about his own "short comings" in several different ways.
I particularly liked a story he shared about an interview he had with Katie Couric to speak for Stem Cell Research. His purpose for going on the show was to explain the difference between the Stem Cell Research he's promoting and the research some extreme religious groups believe to be an abomination. His interview seems as though it may be shadowed by an insensitively rude comment recently made by an outspoken radio talk show host whom MJF hasn't even given a thought to. (in my opinion, this radio host has never really had an opinion of his own, but seems to have made a career of simply bashing the opinions and beliefs of others.) Instead of wasting time on him and his comment, Michael simply moves on to more important statements he wants to share. That's class and professionalism at its best.
I also personally related to later in that same interview with Katie; in speaking with of his symptoms, he admits it's not pretty when he's having a "bad day" but he's had his time of being pretty, all the teenage girls that had his picture on their walls gave him enough time of being pretty. I have to admit, I was one of those teenage girls; yes, I was into short guys back then. Just look at all my formal dance pictures for proof.
There's so much more I can say about Always Looking Up, but instead I'll just sum it up by saying. I LOVED LOVED LOVED this book; it's a HUGE 5 Stars for me. I'm going back to get all his other books, and I'm not just saying this because of my teenage crush on him either. He is a beautiful person; after this book, I have a completely new respect for Michael J. Fox, and his family.
VERY INTERESTING
I enjoyed listening to this CD in my car. It is truly inspiring and at times, I felt like Michael J. Fox was right next to me telling his story.
Amazon.com
The same sharp intelligence and self-deprecating wit that made Michael J. Fox a star in the Family Ties TV series and Back to the Future make this a lot punchier than the usual up-from-illness celebrity memoir. Yes, he begins with the first symptoms of Parkinson's disease, the incurable illness that led to his retirement from Spin City (and acting) in 2000. And yes, he assures us he is a better, happier person now than he was before he was diagnosed. In Fox's case, you actually might believe it, because he then cheerfully exposes the insecurities and self-indulgences of his pre-Parkinson's life in a manner that makes them not glamorous but wincingly ordinary and of course very funny. ("As for the question, 'Does it bother you that maybe she just wants to sleep with you because you're a celebrity?' My answer to that one was, 'Ah...nope.'") With a working-class Canadian background, Fox has an unusually detached perspective on the madness of mass-media fame; his description of the tabloid feeding frenzy surrounding his 1988 wedding to Tracy Pollan, for example, manages to be both acid and matter-of-fact. He is frank but not maudlin about his drinking problem, and he refreshingly notes that getting sober did not automatically solve all his other problems. This readable, witty autobiography reminds you why it was generally a pleasure to watch Fox onscreen: he's a nice guy with an edge, and you don't have to feel embarrassed about liking him. --Wendy Smith --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From AudioFile
Michael J. Fox begins his memoir by talking about the first signs of what he would discover to be Parkinson's disease. In a direct, conversational style Fox gives listeners a glimpse of his heady Hollywood life, starting with his early success of "Family Ties" and Back to the Future. The self-indulgent days as a young star through his denial and hiding of his illness to his final acceptance and then advocacy for Parkinson's sufferers make a fascinating story. His narrative and sentiment are heartfelt, although Fox does read rather than tell the story, and occasionally rushes. His emotional energy emerges best when he reflects on the support from his wife and family. R.F.W.
The same sharp intelligence and self-deprecating wit that made Michael J. Fox a star in the Family Ties TV series and Back to the Future make this a lot punchier than the usual up-from-illness celebrity memoir. Yes, he begins with the first symptoms of Parkinson's disease, the incurable illness that led to his retirement from Spin City (and acting) in 2000. And yes, he assures us he is a better, happier person now than he was before he was diagnosed. In Fox's case, you actually might believe it, because he then cheerfully exposes the insecurities and self-indulgences of his pre-Parkinson's life in a manner that makes them not glamorous but wincingly ordinary and of course very funny. ("As for the question, 'Does it bother you that maybe she just wants to sleep with you because you're a celebrity?' My answer to that one was, 'Ah...nope.'") With a working-class Canadian background, Fox has an unusually detached perspective on the madness of mass-media fame; his description of the tabloid feeding frenzy surrounding his 1988 wedding to Tracy Pollan, for example, manages to be both acid and matter-of-fact. He is frank but not maudlin about his drinking problem, and he refreshingly notes that getting sober did not automatically solve all his other problems. This readable, witty autobiography reminds you why it was generally a pleasure to watch Fox onscreen: he's a nice guy with an edge, and you don't have to feel embarrassed about liking him. --Wendy Smith --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From AudioFile
Michael J. Fox begins his memoir by talking about the first signs of what he would discover to be Parkinson's disease. In a direct, conversational style Fox gives listeners a glimpse of his heady Hollywood life, starting with his early success of "Family Ties" and Back to the Future. The self-indulgent days as a young star through his denial and hiding of his illness to his final acceptance and then advocacy for Parkinson's sufferers make a fascinating story. His narrative and sentiment are heartfelt, although Fox does read rather than tell the story, and occasionally rushes. His emotional energy emerges best when he reflects on the support from his wife and family. R.F.W.
