Charlene Reviews: Please Help Me Lift Something Heavy. Thank You! by Dr. Rick Gelinas

ISBN #: 978-0978765897

Page Count: 374

Copyright: 2011

Publisher: Ophir Publishing

Synopsis:

(Taken from helpmelift.net)

This book provides a glimpse into the life of a modern American family over a period of seventy-five years.

Told in the first person from the point of view of the family's eldest sibling, a random succession of memoirs follow a young child through a boyhood that is often tumultuous, sometimes tragic or near-tragic, and occasionally hilarious.

The tale takes us on adventures and misadventures typical of any boy's formative years, yet is unique for its blend of the assumable and the impossible, the timid and the daring, the quotidian and the outrageous, along with the yearning and the loving that signals real growth as the boy becomes a man.

Told with the abandon of the fiction writer but the constraint of the nonfiction writer, this story often glides easily across the lanes of fine literature, like a good skier enjoying his whispery glide back and forth down a snowy slope he knows quite well.

Charlene's Review:

Lift, as the author calls his book, is an enchanting collection of stories from the life of Dr. Rick Gelinas. Sometimes humorous, occasionally tragic, the stories contain plenty of heartfelt sentiment. Consisting of 32 short stories, Dr. Gelinas takes us on a tour of his many mishaps and lessons learned along his, and his family's, lifetime.

The premise for his writing is to expound the necessity for all of humankind to reach out and ASK for help, and to be open to RECEIVE help. His writing style is enjoyable, as if you are sitting alongside and watching his journey. I especially enjoyed reading the paragraphs that preface every story, as they provide a moral lesson and insight into what Dr. Gelinas himself learned from that particular time in his life. The "something heavy" he refers to is whatever you, the reader, is carrying. His writing is in hopes of lightening the reader's load through his humor and giving them hope to continue their own journey. The Gelinas' also donate 100% of their "royalties" to help homeless women veterans.

Thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommended.