Anatomy of a Miracle: A Novel* By Jonathan Miles | Recommended Reads

This imaginative book may be a new genre: a real life novel. About real life US army veteran Cameron Harris and how he miraculously learned how to walk again. Original and gripping. 

A profound new novel about a paralyzed young man’s unexplainable recovery—a stunning exploration of faith, science, mystery, and the meaning of life
 
Rendered paraplegic after a traumatic event four years ago, Cameron Harris has been living his new existence alongside his sister, Tanya, in their battered Biloxi, Mississippi neighborhood where only half the houses made it through Katrina. One stiflingly hot August afternoon, as Cameron sits waiting for Tanya during their daily run to the Biz-E-Bee convenience store, he suddenly and inexplicably rises up and out of his wheelchair.

In the aftermath of this “miracle,” Cameron finds himself a celebrity at the center of a contentious debate about what’s taken place. And when scientists, journalists, and a Vatican investigator start digging, Cameron’s deepest secrets—the key to his injury, to his identity, and, in some eyes, to the nature of his recovery—become increasingly endangered. Was Cameron’s recovery a genuine miracle, or a medical breakthrough? And, finding himself transformed into a symbol, how can he hope to retain his humanity?

Brilliantly written as closely observed journalistic reportage and filtered through a wide lens that encompasses the vibrant characters affected by Cameron’s story, Anatomy of a Miracle will be read, championed, and celebrated as a powerful story of our time, and the work of a true literary master.

Anatomy of a Miracle: A Novel* By Jonathan Miles is available here.

A Day In The Life of Paul Vates

I am an actor and writer.
No two days are the same.
That’s part of the lifestyle I accept and face-up to.

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Most people, I am sure, abhor routine, but I strive to find little routines amidst the randomness.
Take yesterday, for example. I was up with the lark – well, the chattering gang of long-tailed tits that seemed to have included my garden in their morning constitutional route. Ablutions completed, healthy fruity breakfast absorbed, I sorted through a few emails, scanned Facebook, chased a few unpaid invoices and was then ready for a good long sit-down in front of mindless television.

But, no! I slipped into my jogging attire and hit the streets – well, gracefully ran the fifteen minutes to my Pilates session. An hour later, after much groaning and fake-smiling, I jogged far less like an athlete back home.

All this because I am in training to complete a charity run – five miles in mud, with various obstacles to surpass, for a local hospice. Seemed like a good idea at the time…

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Shower and shave. Quick light lunch, then to the tube for a casting in London. I spent the journey reading Stella Gibbons’ Cold Comfort Farm – have never read it and am now intrigued by its style.

Then into the West End. Not many people realise it is littered with tiny rooms and spaces that producers and casting directors hire for the day to cast their latest projects. I had been instructed by my agent to attend the RADA Studios, near Goodge Street station. Once inside, name checked, smiles all round, I sat and waited.

Jim, a grinning, bespectacled director, greeted me and I followed him downstairs into a basement room that had the distinctive aroma of old sweat. We chatted, then I auditioned for him. ‘Very funny’, he said. (It was supposed to be, but I don’t know if he meant it…) The footage will be handed to the producers who will decide whether I am suitable to play a maniac in a Business To Business instructional internet video.

Oh, the glamour.

I headed to the tube and back home. Different reading material this time. Henrik Ibsen’s classic play A Doll’s House which a colleague is aiming to direct late next year. He has told me to look carefully at a certain part and to let him know if I’d like to play it.

Home in time to eat before visiting my local cinema/theatre, which was showing Nebraska. Such a beautiful film.

That was yesterday. Today I am writing – editing the fifth draft of my play Voltemand And Cornelius Are Joyfully Returned.

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Tomorrow I work – that miracle: paid work. I am going to West Middlesex Hospital to assist CASC (no, I don’t know what it stands for, either) in their exam training for forensic psychiatrists. I play a variety of characters – some with health issues, some relatives of patients – all of which test the candidates.

It never stops. Thank goodness.

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*Paul’s blog regarding the performance of Voltemand And Cornelius Are Joyfully Returned at the Hope Theatre, Islington, can be read in April’s www.wordsforthewounded.blogspot.co.uk

 

 

Managing MIL: You And Your Mother-in-Law – For Better, Or For Worse? Book Review

mother-in-law- advice-bookThis book starts off with a joke: “My mother-in-law fell down a wishing well. I was amazed; I never knew they worked.” Les Dawson, this joke highlights that, traditionally, it is men that have problems with their mother-in-law. However there has been a rise in women clashing with theirs, and a number of my friends like to have a moan about their husbands mother. Marriage is hard, but even harder when there are three people in it.

Some of the real-life stories in this book are horrendous and shocking, and a few are nice. In fact the real-life stories are what I like most about the book. Learning about other peoples experience always make you feel less alone and helps to get through a rough spot. The best way to learn is from other people.

The book has rules and even suggests you start your own DIL (daughter-in-law) Club to unlock the secrets of a good mother-in-law/daughter-in-law relationship. Where you get a group of like-minded women together and all vent anger, or share experiences: good and bad.

This is a good book. A lot of the advice is common sense: be polite, decorum goes a long way, see things her way. The book is also intelligent enough to see things from the mother-in-laws view; sometimes she cannot do anything right. All in all I thought the book was great. There is also top advice from leading relationship experts.

The top tips for managing your mother-in-law are good and this is a helpful book. It takes the view of both the daughter-in-law and the mother-in-law to make it fair. Full of good advice and highly recommended.

Managing MIL: You and your Mother-in-Law – for better, or for worse? will be released by Peridot Press. You can buy it in e-book form or as a proper book.

Does your mother-in-law drive you to distraction? Are you a desperate daughter-in-law? Who is to blame? It’s hard to know when you’re stuck on the inside.

Journalist Katy Rink looks at the best and worst of this frequently tricky relationship and provides smart advice for keeping your cool, your sanity and your family intact.

How do you survive a weekend with the in-laws? Should you ever go on holiday together? How do you manage a new baby and MIL? What are the dangers of accepting that friend request on Facebook? These are just some of the tricky topics tackled.

The author calls upon the experiences of fellow daughters-in-law in her home town – at secretive get-togethers that came to be known as DIL Club – to illustrate the highs and lows of dealing with his mother.

There are plenty of anecdotes to amuse and entertain, including the DILs who received engine oil, chin hair removal cream and paper knickers as Christmas presents from their MILs; the MIL who provided itemised receipts for ice creams and charged for petrol; and the MIL who greeted news of a pregnancy with “I can’t believe you haven’t had her sterilised yet”.

You can also try and recognise your MIL from a cast of hilarious caricatures including The Apologist, The Snob, The Manipulator and The Social Climber.

But amid the horror stories there are heart-warming tales of when (and how) it all goes right, and when peace breaks out.

 

Kristen Stewart Takes British Glamour Cover, Robert Pattinson

Kristen Stewart is the cover star of British Glamour’s December 2011 issue. She looks amazing and talks of her love of ‘everything’ British inside, including, ahem, the men, as she finally admits to dating Robert Pattinson.

Stewart reveals that the Twilight sex scene between her and real life boyfriend Robert was so steamy it initially got an R rating. Stewart also said; “Doing the sex scene was weird. I was like, ‘Bella! What are you doing? Wow!'”

She also says that she tried too hard to be ‘not fake’ when she was younger and that, ‘The first time Rob was ‘sexiest man in the world’, it was the biggest joke.’