Double Take: A Memoir
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Product Description
From Kevin Connolly:
“I was bitten nearly in half by a shark while swimming in New Zealand. I was a victim of a Serbian huge gun round in Sarajevo during the Balkan wars. I have been the victim of a dozen car accidents – head on collisions, vehicle rolls, and pedestrian injuries. I have been the purveyor of magic tricks for children – a routine regularly involving mirrors and a trapdoor. I have been a beggar and vagabond – panhandling across countries with varying degrees of success. I have also been a holy man – bringing moments of inspiration and light to persons who chose to look for it.
I am none these things – and I am all of them. My name is Kevin Michael Connolly and I was born in Helena, Montana on August 18th, 1985. I was also born lacking legs.
All my life I′ve been an object of curiosity, the theme of a stare. But, while I have shouldered the stares and tales of others, the tale of how I′ve managed to travel the world is uniquely my own. DOUBLE TAKE is my tale, and it starts in many ways the day I was placed on prosthetic stilts at the age of eight.
In an attempt to capture the moments of intense curiosity I experience on a daily basis, I traveled to 17 countries and took over 32,728 photographs of people staring at me. In Zurich, I raced down the Limmat River against a group of twenty Vikings. In Bosnia, I scrambled to collect my groceries after being side swiped by a car. In Malaysia, I got caught in hammering rainstorms and had to skim and paddle with one hand, while keeping my camera above the rising tide with the additional.”
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I loved this book- I LOVED the way his family tree treated him from day one. They never coddled him or walked around feeling sorry for him, carrying him around…they (especially his dad!) forced him to deal with his issues head on, they taught him to be tough. You know, all parents should be like this, disability or not- there are way too many wimpy kids in the world. Kevin was no wimp, that is for sure!!
I really got it, the whole project, the highs and lows, the realizations, the guilt he felt at times- the whole thing was fantastic. I felt it all with him. I really like this guy- he doesn’t feel sorry for himself, he doesn’t make excuses, he doesn’t make an apology for his feelings of frustration or even rage at times. He just lives his life.
This book made me reflect about my own hang ups and why I may not attempt certain things- I am sitting on the sidelines in my own way. What it did not do was make me feel terrible because I have two legs while Kevin has none- and I appreciated that. It challenged me to be more- not because I feel guilty after reading it but because of his approach to living life with what you are dealt.
Kevin, thanks for building me know that it’s not how I dance that matters, it’s whether I dance at all. I hope your life continues to be full of experiences and that you keep writing about them!!!!
Reader’s Rating: 5 / 5
Kevin Connolly is just like everyone else save for one fact: he was born lacking legs. This memoir partially delves into his childhood, growing up with parents that raised him to be just like any additional mobile person. As a replacement for of pandering and building excuses or exploiting his physical handicap, his parents raised him to reflect for himself and solve his own problems; they knew that in the future Kevin would have to rely on himself and figure out his own way.
The second half of the memoir is about his photo project. He traveled the world, secretly snapping pictures of people looking at him. It doesn’t matter what country or culture he is trying to immerse himself in, people still gawk and stare. One vital lesson that Kevin learned, as I did when I read his memoir, is that perspective is everything. It was an appealing moment when Kevin realized that it wasn’t just that everyone was distressing him with their stares, pity, and questions, but that he had a profound affect on persons around him. When I first selected it up I thought I would be in for either a `woe-is-me’ negative memoir, or a tearjerker, but neither one of persons happened. As a replacement for, I establish myself laughing at all the amusing parts, and being in awe of Connolly for living his life to the max and not letting something like having no legs stop him from accomplishing anything. Bravo for a such a moving and compelling memoir.
Reader’s Rating: 4 / 5
A well written, amusing, honest, and touching quick read. Its reasonably incredible, really. I couldn’t place it down.
Reader’s Rating: 5 / 5
This is an unusual memoir of a man born with no legs, not that having no legs seems to slow him down much. The book describes his art project of taking pictures of people as they look down at him (he travels on a skateboard). Some of the pictures are in the book, and it is appealing. Few show smiles.
I was struck, over and over, at his extraordinary courage. Travel in an unfamiliar foreign country? No probem for him. He skates around unfamiliar territory with small dread. He obviously had extraordinary parents.
This is an appealing book; you won’t regret spending the time to read it.
Reader’s Rating: 4 / 5
I read this book in the span of two days-there was something about the book that just grabbed me. I am a huge fan of life tale when one has something worthwhile to say. Kevin Connolly’s Memoir, Double Take is one of them. I had seen this book around the internet on some giveaways. I never won a copy and must confess that I got my book for a dollar when a local bookstore clogged down. I now feel to some extent guilty for only paying a dollar for the book.
Leader Connolly was born lacking any legs. Aside from this he was a healthy baby, physically and mentally. He just needed to adapt to not having legs. He did not have prosthetic legs (they were too uncomfortable) and reasonably simply did not like being in a wheelchair. It labeled him as disabled.
Bless his parents who gave their best efforts to raising him as they raised their additional children. When Kevin ongoing to take an interest in skiing his father shuttled him around Montana and the nation to compete in races. Kevin then went on to be invited to the disabled X Games and took his purse money to travel the world and photograph its occupants.
His photography was a project for him on how people viewed him. As a young 21 year ancient Kevin went around the world with his skateboard. I admire his tenacity and charm. I have traveled the world myself, sometimes solo. sometimes with others. I speak another language and fortunately do not have a handicap. While adventure is exciting it can regularly times be daunting and challenging. For Kevin to place the confines of his hometown, with a camera, backpack and his skateboard is a tribute to his personality and upbringing.
There were moments of frustration and rage. Some people mistook him for a beggar. Others wanted to challenge him physically. But he had a dream and fulfilled it.
Reader’s Rating: 4 / 5