Third Quarter Book Review

Eric Pouliot
3/4/09
Mr. B-G
Third Quarter Book Review
Eleven Seconds
Eleven Seconds by Travis Roy with E.M. Swift. Warner Books, 2005. Genre: Fiction.
Eleven Seconds is a story about the life of Travis Roy after his life changing accident. In this story the protagonist is Travis Roy. This story is about a hockey player named Travis Roy who plays college hockey for the Boston University Terriers. In one game Travis gets to play, this is his first time playing in a game this year, eleven seconds into the game Travis gets smashed into the boards. Travis' neck absorbs most of the hit and results in him smashing his fourth cervix vertebra. This accident leaves Travis as a quadriplegic and paralyzed from the neck down. The tragic story talks about how Travis had to overcome obstacles and going through physical therapy. It also talks about the pain and the hardships that Travis encounters and the rough times during his treatment. This accident changes Travis' life, but shows how string willed and how determined he really is. The setting in the story is the Boston City Hospital where Travis spent some of his time getting help from his injury. Other settings include Travis' house in Maine, Massachusetts, and the Boston University ice hockey rink. The conflict in the story is that Travis has to life the rest of his life without being able to walk and has to learn new things in order to make his life as easy as possible, like trying to learn how to maneuver a sip and puff wheelchair.
"This book is simply amazing and Travis is an amazing young man. This book really touches you to the core. Travis' courage and perseverance make him a hero for everyone to look up to." The book jacket. This quote talks about how Travis Roy is a hero and that he has a lot of courage and is brave for what happened to him. I think that this quote is trying tell everybody that Travis Roy is a great example of a strong person who will fight through anything, and it is also trying to say that people should be like Travis Roy. That is what I think the quote is trying to say about Travis Roy.
The book, Eleven Seconds, reminds me of the book The Lost Boy. Eleven Seconds reminds me of The Lost Boy because Travis Roy and Dave Pelzer both go through hard times in their lives and struggle. Travis Roy deals with being paralyzed when Dave Pelzer has to deal with his horrible mother that abuses him. Even though they both go through hard times Travis still believes that he will be able to walk one day when Dave believes that he will be with a family that loves him. Both of these protagonist think optimistic, but also doubts themselves at times and think that their lives will be worthless and horrible for the rest of their life. However, Travis improves by getting better with his injury and being able to move a little bit more week after week. Dave also improves his life by escaping his horrible life with his mom and living in a foster home that he loves a lot more than his other home. I thought that the writing style of the book as very good because the author told me exactly how Travis felt at all times.
"I haven't given any of it away-not the bike, not my golf clubs, not my new tennis racket, not my skates-because I know I'll use them again. It's not something I dwell on, but I know it. There's no question in my mind. There'll be a medical breakthrough. It'll be a little while, but I will use those things again. My faith in that helps keep me going", pg 153. This quote from the book shows that the author tells the reader what Travis was thinking and feeling at the time. You can tell that Travis felt confident that he would be able to use his objects again. This great writing style allows me to visualize what was happening and made me feel like I was there, as if I was interviewing Travis. The author always tell the reader whether Travis felt optimistic or if he was depressed from the accident, either way it allows me to understand what is going on in the story.
I really liked this story because it allowed me as a reader to experience what it is like to be a quadriplegic and not being able walk or do things on your own. This book really made me think about how lucky I am just to be able to dress myself every morning without anybody helping me or being able to play sports, which is my favorite thing to do. I really liked how the author made the story feel like Travis was actually talking to me. This made the story seem as real as possible and me understand what Travis was probably feeling at that time in real life when it was happening to him. This allowed me to be engaged in the story and made me want to keep on reading it. This book has affected me because it gives me a better understanding on what the daily life is like for somebody who is paralyzed from the neck down and cant move their body. This story has also affected me because being paralyzed can happen in the matter of seconds, but lasts almost for ever unless you experience a miracle because there is no cure for this horrible problem. I really enjoy how the author makes the story seem so real and makes me feel like I am there. I would recommend this story to people who like to read about people who overcome the odds and fight their way through life even when their life has turned upside down.