Reviews

Lean Fall Stand by Jon McGregor

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vezrity's review against another edition

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emotional informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

serendipitysbooks's review

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emotional reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Lean Fall Stand is a book of three parts, just like it’s title. The first part is set at an Antarctic research station. It felt like the book was going to be a blokey survival story and I was questioning why I had it on my TBR in the first place. While that broad description fits the first part of the novel the other two parts are decidedly different. They follow Doc and his wife Anna. He’s an Antarctic veteran who suffered a stroke during whiteout conditions, only narrowly survived, and is suffering from severe aphasia. I thought the depictions of his struggles to relearn everyday tasks and regain the ability to communicate were handled with compassion. So too the difficulties faced by Anna. She was strongly invested in her career and their relationship was not the strongest. Yet she was expected to become his full-time career with little guidance or practical support. That lack of support was one of my abiding memories of this book. I also enjoyed the final section which focussed on a community support and rehabilitation group. Watching different characters regain some degree of communication and movement, albeit in non-standard ways was very moving.

Content Warnings

best_lemon's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

thisotherbookaccount's review against another edition

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3.0

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This book’s synopsis will have you believe that it is about an Antarctic expedition gone wrong and how the survivors live through the ordeal. However, since it’s also a book by McGregor, who has a reputation, it isn’t JUST about that.

Robert ‘Doc’ Wright is a 33-year veteran of Antarctic expeditions. During a survey mission, Doc and his team are hit by a freak storm, causing one of them to pass away. Doc himself suffers a stroke, which then leads to a severe case of aphasia. The rest of the book, then, is about how he has to come to terms with his inability to communicate, relearn how to move and get back on his feet once more.

This book leans way too heavily on the technical details of recovery (how to button buttons, how to sip water, how to put on trousers, how to use the bathroom, how to pronounce words with more than two syllables) and not on the mental/emotional impact of trauma.

Part 2 is told from the perspective of Anna, Doc’s wife, who is suddenly saddled with her infirmed husband. How does she feel as a caregiver of her estranged husband? How does it feel to put aside her career? McGregor doesn’t explore this at all, choosing instead to focus on Doc’s slow but steady recovery. While still interesting, I cannot help but feel like he missed a huge opportunity there.

Part 3 is more of the same, but told from the perspective of a speech therapist. I get what the book is trying to say: that ‘recovery’ is more than just the ability to speak, but the ability to communicate and ‘tell stories’. However, when the book sometimes reads like a speech therapist’s handbook, you do wonder if it’s better to not tell stories at all.

Lean Fall Stand is not bad, really. As my first entry to McGregor’s works, it just tastes like a slice of dry pie. The reason why it doesn’t get fewer stars is because, having spoken to @gothookedonbooks, I’ve come to appreciate the work of Speech Language Pathologists.