A review by serendipitysbooks
Lean Fall Stand by Jon McGregor

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.
 
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