Patrick Swayze. For my generation, he was Johnny Castle who was angry that Baby was in the corner. He was the oldest brother in The Outsiders, which started the career of so many actors of our time. He competed with Chris Farley in the Chippendale dance off on Saturday Night Live. He was larger than life, a darn good actor, and from what we could see, an all-around great guy.
Lisa Niemi and Patrick Swayze were married for thirty-four years. This was a lifetime considering that nowadays more than 50% of marriages end in divorce. 34 years in Hollywood? Practically unheard of. But this unlikely pairing of two dancers, one painfully shy and one a cocky hunk, made it...through good times and bad, through sickness and health. Patrick's life, as we all know, was cut far too short from pancreatic cancer. Worth Fighting For: Love, Loss, and Moving Forward, by Lisa Niemi Swayze, is their story of this journey through the unknown.
There is a blurb on the cover from Barbara Walters. It reads, "You will be the better for reading this book." There is something about Ms. Swayze's writing that reads so utterly honest. At times, she is laugh-out-loud funny and at other times she is heartbreakingly raw. At no time does she mince words. You will marvel at their strength, admire their courage, and revel in their love story.
MY RATING - 5
I thank Lisa for this book which is an amazing, heart-rendering gift to the world. The last two years of Patrick's life are told in detail, and it is so real that you almost feel like you are right there with them. Emotionally, it pulls no punches--and my tears flowed throughout the reading of the book--which I finished in one day. The book includes describing the horrible, underfunded for research and treatment pancreatic cancer illness, the limited choices for treatment (which include devastating side effects),slim odds for beating it--and yet how to fight it and win battles with super-human courage and dignity.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more Netherland! Lisa's book was about as honest and raw as you could get, but a wonderful love story at the same time.
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