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Title: Will & I

Subtitle: A Memoir

Author: Clay Byars

Narrator: Paul Woodson

Format: Unabridged

Length: 4 hrs and 21 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-21-16

Publisher: Recorded Books

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 3 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

What would you have left if you awoke and were told you would be paralyzed from the eyes down for the rest of your life? After an almost fatal car crash and a botched surgery to repair nerve damage, that was Clay Byars' reality at 18 years old. Determination became the only constant in his life from that point on, and miraculously he quickly began to defy the odds.

Clay discovered a life far different from that of his identical twin brother, Will. As Clay's life changed in an unimaginable way, Will's continued as a typical college freshman with the world at his feet, providing not only a foil to Clay's inability to live a normal life but a sense of familiarity and connection to himself.

As Will went on to graduate, marry, and start a family, Clay carved out a unique existence, doing the seemingly impossible by living on his own on a remote farm in Alabama. With haunting clarity, in an eloquent yet unsentimental retelling, Clay shares the unlikely story of his life and his coping mechanisms, including weekly singing lessons that do more than teach him to use his voice again - they remind him of his will to exist.

In Will & I, the most striking parts of the story are not the details of a tragedy but the piercing insights that decorate Clay's sparse, honest way of seeing the world and his bravely challenging himself and his abilities at every turn.

Members Reviews:

Real life, not cliches

I read this in one sitting. I can't stop thinking about it.

Byars' writing style is so unique for a memoir. Flowery prose and tear-jerking moments are replaced with raw and real words that draw you into the story not as a cheerleader, but as a participant. You won't find platitudes or cliches. What you will find is reality. The detachment Byars seems to have might throw some readers, but it likely will draw most readers even further into his story. I too felt locked-in, or as much as I could without actually being that way.

The interactions between Clay and his twin, Will, feel real, not contrived or made-for-TV. His sister and parents provide a stable and supportive background to the unbelievable story as it unfolds.

The main reason I find this book so thought-provoking is not the conclusion. It is the unapologetic way in which Byars presents it. The non-linear style he employs makes you see his life and struggles as moments out of time, much like I assume he remembers, or better yet, lives his story.

Well done and real!

An unflinchingly honest memoir

Clay Byars book brings the best of a good memoir: nuggets of universal truth wrapped in an unflinchingly honest package. It is altogether appropriate that the eloquence of the material ("It was the season of brochure pictures"; "I feel like a human sculpture he's working on") is framed in the unexpected location of a voice lesson studio since his book is a hymn of recovery, and redemption. Put in on your short list of summer reading.

Terrific

Remarkable story. Unsentimental but deeply moving memoir; strongly recommend.

Outstanding

Incredible true story of survival against long odds. In a few pages, "Will & I" will change the way you view yourself and the world. Highly recommended!

I thought the storytelling was brilliant and captivating

I thought the storytelling was brilliant and captivating.