Only the Eyes Say Yes [Hardcover]

Philippe Vigand (Author), Stephane Vigand (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 5, 2000

On a July morning ten years ago, Philippe Vigand, a young, vigorous, handsome publishing executive, was walking to work when he heard "a gigantic explosion." Strangely, nobody else seemed to have heard it ... for the simple reason that it was in his head. For two months he lay in a coma. When he awoke, he was completely paralyzed, but his mind was intact. He was suffering from locked-in syndrome. After months of hospital care, Philippe was brought home where an infrared Camera enabled him to "speak" and "write" by blinking his eyes. Written in two parts, the first by Philippe using the magic camera, the second by his wife, Stephane, this moving work traces the evolution of the illness and their relationship and shows how love and devotion can overcome almost anything.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

When many people first hear about lock-in syndrome, they say they wouldn't want to go on living if it ever happened to them. However, it is clear that Philippe Vigand and his wife and co-author, St?phane, have rebuilt their lives despite his disheartening condition. In 1990, the 29-year-old French publishing executive suffered a ruptured artery and collapsed. He woke from a two-month coma to discover that he was completely paralyzed, although his heart, lungs and brain were still functioning. A speech pathologist was the first to realize that his mental faculties were unimpaired when he asked Philippe, "What is two and two?" and he blinked four times. Soon afterwards, St?phane located an alphabet code based on blinking that they, along with their three children and friends, still use to hold conversations. Philippe is also able to read, write and speak with the assistance of a device he operates with the only finger in which he has regained movement. In his half of the memoir, Philippe expresses his willingness to take on new challenges and his love and gratitude for his wife. In her account, St?phane describes the obstacles she overcame to bring her husband home from the hospital and her decision to remain married to him (their third child was born after the accident). With refreshing candor, she acknowledges that she could not make their life work without full-time help and an independent life that includes a career and biannual vacations alone. Though less poetic than Jean-Dominique Bauby's The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, this well-written story is no less remarkable. (Jan.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

In 1990 Philippe Vigand collapsed while walking to work in Paris and slowly developed locked-in syndrome, losing all control of his body. The problem was caused by the occlusion of a vital artery in the brain. He and his wife spell out the condition's physical, mental, and psychological results as they became aware of them and learned how to live with them. At first, Philippe could move only his eyelids to indicate yes or no and somewhat more for those who learned a personal code he developed. Thanks to Stephane and his sister, who became "tigresses" on his behalf, to his circle of friends, and to his own remarkable inventiveness, he acquired electronic aids he called "Eyegaze" and "James" to assist in communication, reading, and basic activities. The Vigands' often intensely moving account of their own relationship and their relationships with their respective families and their own three children (one conceived after the "accident") ensures that few readers will be able to put the book down once they start. William Beatty

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Arcade Publishing; English language ed edition (January 5, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1559705086
• ISBN-13: 978-1559705080
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,575,816 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars From the Daughter's Point of View, May 18, 2000

By 

Capucine (England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Only the Eyes Say Yes (Hardcover)

Well, I am Philippe's daughter and I'd just like to say to everyone that this book is amazing and it'd be cool if you bought it because it's a great love story and it is a perfect description of what actually happened in those years of fighting and winning what we deserved. Capucine Vigand

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Power of Conscious and Unconscious Character, February 24, 2000

By 

Dixon Cleveland (Fairfax, Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Only the Eyes Say Yes (Hardcover)

"Only His Eyes Say Yes" is a truly wonderful saga about a family's struggle for freedom after a man was suddenly "locked in" by a severe stroke. Though it is down-to-earth and humerous, the book reaches deep into many of the tougher unexplored corners of human emotion.

I was profoundly struck at the very beginning of the book by the occurrence of and Philippe's recollection of dreams during his two-month coma. Somehow his brain kept functioning during that period, and it even had the wherewithal to begin work on the huge unexpected task of starting a new life. That experience provides us all with a tremendous insight into the powerful workings of the unconscious mind. I simply had no idea that such processes occurred. Carl Jung would have had a scientific field day with that data. And present day psychologists should learn important lessons from it.

Thanks, Philippe and Stephane Vigand.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Courage in the face of a great trial, June 8, 2006

By 

Stephanie B. Leupp "kapatid" (Bartlesville, OK United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Only the Eyes Say Yes (Hardcover)

I enjoyed this book very much. Since our family experienced a horrible car accident nearly two years ago that has left our brilliant, now 11-year-old, daughter fully dependent on caregivers, I could relate to much of what Philippe and Stephane shared. It is most helpful to know we are not alone in our feelings of sadness, anger, and determined hope. I would love to learn more about this courageous family.