Customer Reviews

The Pleasure Was Mine

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Because my mother has suffered from Alzheimer's for the past ten years, I usually avoid anything related to the disease (fact or fiction) like the plague, but because I'm familiar with Tommy Hays's sweetly haunting writing from his first two novels, Sam's Crossing and In the Family Way, I knew it would be worth the pain.
In his new novel, The Pleasure Was Mine, Mr. Hays is able to reveal the heartbreaking and often inhuman realities of Alzheimer's, while at the same time exposing the kernel of youth and love at the heart of those we often see as aged and that many in our new culture of eternal youth, have written off.
This book tells a story, like a small well painted picture, of Irene's, but more importantly Prate, her husband's, frightening descent into the world of Alzheimer's. It exposes the often-heartless reality of long term care and the system and culture that surround it, but really it is about much more.
The story speaks clearly and hopefully to a generation of Baby Boomers faced with their own ageing parents, impending mortality, and genetic weaknesses. It has a lot to teach about growing old with grace. It puts forward the idea that love only seems to be real to us, when we are in the memory of someone we love. It reminds us to be aware and place a great value on that love while we are able.
Mr. Hays explores the experience of loneliness that can a occur at any age through the characters of Jackson and Newell, the grieving young son and father, and Prate, the grandfather, father, and husband of the afflicted Irene Generational lines become blurred when traits as diverse as, curmudgeonly temper, large ears, and artistic ability appear in new but familiar forms in each of these three men. And Jackson, the young boy, has a slightly unearthly, intuitive, and vulnerable quality that propels the story and endears him to the reader.
Tommy Hays grounds this story in the very made-real rural and urban Upstate of South Carolina and mountainous Western North Carolina. And he writes it all in a smooth and effortless flow of upright language, not unlike partnering someone in a dance, which also has its place in this story.
As I read I often heard the voices of my own father and mother speak the words that were printed on the page, and as I laughed out loud at the sweet and funny moments this family passes through, the voice I heard sounded exactly like my mother's.

this is an absolutely fine book, a wonderful read, and so uplifting. i don't know why more authors and publishers don't wirte and print books like this. it is so nice to read a story about ordinary folks and how real character carries them through the twists in their lives. you feel that you are right there with the folks, and you learn a few things about life.

it is a supurbly written story and so nicely crafted so that you can drift along with this family easily. also, he has touched on many difficult issues and poingnant themes without pulling too hard on the heart strings with mushy wording. a real trick, that.

a truly enjoyable read. get a copy for yourself, and send one to a good friend. dgs

We all probably know a Prate Marshbanks. He's a good person who thinks he's as tough as can be, but in reality he's a softie. Family comes first, not afraid of a day's work, intelligent but his greatest asset is common sense. We all know the type, and if by chance you don't, Tommy Hays creates this exact character in his book THE PLEASURE WAS MINE.

THE PLEASURE WAS MINE tells the story of Prate, who in his senior years has to take care of his wife Irene. Irene was once the most beautiful girl in the town, a lawyer's daughter, and English teacher, someone who in Prate's estimation was too good for him. Yet the two have a wonderful marriage, raise a son together, and at least as far as Prate is concerned, the two never fall out of love. This love and dedication is being tested now that Irene has Alzheimer's. Prate spends most of his days caring for Irene, but his routine is disrupted when his son Newell calls and asks him to baby-sit for Jackson, Newell's son. Prate reluctantly agrees believing his widowed son may need some time away but he wonders how he's entertain a sullen, bookish, and somewhat quirky young boy like Jackson. The two bond, and this bonding creates a new family dynamic.

The beauty of this book is due to Tommy Hays' carefully structured writing. This book could easily go in at least five different directions, but Hays is careful to present the story through Prate's eyes and by doing so, we become immersed in this man's story and grow to feel for him and the other characters in the story. Readers may think that a husband caring for an ailing wife with Alzheimer's is similar to the story of THE NOTEBOOK, Hays avoids sentimentality. Prate always has a bit of an edge which keeps him real and anyone who either has cared for someone with Alzheimer's, or knows someone who has, will appreciate the accuracy of the story and Prate's emotions.

I know I'm not the only reader who fell in love with this book, and it's my guess that others will too. Enjoy!

This is a wonderful book, full of humor, sadness, and warmth. The characters are complex, especially Prate, the main character. He has a charming way of being cantankerous and loving at the same time. If anyone has had a family member with dementia, this book will make you smile and make you cry. Prate's wife, who has Alzheimers, shows us the ups and downs, the humor and tenderness, the childlike dependency and the glimmers of remembering times past. Having the young grandson appear brings out a richness in all the characters. I especially enjoyed the sense of place depicted in the book. There are allusions to Greenville, SC, past and present, as well as the artsy world of Asheville, NC and Penland. This is well-worth reading.

Tommy Hays has achieved that delicate balance of realism with affection for imperfect characters in dealing with the family tragedy of Alzheimer's. His narrator is a retired working man unflinchingly aware of his persistent shortcomings, forgivably nostalgic, and a prime candidate to feel that his wife's Alzheimer's has short-changed their golden years. But despite his emotional absence from a half-century of marriage, he manages to show up for that long goodbye that Alzheimer's affords yet so few of us fully embrace. This is a humanizing work by a gifted and caring writer.

You would think that a novel about Alzheimer's disease would be depressing but Tommy Hays' new book was hopeful, funny and sexy. Yes, sexy, the way a hand on a thigh is sexy, eyes sliding down a woman's legs is sexy and spooning is sexy.
Prate, a retired house painter, realizes that his educated and active wife is no longer herself and that he, seventy-five himself, cannot physically take care of her. But with fifty years of love between them and a lot of strength and candor, Prate shows that he is up to the challenge. Then Jackson, his quiet and bookish grandson, comes to stay with him for the summer. What on earth will he do with this nine-year old?
All this happens in and around Greenville, SC. Hays writes with grace and skill and shows that he knows his subject.
He also gets the area around Greenville and Jones Gap
State Park just right.
Book clubs will discuss this book for a long time. Highly recommended.

This is a beautifully, sparingly written story about an older couple dealing with the changes, sadness, and humor, too, that Alzheimers' disease brings to a relationship. There are several love (romantic and familial) stories in it; the husband and wife, the grandfather and his grandson, 2 fathers and sons, and an unmarried man and women. In spite of dealing openly with the the effects of Alzheimers' disease on family members, this is NOT a depressing book. It is sweet and hopeful, yet poignant and sad at the same time. I highly recommend it.

With a tenderness and sincerity that begins on the first page, Tommy Hays creates the world of Prate Marshbanks, a retired housepainter whose wife has recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer's. A stubborn, self-depracating "old coot," readers grow to understand and admire the strength and integrity of Prate's devotion to his wife as well as his reluctant, yet profound influence in the lives of his son and grandson. Set primarily in upstate South Carolina, Hays' characters travel into the mountains of Western North Carolina to fish, paint, and dance. As in other works, Hays skillfully demonstrates his ability to examine the impact of tragedy on the individual members of a family with both insight and grace. The reverberating message he leaves for his readers is a binding universal truth, one that Prate finds in the eyes of an elderly waitress: We're all in this together.
A seamless work of fiction, Tommy Hays' novel is a reminder to enjoy what we have, embrace those we love, and dance while the music is playing!

I hesitated to read this book because I feared that a story about a beloved wife with Alzheimer's disease could easily be sentimental and hackneyed. However, what I found was a heartfelt account of a family facing the related struggles, mostly in themselves. Tommy Hays is a master of character development, so that by the book's end you have a real window into each of the very believable main characters. I also appreciated the fact that Hays resisted tying up the story too neatly. A great read! I will look forward to the author's next book.

Tommy Hays has a rare gift for writing with warmth, wisdom, humor, and integrity. In The Pleasure Was Mine, his unpretentious style comes straight from the heart. Through the voice of Prate Marshbanks whose wife of fifty years has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's, the author conveys poignantly and realistically how the experience of great loss can become a celebration of life.

With his wife Irene slowly slipping away, Prate's predicament is further complicated by the presence of his nine-year-old grandson who has come to live with him for the summer. As the story unfolds, the lives of the characters are transformed in ways they couldn't have imagined, as grief tests their beliefs and forces hard choices. Glimpses into the past show Prate and Irene in their youth, contrasted with the reality of growing old, in a way that honors the timeless passion, love, and devotion of this unlikely couple.

For anyone whose family has been touched by Alzheimer's, the writing rings true throughout, each chapter flowing seamlessly into the next without a false note. With a fresh blend of lightheartedness and deep emotion, Tommy Hays artfully gives us a balanced, multi-faceted look at debilitating illness, raising our awareness without dwelling on the disease. This remarkable story portrayed by unforgettable characters is a joyful message of hope. Highly recommended!