“THE ROAD BACK, A Journey of Grace and Grit,” is the story of Matt Miller, 20, a University of Virginia student and member of the college triathlon club.He and two classmates had just pedaled up a mountain pass. Matt was on top of the world in so many ways, in love, with dreams of attending medical school, so fit his resting pulse was 42! And then, as he cycled along the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia, he fell, face first, into an oncoming Porsche at 40 miles an hour. He broke every bone in his face, suffered massive brain injury. The real story is not what happened, but what happened after. Vitez shares with readers the incredible, humbling, miraculous story of Matt’s survival and recovery --all the way back to medical school and an Ironman Triathlon. It is a story, truly, of grace and grit, as gripping as it is inspiring. Ride along!
Vitez first wrote about Matt for his newspaper, The Philadelphia Inquirer, in a three-part series. He received such an overwhelming response, and continued to watch Matt recover in the most astonishing ways that he decided to take a leave, immerse himself in Matt's life, and write this book. THE ROAD BACK is not only about a young man’s drive to reclaim his life, but about the the people who rode with him, rescued him, helped him heal, and saw up close his amazing comeback.
"My mission as a writer has always been to celebrate life, to lift the human spirit when I can. I tried to do that with this book," said Vitez, who won the Pulitzer Prize in 1997 for a series of stories about end of life care.
"One of the things I love best about this book," said Vitez, "is that this was a kid who had been given everything – an affluent and loving family, a sharp mind, terrific athleticism -- and he recognized he'd been given these gifts and felt a responsibility to make the most of them. And when adversity struck, he doubled down, drew from deep within himself, and grew even more determined to fulfill the promise of his life, to make the most of his gifts and this greatest gift, his second chance. In an age of greed and selfishness, especially among many of the wealthy and privileged, I think this is very affirming for readers."
"Also," Vitez added, "I have made it my mission as a writer to celebrate life, to look for the good in people, to inspire when I can. And I found so much goodness in this book. This story really is the Perfect Storm in reverse. Everything had to work perfectly for Matt Miller to have any chance of survival -- everything -- and it did! The emergency responders, the doctors and nurses, his family, the community all delivered flawlessly for Matt. We hear so much negativity in America today, much of it justified, but in this book America shines. I love the family history, showing where Matt got his grit and work ethic. I love his mother's humility and strength. I love the goodness of the people all around him, from the Harrises to the Vanguard crew to Mark Bernardino. This book is my canvas to paint my view of America, a true and remarkable story."
Even though Vitez has been a writer and journalist for over 30 years, and won a Pulitzer Prize, and authored a previous and very popular book, Rocky Stories, he received little interest from the major New York publishers. The publishing industry is even in worse shape, and going through more upheaval, than his own newspaper industry. So rather than go with a small, regional publisher, in which he knew from previous experience that he would have to do most of the marketing anyway, he decided to publish the book himself. Technology has changed so much, making this possible. He used CreateSpace, a print-on-demand publisher, to design and print the paperback, which is available at Amazon.com, and Vitez created e-book versions for Kindle, Nook and Ipad.
"This has been a fascinating experience, a great adventure for me, and in a way I feel like a pioneer," Vitez said.
Many have raved about The Road Back. Here are four short reviews:
Vitez first wrote about Matt for his newspaper, The Philadelphia Inquirer, in a three-part series. He received such an overwhelming response, and continued to watch Matt recover in the most astonishing ways that he decided to take a leave, immerse himself in Matt's life, and write this book. THE ROAD BACK is not only about a young man’s drive to reclaim his life, but about the the people who rode with him, rescued him, helped him heal, and saw up close his amazing comeback.
"My mission as a writer has always been to celebrate life, to lift the human spirit when I can. I tried to do that with this book," said Vitez, who won the Pulitzer Prize in 1997 for a series of stories about end of life care.
"One of the things I love best about this book," said Vitez, "is that this was a kid who had been given everything – an affluent and loving family, a sharp mind, terrific athleticism -- and he recognized he'd been given these gifts and felt a responsibility to make the most of them. And when adversity struck, he doubled down, drew from deep within himself, and grew even more determined to fulfill the promise of his life, to make the most of his gifts and this greatest gift, his second chance. In an age of greed and selfishness, especially among many of the wealthy and privileged, I think this is very affirming for readers."
"Also," Vitez added, "I have made it my mission as a writer to celebrate life, to look for the good in people, to inspire when I can. And I found so much goodness in this book. This story really is the Perfect Storm in reverse. Everything had to work perfectly for Matt Miller to have any chance of survival -- everything -- and it did! The emergency responders, the doctors and nurses, his family, the community all delivered flawlessly for Matt. We hear so much negativity in America today, much of it justified, but in this book America shines. I love the family history, showing where Matt got his grit and work ethic. I love his mother's humility and strength. I love the goodness of the people all around him, from the Harrises to the Vanguard crew to Mark Bernardino. This book is my canvas to paint my view of America, a true and remarkable story."
Even though Vitez has been a writer and journalist for over 30 years, and won a Pulitzer Prize, and authored a previous and very popular book, Rocky Stories, he received little interest from the major New York publishers. The publishing industry is even in worse shape, and going through more upheaval, than his own newspaper industry. So rather than go with a small, regional publisher, in which he knew from previous experience that he would have to do most of the marketing anyway, he decided to publish the book himself. Technology has changed so much, making this possible. He used CreateSpace, a print-on-demand publisher, to design and print the paperback, which is available at Amazon.com, and Vitez created e-book versions for Kindle, Nook and Ipad.
"This has been a fascinating experience, a great adventure for me, and in a way I feel like a pioneer," Vitez said.
Many have raved about The Road Back. Here are four short reviews:
