Up and Running: The Inspiring True Story of a Boy's Struggle to Survive and Triumph [Hardcover]

Mark Patinkin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 28, 2005

Patinkin shares the gripping story of a young boy's battle with a life-threatening illness and how a community fought to save him.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A must read story." -- — Jim Craig , U.S. hockey Olympic gold medal winner --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Center Street (September 28, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1931722498
• ISBN-13: 978-1931722490
• Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 1.1 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,788,146 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A remarkable story about courage and comebacks, September 30, 2005

By 

FaithfulReader.com (New York, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Up and Running: The Inspiring True Story of a Boy's Struggle to Survive and Triumph (Hardcover)

On a summer evening in 1996, six-year-old Andrew Bateson came down with a fever and flu-like symptoms, but within a few hours his parents knew this wasn't any ordinary sickness. Andrew had bacterial meningitis, a wildly virulent and life-threatening disease. Within a few days, Andrew was covered from head to toe in a deep purpose rash, his skin covered with lesions and his vital organs on the verge of shutting down. After battling for more than a month, doctors were able to save Andrew's life, but they weren't able to save his legs. Both had to be removed below the knees.

UP AND RUNNING is a remarkable story about courage and comebacks. It walks readers through a very detailed account of Andrew's illness and recovery. But this book is about more than just one boy; it is packed with insightful stories about the team of doctors, family members, friends and a priest who became involved in supporting Andrew and his family through their work, donations and prayer.

The book itself is honest, vulnerable and refreshing. It doesn't candy-coat the full spectrum of emotions Andrew's family felt: The anger. The doubt. The depression. And the distance that developed between Andrew's parents. One of the most powerful storylines in the book follows the Batesons' marriage, which unravels but then finds reconciliation and renewal.

The writing itself is simple and straightforward. Many of the sentences are extremely short in order to convey a sense of urgency and draw readers into the story. Overall, it's an effective device that brings the book alive in the second half.

Unexpectedly, there's a lot of humor in this book --- mostly contributed by Andrew's quick wit and spunk. Whether he was getting the best of his nurses or saying "ouch" when someone stepped on his foot, the book has a nice array of lighter moments. At one point, Andrew is out riding his bike when he accidentally bumped the release button on one of his prosthetics. His father watched and yelled for a neighborhood boy nearby to catch Andrew who was heading down the street.

Patinkin writes, "A moment before Andrew's leg came off, a college-aged jogger had come around the corner. He saw the whole thing and appeared panicked. He asked if they wanted him to call 911. Scott didn't have time to chat about it. He just grabbed Andrew's detached leg and kept running. The young man looked as though he had seen a ghost. His face was white, and he appeared to be shaking... Afterward, Scott would joke about the college student who perhaps still thought he saw a child get his leg sliced off by a bike. At the same time, Scott felt bad for the young man. It was not the kind of sight you would easily get over. The next day, Scott and Rebecca decided to get Andrew a bike with handbrakes."

Overall, UP AND RUNNING is a wonderful book packed with hope and life. Highly recommended.

--- Reviewed by Margaret Feinberg (...)

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful and well-written, November 4, 2005

By 

Gary H. Cassel "Flamingnet Teen Book Reviews" (Baltimore, MD, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Up and Running: The Inspiring True Story of a Boy's Struggle to Survive and Triumph (Hardcover)

There's nothing more refreshing than reading a true story told well.
That's exactly what you get when you read "Up and Running."

Andrew was only six years old when he came down with the disease - setting in within twelve hours, shutting down his vital organs, covering him with purple and black boils and sores, and eventually causing both of his legs to be amputated. The astounding part is not just that he survived, but that he never stopped fighting.

I never thought I could imagine a fraction of what it would be like to see someone you love suddenly fall ill with a life-threatening disease like bacterial meningitis, and fight to recover and begin a new life. But after reading Mark Patinkin's telling of that very story, I feel like I was there every step of the way: standing over young Andrew's hospital bed with the doctors, worrying and fretting next to his parents Rebecca and Scott, praying alongside his family members and friends.

The book is told simply and honestly. It doesn't heroify Andrew - more than he deserves - or his family: at times they do lose faith, get angry, and want to quit. And the book doesn't sugar-coat the seriousness of the illness. At times I was more than disgusted to be reading some of the descriptions of his condition, surguries, or painful physical therapy sessions. And many times I laughed out loud at the pure kid-ness of Andrew's personality and some of the things he said. This was the truth of the situation. This was real, and it feels like it happened not to a distant person in a far-off place, but to your neighbor, your playmate, your friend.

I would recommend this book even if you think you're not the biggest fan of non-fiction. "Up and Running" reads like a story; but it's even more powerful because it's a true one.

Reviewed by Beckie Sheffield for Flamingnet Book Reviews
[...]
Preteen, teen, and young adult book reviews and recommendations

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A young hero who embraces life, November 26, 2005

By 

Elizabeth M. Norfrey (Charlottesville, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Up and Running: The Inspiring True Story of a Boy's Struggle to Survive and Triumph (Hardcover)

This book was of personal interest to me because we have been neighbors of the Bateson family since Andrew was 9, three years after his illness. We have witnessed the way he lets absolutely nothing stop him, and we have known his parents to be very positive people. Mark Patinkin's story-telling style is riveting: it is easy to feel that you are walking through the experience with the Bateson family, sharing the gamut of their emotions - hope, fears, anger, questions, and faith. The honesty and transparency of this book will be a help and support to readers who are going through trials.

The author does an excellent job of describing Andrew's temperament and personality both before and after the illness. It is fascinating to note that his God-given emotional makeup has been a key ingredient in his recovery and in the way in which he embraces life. Of course, the perseverance of his family - for example, his father exercising his fingers every night for a year and his mother's willingness to drive him to Boston every day for physical therapy if that were necessary - and support and prayers of friends have also been major contributors to his triumph.

I had many favorite moments in this book, but one of the best is the description of Andrew teaching himself to roller blade by hanging onto the picket fence in front of the house. He persevered in the summer heat, picket by picket, until he was "up and running." He hasn't stopped since!

This book will inspire anyone to fight to overcome obstacles in their life and to focus on all that is possible with faith and determination. As this book gains publicity, Andrew, now 14, will be a role model and hero for many people, physically disabled or not.

Thanks to Mark Patinkin for having the vision to write this book and to the family for allowing him to tell their compelling story.

Elizabeth M. Norfrey