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    The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors: A Novel
    The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors: A Novel
    The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors: A Novel
    Audiobook10 hours

    The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors: A Novel

    Written by Michele Young-Stone

    Narrated by Coleen Marlo

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    BECCA

    On a sunny day in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, eight-year-old Becca Burke was struck by lightning. No one believed her-not her philandering father or her drunk, love-sick mother-not even when her watch kept losing time and a spooky halo of light appeared overhead in photographs. Becca was struck again when she was sixteen. She survived, but over time she would learn that outsmarting lightning was the least of her concerns.

    BUCKLEY

    In rural Arkansas, Buckley R. Pitank's world seemed plagued by disaster. Ashamed but protective of his obese mother, fearful of his scathing grandmother, and always running from bullies (including his pseudo-evangelical stepfather), he needed a miracle to set him free. At thirteen years old, Buckley witnessed a lightning strike that would change everything.

    Now an art student in New York City, Becca Burke is a gifted but tortured painter who strives to recapture the intensity of her lightning-strike memories on canvas. On the night of her first gallery opening, a stranger appears and is captivated by her art. Who is this odd young man with whom she shares a mysterious connection?
    When Buckley and Becca finally meet, neither is prepared for the charge of emotions-or for the perilous event that will bring them even closer to one another and to the families they've been running from for as long as they can remember.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateMay 3, 2010
    ISBN9781400187294
    The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors: A Novel
    Author

    Michele Young-Stone

    Michele Young-Stone is the author of the novels Lost in the Beehive, Above Us Only Sky, and The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors, which The Boston Globe called “an exceptionally rich and sure-handed debut.” She lives in the Outer Banks of North Carolina with her husband and son.

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    Reviews for The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors

    4/5

    17 ratings14 reviews

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    • 4/5
      HANDBOOK FOR LIGHTNING-STRIKE SURVIVORS focuses on several characters whose lives have all been altered by the meteorological phenomenon of the title. Most notably: Becca, a free-spirited young woman who was struck— for the first time— at the age of 8 (nobody believes her) and the more reserved Buckley, who starts writing a non-fiction handbook (the novel’s namesake) after the death of a loved one.

      Michele Young-Stone does a great job of portraying these folks (along with their families and friends) with sure-handed nuance. For example, we learn much about Buckley through the informative yet charmingly naïve excerpts from his handbook. Becca is defined by the absences in her life (father, grandmother, best friend) as much as her immediate circumstances.

      As you might expect from a novel that pivots on lightning strikes, there are some convenient coincidences... but they are easily forgiven in this memorable book about family, ambition, and the randomness of fate. Strong characters, clever narrative structure, powerful scenes, and a crisp writing style make this debut a great read. Highly recommended.
    • 3/5
      I want to start this off by saying that I really enjoyed this book. Getting that out of the way, it was not an original concept as far as the story line went. The reader is introduced to an ensemble of characters all flawed and dysfunctional in varying degrees. Throughout the book we get to know the characters, follow their lives and be delighted when they are all drawn together to make for a sensible ending. What makes this a little different is that the author throws in the twist of lightening strikes. These strikes are random, but they each impact on the life of one character at a time, changing its direction. The tidbits thrown in at the beginning of each chapter about lightening strike survivors ties the story together nicely.
    • 3/5
      Interesting book idea - metaphor of lightning survivors. Good characters. Unable to fall in love with any though. While it kept me reading, it wasn't all that great. Didn't inspire or motivate.
    • 4/5
      This book follows two people on their life path. It's well written, and interesting.
    • 3/5
      In this impressive first novel, lightning serves as a metaphor for life as two parallel stories unravel before us. And I do mean unravel. Becca, growing up in North Carolina, and Buckley, growing in Arkansas are hit from all sides by dysfunction, narcissist parenting, and benign neglect. They are also hit by lightening. An excerpt from the “handbook” signals a change in the point of view in a voice less scientific than colloquial:“Regardless of a victim’s gender, doctors and scientists concur that the surviving victim [of a lightening strike:] needs support from family and friends to recover.”In the aftermaths of their separate encounters, Becca and Buckley do not get the support recommended by the author of the handbook, and in the same way sand is transformed, once struck by lightening, into an odd, amorphous sculpture which no longer looks or behaves like sand, Becca and Buckley limp through their childhoods, changed creatures of misfortune and loss.Healing comes in the form of art, love and justice. A satisfying epilogue tells us where the characters’ trajectories take them, and reminds us that the events in our lives, like lightening, are at once random, searingly painful, and illuminating.
    • 4/5
      Overall, I enjoyed The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors. Young-Stone’s placement of excerpts from character Buckley R. Pitank’s book for lightning strike survivors was clever, offered a nice visual break to the text, and gave context to some of the events in the novel. For two reasons I would recommend the book only to those who truly love to read and have plenty of time to do so:•The cast of characters is grossly oversized for the storyline•It takes about one-third of novel for the author to provide enough valuable information for the reader to feel engaged. The positive is once it becomes clear that the plot is going to go somewhere, the storyline quickly becomes engrossing.Young-Stone uses beautifully descriptive language. It is easy to visualize the characters, their surroundings, and Becca Burke’s art. SPOILERThe book is very well written; however, the ending is disappointing as it is too well packaged. Tying all of the ends neatly with a bow doesn’t work well when the text is as dark as The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors.FOR YA READERSThe novel’s theme may be appealing to YA readers, so I will add the cautionary comment that Becca engages in gratuitous sex beginning at age 13. Other things parents of younger readers may want to be aware of are the subjects of suicide and substance abuse. Young-Stone does not present these topics as positive images; however, they are worth noting as areas for discussion with younger readers.
    • 4/5
      A great book and a perfect summer read! Despite it seeming on the long side it was still a quick and easy read. This coming of age story follows two seemingly unrelated kids as they navigate adolescence and a troubled family life. What links them, however, is lightning. Becca was struck by it and Buckley witnesses a loved one get struck by it. I liked how ultimately, the lightening brought them together. Michele Young-Stone wrote each individuals story so well that I did not mind switching back and forth between their lives. The characters were well developed and there were some very emotional situations sprinkled throughout. Although there is little actual happiness within the book it is still an uplifting story about getting past the bad stuff in life and still coming out happy. The little excerpts from the Handbook itself were also a nice touch.
    • 5/5
      Writers are told to 'write what they know' so it's no surprise to discover that Michele Young-Stone is a lightning strike survivor. She titled her first published novel The Handbook for Lightning Survivors, and it's an emotional powerhouse of a book.Using the conceit of placing a 'book within a book', one of the main characters, Buckley, a young man, has written a non-fiction book titled The Handbook for Lightning Survivors. Parts of his book are sprinkled within the novel, which tells the story of Buckley, who has had brushes with lightning strikes, and Becca, who has been struck twice by lightning.Becca was struck by lightning as a young child, but her parents didn't believe her because she did not appear to be harmed. When a photograph of Becca appears to have a halo of light around her, her mother starts to believe it may be true. She is struck again when she is teenager, but this time, her boyfriend witnesses the strike.Becca loves her father, who leaves his wife Mary. Mary falls apart, drinking, taking pills, ignoring her daughter. Becca turns to creating art, and indiscriminate sex, to deal with her emotions.Although the story is about Becca, an actual lightning strike survivor, Buckley is a survivor in a different manner. His obese mother marries a shady, lazy man, who mistreats Buckley in the name of 'toughening him up'. When Buckley's mom has had enough, she leaves her husband behind with her mother and starts a new life with Buckley far away.They meet another type of survivor, Paddy John, a Vietnam war vet, who has more than a few problems. But he falls in love with Buckley's mom, and his courtship of her is tender and sweet. Their relationship, and Buckley with his mom's, is the heart of this moving story.How can you not love a young boy, of whom is written,Buckley wanted a lot of things, but at the top of his list was for his mother to be happy. It seemed to him that she was always sad. She was a good mom- never a mean word crossed her lips- but like Buckley, she seldom smiled. She was fat, and it was hard for Buckley when they went places to hear people snicker and know she heard it too.Within the novel are parts of Buckley's book, mostly statistics and anecdotes from lightning strike survivors. One mantra that is repeated isTREAT THE APPARENTLY DEAD FIRST. Most lightning strike fatalities are caused by cardiac arrest.The importance of this advice becomes apparent by the end of the novel.Stone-Young is a wonderful writer. She weaves Buckley's book and the novel together with skill, and her characters are complex and drawn with compassion. You feel that you know these people, and Buckley and Paddy John are two of my favorite characters in contemporary literature. I look forward to Stone-Young's next effort; she has a talent for creating characters who stay in your heart long after you finish the book. It's also no surprise that this is a Shaye Areheart imprint; her imprint always means a quality book. It's a shame that her imprint is no more.Thanks to the publisher for providing a NetGalley copy for review.
    • 4/5
      Story OverviewBecca Burke is first struck by lightning at the age of 8. Unfortunately, she is alone when it happens, and, because she is relatively unharmed, her parents doubt whether it actually happened. Yet though she is physically unharmed, the lightning strike changes Becca in mysterious ways--watches break or run backwards when she wears them, halos of light appear around her in photographs. Becca does her best to continue on, yet her family life becomes increasingly difficult as her father's affairs and her mother's drinking rip the family apart. As she grows older (and experiences a second lightning strike), the loss of her family, estrangement from her best friend, and her inability to be open to love lead Becca to the tortured life of an artist in New York City, complete with doomed love affairs and too much drinking. When a series of paintings inspired by lightning strikes ignites her painting career, it also leads her to another lost soul tortured by lightning ... Buckley R. Pitank.Buckley's life is an endless loop of being bullied and teased. His home life is hardly a respite. His beloved mother is the only support he has, yet they are trapped living with his bitter and nasty grandmother. When Buckley inadvertently brings an evangelical preacher into their lives (who is really just looking for good home cooking and a place to stay), Buckley's life seems to settle into an endless cycle of despair and gloom. But his mother--in a heroic act of will and rebellion--realizes they must escape if they are ever going to have a chance of happiness. Stealing away in the middle of the night, Buckley and his mother settle in Galveston, Texas, where they build a new life that seems filled with the possibility of happiness and love. Then tragedy strikes, and everything Buckley holds dear is ripped away. Returning to his grandmother's home as penance for his survival, Buckley writes The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors (excerpts of which are scattered throughout the book). Eventually, his journey brings him to New York City, where a chance encounter with Becca's paintings draw him into her orbit.As their lives become more closely intertwined, lightning (inevitably) strikes once again ... and leads to unexpected consequences.My ThoughtsI know you're probably thinking "Well just go tell us the entire story, why don't you?" Believe me when I tell you that knowing the outlines of the story doesn't give you even a hint of the depth of Young-Stone's writing. She effortlessly moves from character to character--allowing the reader to inhabit their interior lives for a time. Aside from following Becca and Buckley's stories, we also venture into the mind of other characters as well, including Becca's depressed and drunken mother, Becca's philandering father, a young drug addict, and Buckley's newly empowered mother. Young-Stone manages to create an almost dream-like reading experience. This is the type of book where you can know what is going to happen, but getting there is what makes the journey so worthwhile.This is Young-Stone's debut novel, and I was very impressed with the sophistication of her writing. Instead of telling you about a character, you get to inhabit their world for a while. I think this is difficult to pull off by even the most seasoned writers, yet Young-Stone manages it in her very first "at bat." If you are the type of reader who seeks out new authors, this is one author who should make your list. I think she has a true gift, and I'm excited to see what she does in the future.I was curious about why lightning featured so prominently in the book, so I wasn't surprised to learn that Young-Stone herself was a lightning strike survivor. I imagine this type of experience would affect you deeply, and learning this tidbit about the author gave the book even more of an air of authenticity. Lightning strikes was an interesting way to connect the stories of Becca and Buckley, and the inclusion of the excerpts from Buckley's book provide the reader with a wealth of information about lighting strikes and those who have survived them.Yet Young-Stone's writing is so powerful that she could have dispensed with the lightning motif and the book would have been just as good because ultimately, this is a book about people ... people who are damaged, lost, and trying to find love and happiness. Young-Stone does a brilliant job of creating realistic and touching journeys for all the characters--both major and minor--and I loved that she provided one of my favorite ending devices (a "where are they now" wrap-up ... you just don't get this enough, I think) that answered any lingering questions I had about the fate of the various characters I met throughout the book.The Bottom LineA wonderful debut from a writer who has true talent. Reading this book is like entering a dream-like state where you journey into the interior worlds of both the major and minor characters. Definitely recommended.
    • 5/5
      I love love loved The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors. The narrative voice is fresh, strong, and thoroughly engrossing, and it sticks with you. I read this book in three sittings (would have devoured it in one if I could have wrangled enough free time to do so) and found myself thinking about the characters for days after. A friend who read it at the same time said the story got into her head so deeply that she had several dreams about it, waking up to the feeling of imagined rain on her face. So this is that kind of book—the kind that worms its way into your heart and your brain and begs to be talked about and shared.Read my full review at The Book Lady's Blog.
    • 2/5
      Please tell me what I'm missing. The reviews were fantastic for this book, but I just felt like I was wading through a swamp to get through it. Becca and Buckley both live extremely difficult lives and prove that, yes, individuals can survive some really horrible circumstances. The adults in their lives who should have nurtured them were immature, selfish losers, leaving Buckley and Becca no choice but to also be quitters who avoided meaningful relationships. Passages from Buckley's Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors which opened each chapter provided the only levity to this otherwise dreary book.
    • 3/5
      The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors By Michele Young-Stone Becca Burke is struck by lightning three times in her life. First, her parents think she is making it up, later her blackened feet prove otherwise. Becca's parents are in a miserable painful marriage in Chapel Hill NC, she finds solace in painting and her best friend Carrie. Buckley grows up in a small town in Arkansas. He is raised by his mean grandmother named Winter and his loving but unhappy mother, Abigail. Lightning brings these two very likable characters together. Watching Becca and Buckley grow up, nourishing friendships, love for their mothers and intense curiosity of lightning, the reader learns some very basic lessons about the possibilities of finding happiness. This debut novel is surprisingly unique. The characters are genuine and the writing is easy and enjoyable, don't let the title throw you, it's worth the read.
    • 3/5
      How to describe a book that I liked but left me rather numb? After all, if I cannot formulate a single opinion on the novel, then just how much could I have truly enjoyed it? This is where I am after reading The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors. I enjoyed reading it, but it was not a novel that had me eager with anticipation to keep reading. I found the one thing that kept me turning the pages was to uncover the point at which Becca's and Buckley's stories intertwined. Once they did, the story lost much of its drive and focus, leaving me wondering just what Ms. Young-Stone's point was, to which I still have no good answer.The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors follows the two distinct stories of Buckley and Becca, both affected by lightning strikes, and how their lives are shaped as a result of those strikes. Each faces hardship, some of it of their own doing, that they are able to overcome. There is an the air of tragedy and despair that pervades both of their lives yet they rise above it all through remaining numb or relatively impervious to it.While Buckley and Becca maintain a remarkable lack of emotion to the tragedies in each of their lives, the reader is left feeling like she or he was pulled through an emotional wringer. The "facts" of lightning strikes interspersed between chapters promotes a sense of urgency when it comes to lightning, adding to the tension. In addition, the language used by Ms. Young-Stone is beautifully evocative. The combination is one that creates an emotional roller coaster for the reader, weaving one's emotions into and out of despair, resignation, innocence and hope.While the novel revolves are two characters who have been impacted by lightning strikes in some way, their lives are not different from other tragedies people face. Therein lies the message. No one is any better or worse off than anyone else given certain circumstances or events. In other words, no one is alone in suffering because everyone struggles to go through life. It is a surprisingly comforting message.In spite of all this, I still finished the novel feeling numb. I wanted to love The Handbook for Lightning Strike Survivors and feel like I should love it more than I do. The best I can say is that it is an enjoyable novel, but unfortunately, I was hoping for something extraordinary. Given my hopes, this just fell flat. I hate when that happens.
    • 5/5
      Hands down, one of my favorite "grown-up books" of the past year was THE HANDBOOK FOR LIGHTNING-STRIKE SURVIVORS by Michele-Young Stone. It's a story from two perspectives, that of Becca Burke, a young girl who has been struck by lightning, whose family believes she has imagined it, and of Buckley Pitank, who lost his mother as a child in a terrifying storm. Both characters' stories are interwoven as Buckley begins research for a book that shares its title with this novel and Becca works hard to distance herself from an alcoholic mother and a father who is just out of her reach. This lyrically written novel is as much about recovery as it is about survival -- about overcoming childhood, which for many, is something we work to do every day. I fell in love with this novel as I was reading it, and it hasn't left me since.