Fifty One

SUMMARYLudwig has had a nagging pain in his right shoulder for a few days. Wrong move? Or sore muscle?A few months later, it turned out the pain marked the onset of Parkinson's disease. On the cusp of his fiftieth birthday, Ludwig seemed to have it all: he was blessed with a loving family and a successful career as an entrepreneur. But the diagnosis hit and upended his life. Faced with a huge personal challenge - his first - he analyzed the drastic changes in his body, mind, and heart. In this witty and offbeat fiction inspired by a true story, the author takes us from the initial bewilderment through the long process of learning to accept the mystifying condition and its army of little-known symptoms. An account that challenges our own approach to illness, whether it impacts us or our loved ones. With this guilt-free, touching, and fun read, the author hopes to turn a scary word into an invitation to seize the moment and its gifts. FOREWORDCan one write about Parkinson's without scaring off potential readers?I will venture a Yes to this question, based on the many testimonials I have received from readers who, overcoming their fear of the disease, chose to proceed through my book and share with me the interest, comfort, even hope they have gained from it. When Fifty-one was published, it came to live a life of its own atop living-room coffee tables or displayed as an e-book on tablet screens. It occupied readers' minds for a few hours, called for their attention, got them thinking, wondering, comparing. It sparked enthusiasm, perhaps, or curiosity, or even indifference. It has been critiqued and reviewed, seen on TV, discussed on the radio, picked up by journalists. It has carved out its own little niche amidst the vast ocean of literary releases. It draws pride and courage from its first months of existence, in turn pleasing, moving, enlightening, intriguing, amusing, entertaining. And so it goes on its merry way, giving its author a chance to thumb his nose at the aches and pains caused by the despotic and invasive intruder that has been creeping up on him.