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Publication Date: December 6, 2022
Publisher: Atmosphere Press
Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir
ISBN: 978-1-63988-643-2 (Paperback) / 978-1-63988-681-4 (Hardcover)
List Price: $17.99 Paperback / $27.99 Hardcover
Page Count: 278
Serván makes his debut with this affecting memoir of overcoming physical disability and finding success in a foreign land. At a time when Peru was going through a great national political, economic, and social instability, the author was discovering the values and life lessons impressed on him by his family that would become the backbone of his struggle to succeed as a blind man later in America. Even as a young child, Serván wanted to do something for his country, unaware his dream would change the course of his whole life. After four years as a cadet at the new National Detective Academy, a grenade explosion severed his right hand and blinded him. With barely any prospect in sight, Serván left his family and love behind and immigrated to the United States. Determined to succeed, he acquired the blindness skills, learned English, found a sponsor, setting out to pursue college education and a meaningful career. The narrative is leisured, but never maudlin or overly sympathetic as the author shows how his acute determination and will helped him cope with hunger, poverty, loneliness, prejudice, and immigration pitfalls in a foreign land. The book beautifully shows how Serván transformed his physical limitations into an outward source of strength to build a purposeful life. Heartfelt and poignant, the book makes for a beautiful portrait of one man’s journey to success.
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Categories: Fiction
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