Only the Eyes Say Yes

When many people first hear about lock-in syndrome, they say they wouldn't want to go on living if it ever happened to them. However, it is clear that Philippe Vigand and his wife and co-author, St phane, have rebuilt their lives despite his disheartening condition. In 1990, the 29-year-old French publishing executive suffered a ruptured artery and collapsed. He woke from a two-month coma to discover that he was completely paralyzed, although his heart, lungs and brain were still functioning. A speech pathologist was the first to realize that his mental faculties were unimpaired when he asked Philippe, ""What is two and two?"" and he blinked four times. Soon afterwards, St phane located an alphabet code based on blinking that they, along with their three children and friends, still use to hold conversations. Philippe is also able to read, write and speak with the assistance of a device he operates with the only finger in which he has regained movement. In his half of the memoir, Philippe expresses his willingness to take on new challenges and his love and gratitude for his wife. In her account, St phane describes the obstacles she overcame to bring her husband home from the hospital and her decision to remain married to him (their third child was born after the accident). With refreshing candor, she acknowledges that she could not make their life work without full-time help and an independent life that includes a career and biannual vacations alone. Though less poetic than Jean-Dominique Bauby's The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, this well-written story is no less remarkable. (Jan.)