The Beauty of Love: A Memoir of Miracles, Hope and Healing

In this quietly compelling memoir, New York Yankees All-Star catcher Posada and his attorney wife, Laura, tell how they coped when their first child, Jorge Luis, was born with craniosynostosis, a growth disturbance of the skull that affects at least one in 2,000. It is, as Laura puts it, "a story of hope, faith and fierce positivity." But it is also the story of how two young, successful, public people nearly crumbled when facing what Jorge calls "a category 5 hurricane of questions, shock and guilt." Its sections start with theme-setting epigraphs from Aristotle, Paul Simon, and others. Its chapters alternate between Jorge and Laura's points of view. The narrative successfully mixes inset boxed commentary, testimonials, and medical information. Readers gain insight into the Posadas' parental turmoil—a sharp contrast to happy childhoods in Puerto Rico, goal-driven personalities, and comical courtship (Laura kept Jorge dangling). The pair share Laura's jitters as a first-time mom and applaud the Jorge Posada Foundation, built from the practical and spiritual lessons the couple learned while shepherding their son through recovery. Today, after eight reconstructive surgeries, Jorge Luis, 10, is healthy and a fan of extreme sports. An intimate testament that transforms private tragedy into public resource, this heartfelt work gives courage a caring face. (Aug.)