Highly enjoyed this one! It kept me engaged throughout and was a joy to read, would certainly recommend!

If you’re looking for a book akin to Paul Kalanathi’s When Breath Becomes Air, this is not it. Ady Barkan’s Eyes to the Wind unsentimentally tells the story of his diagnosis with ALS, his work as an activist, and his legal career.

The book dives right in, starting with his diagnosis, and then goes back in time to cover his life’s story starting as a college student. The weakest points of the book for me were the sections about his law practice and work to reform the Federal Reserve - I just found it hard to understand, and I doubt it’s what most people were looking for in this book. That said, it’s his story to tell and clearly it was important to him to include all of that.

Where his writing really shone was in his honest telling of the emotions he has experienced on journey through ALC – depression, anger, anxiety, and more. And any Democrat will be inspired reading about how he has become a very public activist in the last years of his life.

While I’m a big cryer and someone who practically has a phobia where ALS is concerned, I didn’t cry reading this so it’s not so dangerously emotional that I wouldn’t feel comfortable recommending it to a wide variety of people. A great read by someone who has earned a place in history.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this. I will be posting a full review to Goodreads, Amazon, and Instagram.

I was introduced to Ady Barkan on the Podcast Pod Save America. Ady is in his early 30’s living with ALS, and I want to say he is living. He has played a very important role in the political landscape, and this forced him to push on even bigger issues, like healthcare.

Let me very clear, this is not a memoir about ALS, but how Barkan deals with the aftermath. He tells a really real story of his diagnosis, his depression, and learning to live to the very last moment.

Ady Barkan has taken this death sentence, and given himself a true legacy not just in politics, but for his wife, his young son and all of his friends and family. What I personally take away from reading this beautiful memoir, is that you need to live each day to the fullest, we do not know when our time is up.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

After enjoying both When Breath Becomes Air and Chasing My Cure, I was excited to pic up Eyes to the Wind by Ady Barkan. I had a rather slow start with the first half but really felt like his story-telling abilities improved throughout the second half. Based on the description of the book, I expected to read more about his fight with ALS but the majority of the book was about his political activist life, which is very fascinating nonetheless. Before picking up this book, I didn't even think about the fact that his story would be about all the happenings of the last couple of years but it was fascinating to read about his inside views of movements that many of us have only seen on social media and tv. While I would have liked to read more about his personal life, I still am grateful that I was able to read his story and wish him the best.

Amazing book about man who gets life-changing news and uses it to inspire others. I have a friend who was diagnosed with the same disease and this book was very eye opening to the struggles she and her family faced.

I loved the books that ‘Eyes to the Wind’ was compared to, so I eagerly picked this one up. I was a bit disappointed to find that it was more focused on Barkan’s career than his personal life and illness. Still, it was intriguing and uplifting, even with the heavy subject material.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley!

eyes to the wind is a memoir about ALS. ALS is a horrid disease, there's no denying that.
this memoir is unique in that it also deals with / mentions his political career.

I received a free ARC of Eyes to the Wind from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

Prior to reading this memoir, I knew of Ady Barkan based on his work during the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings. As a Maine resident, I watched closely as Sen. Susan Collins pondered her vote for the Supreme Court Justice, hoping that she retained some shred of principle and would thus cast a negative vote. Barkan and his colleagues worked tirelessly to convince Collins and others that Kavanaugh was not a fit choice. Their fundraising campaign for a candidate to run against Collins if she voted for Kavanaugh made lots of news here and clearly indicated that there would be no political cover for such an anti-woman vote. Although Kavanaugh was ultimately supported by Collins and did get seated on the Supreme Court, Barkan's work is a testament that losing the battle doesn't mean that you don't keep fighting.

Barkan's memoir as a democratic activist is always tempered by his early onset diagnosis of ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease). In his early thirties, this cruel diagnosis means that every dream, every passion, every moment with his young family will be cut short and the remaining days will be fraught with physical difficulty and emotional turmoil. Barkan manages to infuse readers with his passion for a more democratic, more just country even as he struggles with his body's decline. Self-pity is momentary as Barkan, his family, and his colleagues continue to fight for those far less fortunate than they.

Much of this memoir entails organizing principles and methods that Barkan and his various political groups developed and utilized within the current political climate. At times the methodology for activism is redundant; what is not redundant, however, is how Barkan's colleagues and friends gave of themselves to be there for him, both physically and emotionally, as he struggles with his disease. Their powerful commitment to a dying friend is the true testament of this man's character and humanity.
#NetGalley #EyestotheWind #AdyBarkan

this was a very good book, very well written and easy to follow along very enjoyable story good characters good book to read by a new author that I look forward to again in the future highly recommend this book

Ady Balkan a young father husband is living a happy life he is a lawyer a political activist busy involved.Then he notices a tingling in his arm and the diagnosis he gets will change his life als a heartbreaking disease.He shares with us his life before and after the diagnosis.He is brave inspirational fighter .#netgalley #atriabooks,

Thank you NetGalley for the free ARC. Good book that served as a reminder that changes in law like change in Obama care or social security often affect one special population more than the general public and that maybe one should be more aware of that.

Ady Barkan is an amazing individual in the way he has pursued and tackled life after a horrific terminal diagnosis. This book however was not what I was expecting. It is much more a memoir of Ady's life as a political activist than a memoir relating to his disease (I was expecting more of the latter due to the comparison to When Breathe Becomes Air, which I loved). Although I truly admire him for his strength, perseverance and passion I find his political views way to polarizing in a time when I feel we need to find a way to pull our country together.

Ady Barkan is a lawyer and political activist who felt in 2016 at the age of 32 that life couldn't get any better. He and his wife Rachael had professional careers that they loved and a newborn son, Carl. But then came Ady's inconceivable diagnosis of ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease), a disease which causes the death of neurons controlling voluntary muscles. Barkan learns that while each patient has their own disease trajectory, most ALS patients will die within 3-4 years. This book articulates Barkan's journey: an extraordinary man with an exceptional career.

Throughout the book, Barkan provides an articulate, meaningful and thought-provoking description of his life leading up to his diagnosis and the time since. He imparts the obvious grief and panic felt with a diagnosis of a terminal illness, and provides intense insight into the challenges of dealing with a life where additional loss is felt weekly. Despite the ramifications of ALS, Barkan continues his work as a political activist fighting against the political changes turning back the clock on American democracy. The achievements of Barkan, especially in the context of his terminal illness, are inspirational, motivating and memorable.

This is one of those books which will stay in my heart for the rest of my life.

I wish to thank Netgalley and Atria books for the opportunity to read this memorable book in exchange for an honest review.

This memoir on ALS is heartbreaking. However it is also a memoir about the author's life, his activism that he did before ALS and while having ALS. I think that the middle could have used better editing perhaps as it was a bit hard to follow, I wasn't sure if he had ALS at this point or not in some of the chapters. It was a very moving memoir and it gives you a look into the mind of a man in his 30's with ALS.

I would like to thank the netgalley and the publisher for providing me a copy free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it

I had seen a news story on Ady a few months ago. I can't even recall what news program it was for. I just knew that I wanted to learn more about Ady.
Then I saw this book and decided to give it a read.
I was not disappointed with reading this book. Ady has a passion and a drive that is hard to find in anyone alive. Yet even with ALS, Ady continues to fight for what he believes in.
The book was pretty standard in its layout....one chapter focusing on activism and the next chapter on ALS.
My real critism is from the middle of the book.
There was no clear cut idea on whether this was an activist chapter or an ALS chapter. I couldn't get a feel for if the ALS had already struck or not when he went to Wyoming to confront the Fed people.
The other thing is the amount of names in the book.
My eyes would blur over when he started naming names. I did not care who he ran into or who was leading what charge.
I cared about his story, his fight, his beliefs.
Other then the middle of the book, this is a top notch memoir and made me realize that I can do more then just VOTE, if Ady can go to protests, darn it, I can too!

Ady Barkan, attorney-turned-activist, has written his memoir which is at once inspirational, informative, and heartbreaking. He describes his early life briefly, and goes into depth regarding the issues that passionately influenced his work and subsequent activism- health care, poverty, tax laws. He describes his legal fights and comrades with equal passion.

Part of this memoir is, of course, about his ALS diagnosis only a few years ago, when he was flush with professional victories, a loving marriage, and a healthy newborn son. He describes his ongoing physical deterioration in graphic detail, as especially how it has impacted his work and his family life.

The only observation that was distracting was his jumping around chronologially: he engrosses us in detailed remarks about his diagnosis and its immediate effect, then jumps back to a legal fight he was passionately involved with 4 years prior. It would have been more concise had integrated his successes professionally and personally along with his living with ALS.

Overall, an educational and inspirational read.