The Thumbnail Book Reviews
by John Q McDonald -- 5 March 1998
by Ben Watt
Musician Ben Watt, of Everything but the Girl, one day went into the hospital complaining of severe chest and abdominal pains. What followed was a transformative experience as Watt survived a near-fatal and very rare illness. This short book is his description of this experience. What is so very remarkable about the book is its gentleness. Watt describes the pain and frustration and loneliness without a shred of self-pity. There are moments of beauty and pain, comedy and sadness. He describes his doctors without writing a treatise on medicine or his illness. He describes his family, without dwelling on memories, only recalling small touching vignettes. It is a wonderful and thoughtful book.