Review of Climb Back Up

[Catherine Sweet]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Climb Back Up" by Rod cate.]

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4 out of 5 stars

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Climb Back Up by Rod Cate is a collection of inspiring stories about people dealing with and overcoming adversity. Everyone featured appeared on Cate's podcast Rocket Motivation. When Cate was 15, he broke his neck playing high school football, resulting in a spinal cord injury and paralysis. He wrote a book about the life he built after the accident called Get Back Up.

The adversities described in the book include losing limbs, mental illness, cancer, losing a child, difficult childhoods, spinal cord injuries, boating accidents and the Twin Tower attacks in 2001. Every story describes the difficulties faced and how the person found ways to move on. Strategies they use include talking to others, helping others, acknowledging difficulties, appreciating small things, having goals and taking small steps to achieve them. At the end of each chapter is a list of the approaches each person recommends. Jayne Godfrey, who has Parkinson's disease, says, "Don't be defined by your adversity. Be defined by your response to it."

The second story is about Regina Cash, who was divorced and living in a trailer with two little children at a young age. She had little money but had ambitions to build a better life. She describes how she built a successful life by taking little steps every day towards reaching goals over many years. I was fascinated by this story and thought her advice for progressing in life was practical and made sense. Another story was about Kevin Olmstead, who was thrown from his boat far out to sea and spent nine hours struggling against drowning. His survival made a huge impression on him and completely changed his attitude to life.

Cate writes the stories and includes the people featured telling their stories in their own words. There is a photo of everyone in the book, which helps the reader connect with them. The subject matter and the people are diverse. All the stories describe the struggles and setbacks in overcoming adversity, which adds to their authenticity. The image on the book cover represents the book's spirit very well.

Climb Back Up would appeal to readers interested in overcoming adversity and wanting to learn from others' experiences. I found the stories fascinating and learnt some useful life strategies.
I have taken one mark off for numerous editing errors, the only weakness I found, and award this book 4 out of 5 stars.

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Climb Back Up
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[Joe Alex 2]

“Climb Back Up” sounds like a powerful collection of personal stories about overcoming adversity. I’m especially drawn to Regina Cash’s story; building a better life from such a challenging start seems incredibly inspiring. The idea of learning strategies for resilience from real people’s experiences is definitely appealing. The editing issues mentioned are a bit of a downside, but the book’s overall message of perseverance makes it worth considering.

[patricia MGBEMENA]

It is sad that Cate had to break his neck in high school leading to paralysis and I would really love to find out the life he was able to build after this accident.