Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
15th out of 30 books
—
53 voters
Moving Violations: War Zones, Wheelchairs, and Declarations of Independence
A journalist for National Public Radio and ABC News recounts the challenges he has faced as a paraplegic at home and abroad, from the dangers of war-torn Iraq and Jerusalem to discrimination at home. Reprint.
Paperback, 416 pages
Published
July 11th 1996
by Hyperion
(first published 1995)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
429)
Jan 08, 2008
Denise
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
everyone, especially people struggling to adapt to disability
This is an absolutely stunning 275-page book that unfortunately comes in at a merely-very-good 367 pages.
Okay, okay, that's a very glib way to sum this up, and it does a disservice to Hockenberry's memoir, which is full of guts, truth, insight, and candor. I do absolutely recommend it, with very few qualifications, and one of those qualifications is that it can't quite decide if it wants to be a recounting of Hockenberry's personal (emotional and physical) struggle with his disability, a disabi...more
Okay, okay, that's a very glib way to sum this up, and it does a disservice to Hockenberry's memoir, which is full of guts, truth, insight, and candor. I do absolutely recommend it, with very few qualifications, and one of those qualifications is that it can't quite decide if it wants to be a recounting of Hockenberry's personal (emotional and physical) struggle with his disability, a disabi...more
Most of the Christian landmarks [in the Middle East] are dormant shrines to old arguments between popes and Orthodox patriarchs and caliphs having little to do with the time or place Jesus grew up and died. There are a handful of historically dubious places for Christian pilgrims. The dingy grottoes, tombs, and street corners where Jesus was thrown, dragged, bled, drank some vinegar, was condemned and then nailed to a post one spring day 2,000 years ago are mobbed with tourists and souvenir sale...more
Easily the best book I've read this year. I don't even remember why I picked this one up--I had no idea who Hockenberry was, being maybe a little young to have caught his NPR heydey--but whoever recommended it in passing or left it sitting out on display where I could see it, thank you.
There's a lot going on here that I could talk about, whether it's the blunt description of how America treats its disabled citizens (often poorly; this should come as no surprise) or the rueful ruminations on war...more
There's a lot going on here that I could talk about, whether it's the blunt description of how America treats its disabled citizens (often poorly; this should come as no surprise) or the rueful ruminations on war...more
Another NPR-driven selection. I was loaned this book by a volunteering friend from Sun Sounds. The book is the memoir of John Hockenberry, journalist, and his life after a car accident in his 20s left him paralyzed. Although "confined" to a wheelchair, John has traveled as a war correspondent, journalist, broadcaster, and husband/father. A very inspiring story of moving through life while adapting (not compromising or compensating) for a disability. (The chapter about stalking his former girlfri...more
A strange accident on the Pennsylvania Turnpike puts John Hockenberry, age 19, in a wheelchair. But it is like he is born to be in a wheelchair. He's not depressed or discouraged about being a paraplegic, but jokes about it and goes about proving that the chair does not matter.
Mastering the chair, exploring different strategies for curbs and workable routes to where he's going (long before the Americans with Disabilities Act) keeps him busy. His exploits in the Chicago subway/el system are both...more
Mastering the chair, exploring different strategies for curbs and workable routes to where he's going (long before the Americans with Disabilities Act) keeps him busy. His exploits in the Chicago subway/el system are both...more
I was previously unaware of this book until it was included as part of an Occupational Therapy course in which I was one of the instructors. 'Moving Violations...' was assigned to my learning group as part of a disability memoir assignment; encouraging students to delve deeper into the lived experience of someone living with a perceived handicap. In many ways this book is a resounding sucess (considering this objective), and in many ways a dismal failure.
While Hockenberry provides many enclaves...more
While Hockenberry provides many enclaves...more
A fascinating (though occasionally rambling) memoir from John Hockenberry, radio journalist, Middle East correspondent, and paraplegic since a automobile accident at age nineteen.
There's a hell of a lot packed into this book. It's a personal memoir of an American journalist's experiences in Israel and Iran; it's the vivid personal history of a man with a physical disability. This is a reminder not to forget that individuals are individuals the world over; there are accounts of the widely differi...more
There's a hell of a lot packed into this book. It's a personal memoir of an American journalist's experiences in Israel and Iran; it's the vivid personal history of a man with a physical disability. This is a reminder not to forget that individuals are individuals the world over; there are accounts of the widely differi...more
This was a spur-of-the-moment, used bookstore purchase, and I'm glad I got it. It's got some wonderful poignant moments and his radio background helps his writing make you feel like you're actually there. Like any good radio journalist, he paints the pictures with his words.
Reading about the first Gulf War from the perspective of today is always interesting. Add in his insights into handicapped life in America (and its parallels to minority life in America) and it's just a fascinating book to r...more
Reading about the first Gulf War from the perspective of today is always interesting. Add in his insights into handicapped life in America (and its parallels to minority life in America) and it's just a fascinating book to r...more
This is Hockenberrry’s memoir of his life since the car accident that put him in a wheelchair. He’s an amazing guy. Biology? Or environment? That pesky question we can never answer. I was continually surprised by some of Hockenberry’s attitudes and pronouncements about how “crips” think and feel, so different than the cultural group-think imagines. The other thing in this book that surprised me was some of Hockenberry’s motivations for the things he did; they were completely unexpected. And I th...more
This was a very unique book... The author is often extremely verbose using 50 words when should only use 5. But, the experiences that this man has had are unbelievable! Many times you can't help but laugh at the craziness of his predicament. Read it, but skim the first 150 pages :)
This one has some language and some sex so be forewarned. However, this is the best book I've read in a while. It's about an NPR reporter who is a paraplegic, and it talks about his accident, his disability, and his reporting assignments. Loved it.
Hockenberry, a former "All Things Considered" host and long time NPR reporter, is "paralyzed from the nipples down," yet nonetheless succeeds as a reporter in Middle East during the early nineties. Insightful and amusing stuff, people.
One of my favorite non-fiction books I've read. Wonderful juxtaposition of the author's rehabilitation after a debilitating car crash and his life as a journalist covering the wars in the Middle East.
First introduced to this book by the author himself. I heard him speak at an AOTA (American Occupational Therapy Association) conference and bought his book. Definately recommend reading his moving story.
I'm currently reading this book. Honestly, it deserves more than three stars. I gave it this rating though because I'm finding it very put down-able. So far what I've read is really thought provoking.
Hockenberry gets too poetic at times - the book started this way and I almost put it down. The best parts are when he describes what happens to him.
I thought that the book was witty, amusing, and interesting. I appreciated his perspective on the day to day logistics of living with a disability and on able bodied people's assumptions / behavior.
However, the rest of my book club were quite angry at the book, Mr. Hockenberry & me (it was my pick). None of the others could even bring themselves to even finish it and they blame the book for their continuing fear of offering assistance to people with disabilities.
It made for an interesting di...more
However, the rest of my book club were quite angry at the book, Mr. Hockenberry & me (it was my pick). None of the others could even bring themselves to even finish it and they blame the book for their continuing fear of offering assistance to people with disabilities.
It made for an interesting di...more
This book is an interesting story about the authors life as a NPR correspondent. Sometimes a bit whiney.
Amazing! Gives a totally new perspective to many different areas of the authors life.
I enjoyed reading this book. I had heard John Hockenberry on NPR but had no idea he was a paraplegic or had lived in Lane County Oregon during the late 70's and early 80's. I learned a lot about the issues facing someone using a wheelchair in the most entertaining manner. Questions I'd never thought to ask were answered. I also loved the descriptions of events that took place in an area I know well. Eugene, Springfield, Florence, Fall Creek, Oregon Country Fair and the Pacific Ocean are all desc...more
Raw, real, a great read of an amazing journey through life
This guy is way, way, way, way too angry for me.
a truly amazing book. must read!
Mar 04, 2013
Lori
added it
Amazing
stop feeling lucky that you still have use of your legs and start feeling lucky to be alive and thinking. hockenberry, paralyzed from the T-5 vertebra down after surviving a car accident at age 19, is intelligent and wise, determined and contrarian, real and awe-inspiring. his memoir takes you through rehab, romance, broadcasting, war, and more. if i owned 1000 copies of this book i would give one to everyone i know.
Reading this for class! This was an interesting book. Parts of it were very heavy reading and harder to get through than others. I am not sure I would have chose to read this if it had not been assigned.
I enjoyed the various stories of his struggles with paraplegia, family stories, and political stories about traveling as a news correspondent--all with his musings on connections and what it all means. He's very funny and self-deprecating and amazing how he didn't let his disability hold him back.
I laughed. I cried. I cringed. John Hockenberry is a cool dude.
One of the most interesting and useful books I have read. Soon after I first read this book, my adult son fell and sustained a severe spinal cord injury. I was not nearly as clueless and I could have been about how to begin to help him adjust. It is a funny and touching book about the life of the author, also.
This was such a great book by a former NPR correspondant. This was Hockenberry's biography starting at the time of his spine injury up through his covering the first Iraq war, all in a wheelchair. Despite the subject, the book is not that sad, quite funny at many time points.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
“In America access is always about architecture and never about human beings. Among Israelis and Palestinians, access was rarely about anything but people. While in the U.S. a wheelchair stands out as an explicitly separate experience from the mainstream, in the Israel and Arab worlds it is just another thing that can go wrong in a place where things go wrong all the time.”
—
2 people liked it
“The idea that humiliation is some capital crime of the spirit is a fiction. The sentences we hand down for losing control and succumbing to physical limits in life are arbitrary acts of self-loathing. All human beings have bodies that define their existence and which can veto the best-laid plans of the mind and soul.”
—
2 people liked it
More quotes…
Feb 16, 2013 11:43pm