Crashing Through: A True Story of Risk, Adventure, and the Man Who Dared to See

by Robert Kurson

In his critically acclaimed bestseller Shadow Divers, Robert Kurson explored the depths of history, friendship, and compulsion. Now Kurson returns with another thrilling adventure–the stunning true story of one man’s heroic odyssey from blindness into sight.

Mike May spent his life crashing through. Blinded at age three, he defied expectations by breaking world records in downhill speed skiing, joining the CIA, and becoming a successful inventor, entrepreneur, and family man. He had never yearned for vision.

Then, in 1999, a chance encounter brought startling news: a revolutionary stem cell transplant surgery could restore May’s vision. It would allow him to drive, to read, to see his children’s faces. He began to contemplate an astonishing new world: Would music still sound the same? Would sex be different? Would he recognize himself in the mirror? Would his marriage survive? Would he still be Mike May?

The procedure was filled with risks, some of them deadly, others beyond May’s wildest dreams. Even if the surgery worked, history was against him. Fewer than twenty cases were known worldwide in which a person gained vision after a lifetime of blindness. Each of those people suffered desperate consequences we can scarcely imagine.

There were countless reasons for May to pass on vision. He could think of only a single reason to go forward. Whatever his decision, he knew it would change his life.

Beautifully written and thrillingly told, Crashing Through is a journey of suspense, daring, romance, and insight into the mysteries of vision and the brain. Robert Kurson gives us a fascinating account of one man’s choice to explore what it means to see–and to truly live.


From the Hardcover edition.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Book Club, Memoir, Science, Psychology, Biography Memoir

322 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Robert Kurson is an American author, best known for his bestselling book, "Shadow Divers," the true story of two Americans who discover a sunken World War II German U-boat and for "Crashing Through," the story of an entrepreneur who regains his eyesight after a lifetime of blindness.

Kurson began his career as an attorney, graduating from Harvard Law School and practicing real estate law. His professional writing career began at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he started as a sports agate clerk and soon gained a full-time features writing job. In 2000, Esquire published “My Favorite Teacher,” his first magazine story, which became a finalist for a National Magazine Award. He moved from the Sun-Times to Chicago magazine, then to Esquire, where he won a National Magazine Award and was a contributing editor for years. His stories have appeared in Rolling Stone, The New York Times Magazine, and other publications. He lives in Chicago.

Reviews

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

i really enjoyed this book, it was honestly a "page turner." because it is not fictional and the subject is so unique and unknown, i was consistently dyyyying to know what was going to happen next (like i almost missed my train stop a few times and that NEVER happens to me!) i really dig kurson so i knew i'd like the writing, but the subject was also really fascinating and i can't fathom how anyone who picked it up and read the dustjacket wouldn't be totally intrigued by it. HOWEVER. the main character, this mike may guy, is a total JERK. sure, he accomplished a whole lot. i read on and on and on about his accomplishments. terrific. i'm soooo terribly impressed. so he's like a crazy inventor and an entrepreneur and a gold medal skiier, that DOESN'T MEAN he gets to be an asshole. i feel like he completely disregards his wife's feelings all the time and the way he drives on in this reckless "i need to win at everything" sort of way totally astonishes the author but i think it's irresponsible to act like that when you have a family to take care of. he's kind of insensitive, and don't EVEN get me started on his opinion of women. UGH. what a JERK OFF. but really it's a great book.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe not everyone should read this, but anyone who does will gain a new insight into their own and others' vision. Yes, we do see with our eyes, but we see with our brain as well. Mike May is one of maybe a dozen people in the history of the world who regained his vision after a lifetime of blindness. That, alone, makes his story of interest. But the full throttle approach to life that Mike displays, both during his blindness, and afterward, as well, when vision did not exactly return in ways that were expected, are an inspiration.
When May, as a blind camp counselor was trying to find advice to give to some of the older blind campers, he came up with this:
"-Have adventures
-Speak to your curiosity
-Be willing to fall down or get lost
-There's always a way
'I think if you can do those things you will find your way in the world,' May told them. 'I think if you can remember to do those things you will always be ok.'"

[Willie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Kurson expanded an Esquire article into Crashing Through, and that expansion turned an interesting article about a difficult decision and its emotional consequences into a biography swollen with unnecessary and frequently excruciating details.

If you're interested in every second of every romantic date May ever attended, or the fascinating process of acquiring investors for a tech start-up, read the book. If you're interested in the surgery and its aftermath, seek out the original article or "To See and Not See" in An Anthropologist on Mars by Oliver Sacks, who is a much better writer.

Also, under no circumstances should you listen to the audio version, which is narrated by Someone's Grandpa Who Has Stayed Up Long Past His Bedtime.

[Blondish And Bookish · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crashing Through is the story of a man who was blinded at age 3 and who never let it slow him down—then who underwent a radical new procedure to regain his sight at age 46.

One of the things I found interesting in this book, was the information about the procedure and about eye surgeries.

However, the part of this story that was fascinating was about vision in general. When Mike regained his vision, he couldn't comprehend faces or details. He could not tell the difference between men and women, he couldn't identify his wife's face, he could spend all day with someone and not be able to recognize them 2 minutes later. He couldn't tell who was in a photo, and barely could tell WHAT was in the photo.

The problem for the doctors was that in the entire history of time, there had only been about 25 people who had gotten their sight back after a lifetime of blindness—so no one knew what was going on, why it was happening, or if it would ever improve. Mike's case broke new ground—this was evidence that sight continued to develop during childhood and when people didn't have sight during that critical time, the part of their brain that developed to process sight, just didn't have any reason to develop. Those neurons were allocated by the brain to other functions. Part of the book showed different optical illusions to normal visioned people, which were seen as entirely differently by Mike. MRIs showed that Mike's brain circuitry operated differently in some areas. The scientists were literally able to make new discoveries about how brains operate, and how vision develops and works.

Interesting book, gave me a lot to think about. Recommend to anyone interested in science, exploring new discoveries, brains, and people who live courageous lives.

[Tim · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story of Mike May's life is truly facsinating. He was a record blind Olympic skier, started and ran his own companies, and underwent a radical new eye surgery that allowed him to see. Great insight on how the mind processes images and sensory inputs, and how "repairing" a sense lost early in life is no miracle cure, as the brain simply does not know how to process the information.

Unfortunately, in my opinion, Kurson's writing was poor, stale, and did not hold my interest. I skimmed the lackluster narrative sections and focused only on the details (which, again, were very interesting).

[Valerie · Rating 1 out of 5]

There were 2 main themes;
1. Blind guy lived a full and rich life with support of family and friends before and after rare sight-restoring surgery.
2. This Blind guy got LOTS OF GIRLS, and they were REALLY HOT infact sometimes he dated two or three at the same time. He married a HOT GIRL too. And he had PLENTY of opportunities to cheat on her, not that he did, but he could have. Did I mention that he got LOTS of girls? despite being blind. Lots of them. Cute ones.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked up this book free at NBP. I don’t know if they were transcribing it, or if they just had it because Mike May, the subject, was on the adjudication committee of NBP’s new Louis Braille Touch of Genius Prize for Innovation.

I did not find it to be a very well-written book at all—very hackneyed phrasing, stale descriptions. I was also distracted because the main character was referred to as “May”, not “Mike”, despite the fact that many other Mays (his family members) also appeared throughout the story. The saving grace was that the subject matter was very interesting.

Mike May was blinded at age 3, and then, in his late 40s, had vision restored in one eye with a new surgery. His experiences “learning” to see were very interesting—he perceived color and motion automatically, and knew what they meant, but unless he was expecting to see a particular thing, he often had difficulty grouping shapes into object vs. background. He had difficulty with perspective and face recognition, including differentiating between male and female faces. Once shown this idea, it was easy to identify the same phenomenon in my own experience, when a picture or vista will be confusing until suddenly I “know” what it is, and everything sort of snaps into place as a part of that thing. The author also gets into some of the specifics of organ transplants, and the physiology of the eye, which I found very interesting.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an amazing story that was poorly written. The sentence structure was tedious...He did this, he did that, he felt this, he liked that. It lapsed into textbook mode occasionally, which as a scientist I dont mind that much, but it detracted from the story. I also didnt understand the author and subject's need to highlight the sexual prowess of the subject. It shows some prejudice to the public that they would assume that we would all think he is not attractive or desirable becuase he was blind? Again, this sidebar detracted from the story. But overall, an amazing scientific study and acheivement to which little is known that was very interesting to learn about. I am recommending to my opthamologist friend!

[Amiad · Rating 3 out of 5]

מבוסס על סיפורו האמיתי של מייק מיי. הוא התעוור בגיל מאוד צעיר אבל למרות זאת הצליח לפתח עצמאות ואפילו לזכות באליפות העולם בסקי לעיוורים. עד שבגיל 46 רופא מציע לו ניתוח שיכול להשיב לו את הראייה והוא מתלבט האם זה כדאי ונכון.

זה סיפור חייו של מייק משולב בהסברים טכניים יותר על הראייה ובהרהורים פילוסופיים על עצמאות, שוני והצלחה בחיים.
לפעמים מעניין מאוד ולפעמים פחות.

[George · Rating 3 out of 5]

The true story of an entrepreneur who, through the use of new medical technology, is able to regain his sight after decades of blindness, something only 20 people in recorded history have experienced. To be honest, I thought the strongest parts of the book were those that didn't deal too much with the main character. For example, a chapter toward the end examines the role that the brain plays in interpreting visual stimuli to create what we think of as vision. Fascinating stuff. It is hard to tell whether the weakness of the parts that deal with May is a result of the writer's technique -- dwelling on certain topics, glossing over seemingly important issues -- or the way the subject was determined to present himself. May comes across as a bit of a jerk -- we are supposed to cheer about his courage in riding his bicycle downtown as a child, or reversing his sister's car out of the driveway, but it was hard for me to forget about the other drivers on the street, and what the consequences could have been to them. Also, May's preoccupation with the female body got a bit repetitive, and while I appreciate that you don't want him to be perfect, there was something about his trips to the cafe to watch women walk by that kind of creeped me out a bit.

[Gina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was required reading for a class I'm taking. It was very entertaining and a quick read.
It was really, really interesting to learn about Mike May's journey from being congenitally blind to gaining his vision back in his 40's! There are so many aspects sighted people unknowingly take for granted! It was fascinating to recognize. We never really had to learn or conceptualize the many facets of our vision because it just 'always was' for us. People with vision have learned how to utilize their sight through development from infancy and onward. In the book, Mike describes so many new challenges you would never think about if you have been a sighted person your whole life. It was a really compelling book. I skipped through the (few) pages where he describes intimacy with his wife. An unnecessary portion to understand.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had never heard of Mike May, but his journey was interesting to follow. Pretty easy to read. Some parts went a little slow with details, but overall an enjoyable read.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

What I loved about this book:

I'm giving this 5 stars because of the fascinating parts about what happens when you restore vision to a blind person, and not because of the writing. It is unbelievable to learn about how we really "see", and I don't doubt that it will be a real surprise to most people.

This is the story of Mike May, one of only 20! or so people in recorded history to have been blind for a significant part of their lives and then have their vision restored. The vision science is fascinating. I couldn’t get enough of it and would recommend the book to anyone just for that reason. It will even make you look at your exploring baby in a new way.
Although some sections in the middle slow down and seem extraneous, on the whole it is very well written and fast-paced. It is more like a novel than non-fiction in that sense. I read it in just a few evenings.

What I didn’t love about this book:

* I would have been fine with a book just about the vision. There was a lot in here about the man, his life, his wife, etc. Some of it was inspiring because he was so alive, despite being blind. He is clearly adventurous (some might say reckless) and a risk-taker, but it was a little too sickeningly sweet. I thought the descriptions of his childhood were really good though. His mother was amazing.

[Meg · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is great for optometry nerds and book-lovers alike! it's a thrilling biographical narrative about one man's incredible journey from blindness into sight; but it also teaches us that sight alone does not necessarily equal perception or understanding.

Michael May, rendered completely blind at the age of 3, makes the tough decision to undergo a rare stem cell transplant surgery to be able to see again as a grown, married man. May reached such great heights as a blind individual; it was a difficult choice for him to turn his back on the blind community and try to see again after so many years. May finds out that, although the surgery is successful in the most literal sense of the word - his eyes function and he can "see" again - he cannot cognitively comprehend anything he is looking at. The best example of this is the scene where May and his wife are sitting in a coffee shop, people-watching, and she is trying to help him distinguish between a man and a woman based on facial features. Despite his wife's best efforts, May remains completely stumped and does no better than 50/50 at guessing men vs. women in the coffee shop.

Very interesting book and makes one realize how much we take for granted in terms of our visual systems and our perception of the world.

[Helga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many thanks to my mother-in-law Kathy for recommending this book to me. It was inspiring and utterly fascinating. It is the true story of Mike May, a businessman living in Davis, CA, who was blinded at age 3. The book recounts his life, one of adventure and daring and rushing to get all the experience he could despite his blindness. Then in his 40's, he was presented with the opportunity to regain vision. We go on to learn how it was for him, along with explanations of the science and psychology of vision. So much of vision is based on your experience and knowledge of what you are seeing. Mike found he had to use his other senses to help him make sense of what he saw. Once he touched something, he recognized it. The science is explained in layman's terms and very engaging. Mike and his wife Jen are very honest in their sharing of experiences and memories. At the end of the book, 2008, he had overcome corneal rejection and was devising ways to make up for his lacks in face recognition and depth perception. Mike is a very admirable person and I highly recommend this book. In fact before I had even finished it I bought a copy to give to a friend who works with visually-impaired people. You will never again take your vision for granted!

[Colleen · Rating 1 out of 5]

i liked it at first but soon felt it was being dragged out (like "fly by wire", a entire book about a 4 minute long plane crash into the potomac river).It's an amazing story, i would have appreciated more if it was an autobiography. i was about to quit but instead skimmed through until the book focused on vision and how complex sight is - that got me thriugh the rest of the book, but barely.

interesting story. interesting topic.. i didnt care much for May as a character, and kept thinking if he had written it himself, then i may have found it more compeling.

[Bethany · Rating 4 out of 5]

This bio was great! I cannot believe some of the things this man, Mike May, accomplished while still blind. I loved the scientific side of things- simply explained, but interesting. The only drawback: for a blind guy, he is surprisingly attracted to beautiful women. It would've been fine as an isolated incident, but it kept referring to it over and over and it got tiresome. Honestly, who would want the moment when May first visually "discovers" his wife for all to read?

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

The content of the book is compelling, yes -- I mean, the guy hasn't seen in 45 years and is getting his vision back. Maybe more than that though, I enjoyed listening in on his internal dialog regarding the question of whether he really WANTS to see at this point. Seems like a no-brainer, but to Mike May, it's not. And then something happens that he never even considered -- that only a handful of scientists even thought about.

[Lou · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good book reading friend of mine recommended this book and I am so glad she did! This is a must read. If you know anybody who always sees the glass "half empty " ( and 99.999999% of the people I meet fit into this category ) then you must read this book to put life into perspective. That's all I am going to say so I don't ruin the experience of "crashing through" in life.

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

Toward the end of this book is a fascinating chapter that describes how our brains process visual information. If the rest of the book had focused more on that kind of science, I would have loved it. Instead, it tells the story of a man who, had his life not been radically altered by rare surgery, I wouldn't have been particularly interested to read about.

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 'Crashing Through', Kurson tells the story of Michael May, a man who was blinded as a preschooler due to a chemical spill and decades later had the opportunity to be one of the first people to receive a corneal stem cell transplant. In addition to providing a biography of May, Kurson guides readers through the science behind the transplant, including why May was one of the few blind people who qualify for it, as well as what it means to 'see' and how having functional eyes is only part of the equation.
Kurson also addresses one issue that has come up frequently in books I've read involving people overcoming supposed 'disabilities', that it is often perceived by the community in which the person has associated themselves as fixing something that is not broken. For a person like Mike May, this seemed especially true. Having no memory of being able to see, May honed the rest of his senses to become a highly accomplished blind man. Armed with a cane and guide dog, he could navigate his world flawlessly, skiied in the Olympics (albeit unofficially), married the love of his life, and made a career designing products to improve the lives of people both blind (a portable GPS system in the 1990s) and not necessarily so (butt warmers for fans at sporting events). Never one to back down from a challenge though, the idea of learning what it was like to see appealed to May more than contentment with the life he had built to that point.
That May's transplant was both successful and unsuccessful made this book particularly intriguing. Yes, his eye worked and he was flooded with images of the world around him, but it's not as simple as drawing back a curtain and everything is the same 'normal' as a person who has always lived with sight. Everything is a 'shape', but with no context to define that shape, it's impossible to discern the difference between the printed word and the tiger on a box of Frosted Flakes, or that the item itself is actually a box. By touching it, May could figure out that it was a box, and shaking and smelling it would clue him into what was in the box, but none of those other senses could help with the words/tiger issue. If someone was to tell him where the words were, he could likely figure out what it said by tracing them and using memory of alphabet blocks to spell the words, but even then, the blocks he learned with had only capital letters, so tracing out a lowercase R would be more likely to be a J to him than an R.
Kurson's detailed explanations of how Mike May learned to use his new visual abilities provided an excellent education to me, an always-sighted person. I also appreciated the honesty Kurson conveyed about May's ongoing dilemma regarding whether the transplant was worth it, both before and after it happened. There were some pretty scary side effects that could occur at any time following the surgeries, and once May got to experience sight, he had to decide if the current and potential future benefits outweighed those risks, especially as his recovery progressed slower than he hoped for and may never be complete.
Overall, an excellent book and I'm curious to find out what has happened to Michael May in the years since the book was published, particularly from a business standpoint to see what other life-improving products he's designed since then.

[Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I could give this book 6 stars, I would. I am so glad this was recommended to me. The story of Mike May's life is so interesting, inspirational, and compelling. I think many sighted people are genuinely curious and confused about how blind people navigate the world, and this book answered a lot of my questions. It was also packed with really interesting science regarding vision and how it is interpreted by the brain. Additionally, it was written and narrated remarkably well (on audiobook). The descriptions of things are so unique and well-thought-out, given the context. The only reason not to read this book is if eye stuff freaks you out, although it freaks me out too and I thought this wasn't *too* graphic, for the most part. Overall, this is definitely one of my favorite biographies I've ever read, and it has definitely impacted the way I view the world (literally and figuratively).

[Lee Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kurson continues to blow away expectations. This was the last of his books I chose to read because it covered a topic and story I didn't think I'd have a ton of interest in. Kurson's story-telling; blending the past, present, and future while weaving a deeply personal experience along with plenty of scientific backing gripped me from the beginning. I've been raving about this book to anyone who would listen and will continue to do so.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating story about a cornea and stem cell transplant for a man who had been blind from age 3. The eye operated flawlessly but there were surprises in store for actual vision. The transplant recipient is a very interesting fella and I learned a great deal about vision. Very nicely narrated, with an interview between author and subject at the end.

[Amy Bell · Rating 5 out of 5]

So amazing! What a fascinating story

[Dara S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting book about a blind man who regained his vision. It also gives incite into how we see and process what we are seeing and that begins at birth.

[Donna Hartmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating journey through the experience of blindness into vision.

[Mary K · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a tough review for me. May accomplished a lot for sure but I had a tough time liking him and I suspect it’s the author’s fault. My emotion was never engaged because May seemed like a robotic superhero. It was just “May’s way” to be larger than life. And his wife was a super supporter. It just didn’t ring true. There was no emotional depth. Occasionally Kurson would tell us about a few of May’s struggles but they were glossed over and rushed through. And his wife taught him to “girl watch”? Really?

I could have skimmed the story and saved time. And Kurson’s best writing was the minimal scientific stuff. Oliver Sacks books are vastly more interesting.

[Shayna L · Rating 1 out of 5]

I put off reviewing this book for quite some time because I didn't finish it completely. I could not. This is one of the worst books I've ever read. I know it's based on a true story, and it seems like it could be written to be quite riveting. But something about the author just leaves you feeling like he's sucked all the interest from these events.

We begin with a blind man. He was born with vision, but, despite being unable to even remember what its like to be sighted, he lives life like he's James Bond. His life is full and wonderful and, despite being unable to see, he winds up with the hottest wife (she is described as the-pretty-girl-who-does-know-she's-pretty, which I feel is b.s. in itself) of all, two awesome kids, and a great job. And then he is offered the chance to see.
Obviously, he takes the opportunity or the book would be called "The Man Who Dared to Stay Blind." But why does he decide to see? He has no real desire to see things as his life is as perfect as it could possibly be. He knows that people who gain sight after having lost it are often less happy. So why? Just because he can. So why should I care as the reader? I don't. And now, as the reader, I know that this book will only pan out one of two extremely unmotivating ways. 1. He can see and his world stays awesome or 2. his life sucks now because he can see like the other people in case studies dealing with blind to sighted patients.

This point and the rest of the book is presented in such a bland way that even the things that are interesting fall flat. The author rides the line between being entertaining and informative in the worst way possible. I feel as though he's torn between turning this into a full-blown novel and a case study. In fact, I've read more interesting case studies.

I suppose my analysis of this book is incomplete, since I only made it about half way through. But there was not one point in all those pages that I felt like I wanted to keep reading. It was a chore to get as far as I did. I'm sure the story would be wonderful if another author took a crack at it, but I'd rather just read the doctor's note if I wanted to know how it ended. Sadly, everything was so bland that the strongest emotion I got from the book was myself not really caring what happens next.
delete

[Angie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel like I need categories to rate for this book. Subject matter = 5*, but the writing was a news article-like prose that referred to Mike May impersonally as simply "May." The author spent a lot of time on May's biography and background, which is fine as it gives the reader a wholistic view of May as a person, but spends far too much time on certain aspects. I loved hearing about his mother and the way she raised him, but I really didn't need to know about all of his girlfriends, thankyouverymuch. The author also gets extremely repetitive in some places. We get to hear the risks of surgery and its associated medications first from the doctor as he explains it to May, then as May explains it to his wife, his friends on the phone, his also-blind friend over dinner, etc. The same thing happens when he goes for some testing at a university. The author explains a bunch of (quite interesting) facts about vision, the brain, and the way they work and develop. But then, we also hear the same facts again when the researcher explains them to May, or when May relates some of it again to his friend. Really, the author could have just written that May related the kitten study and we would have recalled it to memory. The book is FAR longer than it should be for some of these reasons.

The biggest irony came at the very end of the audiobook when the author, in an interview provided for the purpose of including it for listeners, asks May what makes a good audiobook. First, of course, is the book itself, but just as important is the narrator. Holy cow, does this audiobook have a poor narrator. He's probably who you want reading you the Wall Street Journal or something like that, but in this context, it was downright painful.

If there is another source to read May's story, I would recommend finding it over reading this book.