Life's That Way: A Memoir
Life's That Way: A Memoir book cover

Life's That Way: A Memoir

Paperback – Illustrated, April 6, 2010

Price
$12.32
Format
Paperback
Pages
336
Publisher
Berkley
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-0425232507
Dimensions
5.6 x 0.9 x 8.2 inches
Weight
11 ounces

Description

aTo have known and read this man over these years, reveals to me I knew nothing of what love could and should be.a aEdward Asner aWhen this journal first appeared, I learned to keep a jumbo-size box of tissues at the ready. You will crya and laughaas Jim unwraps his unvarnished heart and soul. It will evoke memories of everyone who ever touched your heart and remind you to talk from your heart to the people who mean something to you.a aRussell Friedman, coauthor of "The Grief Recovery Handbook" and "When Children Grieve" "Jim Beaver, the laconic character actor best known as the appealing prospector, aEllsworth, a on "Deadwood" has written a compassionate, funny, searing, and ultimately transcending memoir chronicling a year of tragedy, grief, and survival that would send the strongest of men, even an ex-marine and West Texas preacheras son, to their knees. As Jim puts it, aIam no Job a though I think we went to the same school.a That his story is so compulsively readable, inspiring, and ultimately hopeful is due entirely to Jimas bracing honesty, dry humor, and deeply felt humanity. Read this book, tell your friends about it, and then go hug your loved ones.aa Robert Schenkkan, Pulitzer Prize winner for "The Kentucky Cycle,""Jim Beaver, the laconic character actor best known as the appealing prospector, aEllsworth, a on "Deadwood" has written a compassionate, funny, searing, and ultimately transcending memoir chronicling a year of tragedy, grief, and survival that would send the strongest of men, even an ex-marine and West Texas preacheras son, to their knees. As Jim puts it, aIam no Job a though I think we went to the same school.a That his story is so compulsively readable, inspiring, and ultimately hopeful is due entirely to Jimas bracing honesty, dry humor, and deeply felt humanity. Read this book, tell your friends about it, and then go hug your loved ones.aa Robert Schenkkan, Pulitzer Prize winner for "The Kentucky Cycle," Jim Beaver is an actor best known for his roles on HBO's Deadwood , the CW's Supernatural , and FX's Justified. Beaver is also axa0playwright, screenwriter, film historian, and Marine Corps veteran of Vietnam. He is the author of Life's That Way , a memoir in the form of emails sent to family and friends during the most challenging time of his life.

Features & Highlights

  • A remarkable memoir that shows the capacity of the human heart to heal after the challenge of having to say goodbye.
  • Even the hardest lessons contain great gifts.
  • Jim Beaver and his wife Cecily Adams appeared to have it all-following years of fertility treatments, they were finally parents and they were building their dream home and successful Hollywood careers. Life was good. But then their daughter, Maddie, was diagnosed as autistic. Weeks later, Cecily, a non-smoker, was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer. Sadly, after 14 years of marriage, Jim became a widower and a single dad. Faced with overwhelming grief, Jim reached out to family and friends by writing a nightly email-a habit he established when Cecily was first diagnosed. Initially a cathartic exercise for Jim, the prose became an unforgettable journey for his readers.
  • Life's That Way
  • is a compilation of those profound, compelling emails.

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
60%
(191)
★★★★
25%
(80)
★★★
15%
(48)
★★
7%
(22)
-7%
(-22)

Most Helpful Reviews

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Laugh, Cry, Love and Mend

Jim Beaver has bowled me over with this chronicle. With something so emotional as the process of losing half of himself (his wife), Jim pours out his soul almost daily, at first as a way to connect to those who love him and his family, but later to all those he has heard are inspired by his missives.

Unrolling his hopes, fears, anger, denial, magic and most of himself, Jim lays out his life during a period that rips your heart out, makes you laugh and cry and in the end mend.

Having lost a close family member, I was a bit afraid to read the book, but friends kept telling me "It is sooo worth it." And it was. If you're interested in journaling, email, relationships, family life, loss and the rock and rescue that family and friends can be, grab a copy quick.
2 people found this helpful
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Beautiful

This is the most beautiful, realistic love story I have ever had the privledge to read. The honesty is painfully simple. The writing is superb in its raw stregnth. Jim Beaver opened his life to the world and left me wanting more. I cried, I laughed, I cursed out the stupidity of hospitals and I fell in love. Read and enjoy!!!
1 people found this helpful
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An enexpected heart-warmer

I bought this book more because I admire Jim Beaver as an actor than I did for the subject matter. So it was a pleasant surprise to sit down and discover this amazing, heart-wrenching story of personal tragedy that he so graciously shares. I generally prefer to live in worlds of fiction rather than dwell in the harsh truth of real life. But in spite of the subject matter, I found this beautiful piece of work uplifting and hopeful.

What makes this book so moving is it's sense of immediacy. This isn't a book written years after a tragedy, with the benefit of time to put things in their proper perspective. These are the actual emails written by Mr. Beaver as events unfolded. So what you are privvy to are the daily ups and downs, hope and despair, good moments and crushing moments, external and internal struggles that a person goes through when their loved one is given such a devastating prognosis.

And what shines through most is Mr. Beaver's unyielding love for his wife. This book is like a blueprint for going through the bad times, and coming out SANE on the other side. A good lesson for those in similar situations and for life in general, especially in a time when too many people are willing, and even eager, to abandon relationships at the first sign of trouble.

The extra bonus in this, is that this is an actor. Someone you might see any day when you turn on the tv. It drives home the point that no one is immune to tragedy, no one is special. If, God forbid, you find yourself in this situation someday, you can take some comfort in the fact that you are not alone. That there are others out there that can help. That have experienced all the mixed emotions. That understand what you are going through, and have made it through.
1 people found this helpful
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Unexpected Emotions

First of all, i have to say that i love this book and the man that shared it with all of us, Jim Beaver.
I'm a fan of his and i bought this to get signed at a book fair that he was going to be attending. He was sweet, kind and has a smile that can light up a room. He remembered me from a few months back when i meet him at a convention.

I'll be honest, this book sat unread for months and then i got a babysitting job and i took it along with me to read on my downtime as the little girl that i was taking care off went to sleep... I didn't expect to feel so much when i read this book. I could see it in my head, all of what he wrote, those words just washed over me and i ached.

I'm not someone that has lost a person that they loved this greatly before so when i read this, it hit me hard, harder than i thought it would. I laughed, i cried and i started to love someone that i never meet and someone wished i would have.

Cec touched so many and Jim let us all into his world, into his life to express all of the pain, love, frustration.. and pretty much every emotion in between. There's really nothing else i could say that someone else hasn't said by now but i loved this book.
1 people found this helpful
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Wonderful

Wonderful book that brought many tears in my eyes.
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Book review

Was a gift. He really enjoyed it
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Beautifully written and very touching

Beautifully written and very touching. The rawness of some of the entries makes you feel like you know these people just a little more and you get a little sad to know you will never get to know some of them in person. I got this out of a curiosity and the remarkable review ratings. I do not regret this purchase, and would recommend everyone read it.
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Thank you for writing this.

Recently we lost my father, he had become quadrapalegic several years ago following a car accident. When I saw this book for sale, its description seeming so similar to what my family had gone through, I decided to purchase it.

It is hard to put to words, what it feels like to go through what my family has...but Jim has hit it on the head.

All in all, this book is wonderful, and I am very thankful that Jim is willing to share!
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A very moving story! A hero in my eyes.

I haven't had time to finish the entire book, but what I have read, I have more and more respect for Jim Beaver and his success in his life and his profession! He could have turned out a very different person, but has become a real hero in my book! I have never known anyone in life that has that amount of kindness, love and devotion, and stamina to endure everything he has in his life and still be on his feet!! A true Hollywood hero! Too bad his name is not more recognizable for all of his efforts and accomplishments in life!