In today’s post, I’d like to share with you a must-read novel ''Say that again'' written by Jane M Cullen where the hero, Benedict Marshall, a charismatic, articulate, award winning playwright got his life is dramatically altered in 1 week by 2 events:
-Being diagnosed with Parkinson disease, &
-Meeting Nell, a much younger, out of work actress.
As they grow closer, Benedict valiantly battles against his Parkinson’s with black humour and charm, while trying to deny to his family and himself, his unspoken love for the young woman who everyone warns him can only be after his money.
The book has sold worldwide since 2017 and got converted into a play by the author Jane M Cullen, and a first Act was performed at Eastgate House in Rochester. It is now being adapted to send to Radio 4 for Play For Today. A second Act performance has been prepared for 2020 - but currently delayed due to Covid-19!
“Say That Again” available through Michael J Fox website.
Read reviews of “Say that again” here.
You can buy the novel following this link.
About Jane M Cullen on Parkinson disease :
As an exercise specialist, Jane has specialized in supporting the less able to benefit from exercise through teaching Yoga, Pilates and Tai Chi to many different groups, in particular those living with Parkinson's and MS. During the many years of teaching, Jane has loved meeting and getting to know those living with these long term medical conditions and considers them as friends. Jane says, 'I love them all. They are all inspiring. My novel has a hero who has just been diagnosed with Parkinson's and I did that because in my opinion, they are all heroes. They are all fighting their own hidden battle every day of their lives. The profits of all money raised from this book are going to Parkinson's charities or projects. Money is the only way to bring about a long awaited cure. The novel has quite a lot of humour in it but it doesn’t shy away from the realities of living with an illness like Parkinson's. “People should know what the reality is like and yet I wanted it to be uplifting aswell. I hope I have done all my friends with PD justice.”
Through self publishing her novel “Say That Again”, Jane has met and connected with people living with Parkinson's all over the world. “The reaction to my novel has been fantastic, more than I ever thought possible. The reviews on Amazon Kindle have completely bowled me over. Many people can't believe I have written a novel about a man recently diagnosed with Parkinson's and I've received so many emails from Canada, the US, France, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands and all over Britain thanking me and telling me how much they loved it. It's been quite overwhelming. People don't expect to be laughing out loud when reading it, so that comes as a great surprise, but many of the people in my classes who live with Parkinson's have quite a black sense of humour and I wanted to reflect that. I have been all over the country giving talks about the novel to various groups and it's been interesting to hear that many people think Parkinson's is 'just' a tremor and it's so much more than that. The symptoms are often hidden. Raising awareness is vital. What I wanted to get over most of all is, although the diagnosis of a serious medical condition is terrifying at first, people continue to live their lives in the best way possible, often with a strength of mind and determination I can only marvel at.
As Nell says to Benedict in Say That Again, 'It will never diminsh you. Don't you dare give up.'
Jane is available to give talks to Parkinson's groups about exercise and Parkinson's and about her novel, (please see contact email below). She also gives other talks on exercise and ageing, the role of exercise for mental and emotional wellbeing, Yoga and Yoga Therapy for Parkinson's and MS and Yoga Therapy for stress and depression.
Wish you a good reading,