Waist-High in the World: A Life Among the Nondisabled Book

Mairs, Nancy. "Waist High in the World: A Life among the Nondisabled."
Massachusetts: Beacon Press Books, 1996

Nancy Mair's writing contains a very sad but still optimistic tone to it in her poignant memoir, "Waist High in the World: A Life among the Nondisabled." She uses many bits of unconventional and witty humor to keep the tone of the story as light as possible, even though it is describing her experiences with multiple sclerosis, or as she refers to it, MS. In some ways, using this tone helps to push the story along although sometimes it hinders its progress.
Mairs is a master of keeping a light tone to her illness and not just writing a novel so others will pity her unfortunate circumstances. She knows when to be serious and when to interject a funny anecdote or quote, which helps the reader connect with her more as a human. It was easy to visualize what her life is really like as Mairs describes all of the activities she partakes in. As a reader, it was always effortless to feel a connection with Mairs' disability and how she handles it. She feels regrets about how her children had to be raised by a mother who had limited walking ability and energy, and she mentions how her husband had an affair with a healthier woman, "becoming the single, carefree, sexy youth he yearned-as who does not at times?-to be." Many of her words are deep and have other meanings, making the reader think hard about what her message is trying to get across.
At many times while reading, it was easy to feel extreme sympathy for Mairs, while at other times it did feel as though she was trying release all of her emotions and make the reader feel what she feels. She describes all aspects of her life among the nondisabled, including her sexual life. As a reader, it felt very bold for her to venture to such private aspects of her life and allow others a full on view of being a cripple. She hides nothing and holds nothing back, which is refreshing to see from someone who could easily find no positive in their life. She describes the mundane matters of life that people who are healthy would never give a second thought to. Simple tasks such as using the restroom, showering, and getting dressed are impossible for her to handle on her own, yet when she writes about such topics, the reader can't help but take notice of her extreme inner strength, even though her outer strength is lacking.
Her purpose for writing this book was to help others with MS to show them that you can overcome your inabilities by focusing on what you can do. This simple yet empowering fact allows all readers, regardless of having a disability or not, connect with everything Mairs is saying. It was interesting to read about the true thoughts of someone with such limited ability, yet such positive thoughts.