Review of Not The Life I Expected, by THomas Nathan Kemper

NOT THE LIFE I EXPECTED, The story of young Ashley Joshua Windfoot, one time high school track star, is a story of how the struggle against adversity does not always turn out as we hope or expect. After winning a State high school track meet by a wide margin, Ashley dreams of running in the 2016 Summer Olympics, but his dreams are cut short when he gets beaten up for being a homosexual by a boy named Mark and some of his buddies, who do not want The U.S. represented by a homosexual. The beating ends Ashley's days as a runner by breaking his spine in just the right place to paralyze him from the waste down. But Ashley has never been one to shrink from a challenge, so he chooses to see being permanently confined to a wheelchair in this light. But Then, The Americans With Disabilities Act is completely repealed, making all guarantees of equal access cease to exist. As the infrastructure that granted People in Wheelchairs and those with other mobility issues equal access begins to crumble, so do Ashley's hopes for any kind of future at all. His parents David and Emily and his best friend Avery strive to keep his hopes alive and his spirits up, but as more and more Americans come to view the repeal as a positive step, this becomes increasingly difficult. I found this book to be very timely, and while the material is not exactly uplifting, it dos make some points that are long overdue at being made. I would recommend this book to anyone who is concerned about the current state of our country, and those who are not may find themselves of a new opinion if they do choose to read this book. Matthew L. Beckett, Author of From Silencing Us To Locking Us Up, Left On The Table, A Collection, Give Me Te Gun, THUNDER BOYS: THE STORM THAT COMES, AT LAST, and From The Closet To The Mountain Top. P.S. Thomas is much kinder in her work to those she disagrees with than I am in my work..