Analysis Of Lou Gehrig: The Luckiest Man

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Recommended: Pathology of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Adler, D. (1997). Lou Gehrig: The luckiest man. Ill. Terry Widener Orlando, FL.:
Harcourt Inc. 32 pg. ISBN: 0-15-202483-2.

This is an emotionally driven illustrative true story about the life and tragic death of the baseball great Lou Gehrig. His teammates and fans due to his record 2,130 games as a New York Yankee affectionately knew Gehrig as the “Iron Horse”. Gehrig put up numerous other records in the early twentieth century, including three of the top six RBI seasons in baseball history and the most career grand slams. However, what he is most known for is his battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig’s disease as it is known here in the United States and Canada. Diagnosed with the disease in 1939, only then did Gehrig retire from baseball with an emotional speech the book details as urged on by the Yankee faithful. In his speech, Gehrig said, “Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the Earth.” The reason the hall of fame first baseman was able to say this was due to the overwhelming support he received from the community. In an effort to pay back the city, he worked for the municipal department until June 1939 when he lost his battle with ALS, much to the agony of New Yorkers and baseball fans worldwide.
Though this book is not multicultural in the sense that Gehrig was a native New Yorker, it is in the sense that the terminally ill are a culture all their own. By using this book, students will be able to see clearly that all people are susceptible to life threatening diseases no matter how physically fit they are. As a form of assessment, I would love to have students write letters of encouragement to patients in hospitals whom they do not know. I would screen the letters, of course, and ...

... middle of paper ...

... is very credible and I think it is well written.
Waldholz, Michael. “Science closer to a treatment to Parkinsons.” Wall Street Journal 26/01/1995, Eastern Edition: B1. Print.
Michael Waldholz states in this newspaper article from The Wall Street Journal that science and technology are getting closer to discovering a way to slow Parkinson ’s Disease and Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Experiments from Amgen Inc. and Genetec Inc. are supporting these theories. Researchers believe it has something to do with a new factor called like glial cell-line. This information will benefit my project so I can explain how there is no cure for Lou Gehrig’s disease but there have been some experiments where are search for a cure is becoming more reachable. This gives me hope, and a happy sense of relief that one day these poor people with the disease will not have to struggle forever.

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