Halfway Home : My Life 'til Now
by Ronan Tynan

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Book Reviews of Halfway Home : My Life 'til Now

Book Review: Halfway Home: My Life 'til Now
Summary: 5 Stars

An awesome book that's written
in Ronan's inimitable way,
His writing comes straight from the heart
No ghost writer was paid!

He expresses all his feelings
of joy and pain and sorrow,
Seldom giving in to pity,
but looking to tomorrow.

Ronan was born into this world
deformed below the knees,
The priest told Mam "He'll make you proud,"
"With those lungs, he'll surely sing!"

Mam's greatest trait, her iron will,
imparted to her son
And yet, in Ronan, that's tempered with,
his father's wit and fun.

Accidents and errant horse rides,
things done with reckless abandon!
A good thing Mam didn't always know,
and Dad was understanding!

Fiona was a helpmate,
A blessing to be sure,
While Tom required a little more time,
to form a bond, now pure.

Braces helped this child to walk,
painful though it was,
But still a horseman he became,
winning honors and awards.

The braces could not last forever,
There would come a time,
When amputation was the answer,
to spasms that paralyzed.

And Ronan forged ahead through trials
of a double-amputee,
To win at the Paralympics,
Setting records, he felt so free!

With that same determined spirit,
there was more his mind conceived!
Becoming a medical doctor,
was the next goal he achieved!

Meanwhile, this young man learned to sing,
with a voice that's strong and pure,
He realized his life's next goal,
was to sing for venues full!

The first step came when he won first prize
(his Mam and Dad were proud!),
in the "Go For It" competition,
"Return to Sorrento" stunned the crowd!

And having sung across this world,
He joined a special trio,
The Irish Tenors, as they're known,
have world-wide appeal!

So no matter what the obstacle,
Seems he always overcomes,
With sheer determination,
What an example he's become!

And now his life seems blessed and full,
There's so much that he's done,
But we must remember who this is....
And he's only "Halfway Home"!

Summary of Halfway Home : My Life 'til Now

-- from the Introduction

In Halfway Home, a beautifully written memoir, Ronan Tynan, a member of the enormously popular Irish Tenors, shares his remarkable story of overcoming adversity and attaining worldwide success in several different areas.

Diagnosed with a lower limb disability at birth, Ronan Tynan had his legs amputated below the knee when he was twenty years old. Eight weeks later, he was climbing the stairs of his college dorm, and within a year, he was winning races in the Paralympic Games, amassing eighteen gold medals and fourteen world records. After becoming the first disabled person ever admitted to the National College of Physical Education, he served a short stint in the prosthetics industry and began a new career in medicine. He continued his studies at Trinity College, where he specialized in orthopedic sports injuries.

After earning his medical degree, Ronan chose music for the next act in his life. Less than one year after he began studying voice, he won both the John McCormick Cup for Tenor Voice and the BBC talent show Go for It. He went on to win the prestigious International Operatic Singing Competition in France, and in 1998 his debut Sony album, My Life Belongs to You, became a top-five hit in England within just two weeks and eventually went platinum. Later that year, he was invited to join The Irish Tenors, furthering a journey that started in a small Irish village and has brought him to the world's grandest stages.

In Halfway Home, Tynan movingly describes his life story, which Barbara Walters called "so amazing you may find it hard to believe."

Authors Books

• Books > Subjects > Biographies & Memoirs > Arts & Literature
• Composers & Musicians
• Ethnic & National > Irish
• Professionals & Academics > Medical
• History > Europe > Ireland
• Literature & Fiction > History & Criticism