“The dog stilled in his morning walk, watching as a seagull soared overhead.”

From Tom Sullivan’s Alive Day.

In the eight years since the hiking accident that left him blind, Brenden McCarthy has completely turned his life around with the help of his incredibly special black lab guide dog, Nelson.  He used his med school training from before the accident to become a clinical psychiatrist, and now Brenden and his wife Kat live with their children (6-year-old Brian and 4-year-old Mora) on a small island just off the coast from Seattle.  At the pushing of his friend and mentor Marvin, Brenden volunteers his services at Seattle’s veteran’s hospital to do something for the overwhelming number of soldiers coming back to the States mentally and physically injured.  Brenden is assigned to Antwone Carver’s case, a Marine who was paralyzed from the waist down by an IED.  Where there had been basketball, the Marine Corps, and an enriching marriage with his wife (Darla) before, now Antwone feels that there is only his life-shattering injury.  Desperate to find a way to connect with Antwone as he slips into a more unreachable state, Brenden struggles to bridge the many divides between his patient and himself as Antwone pushes everyone and everything away.  However, inspired by the never-quit attitude and affection of Nelson, Brenden continues to think outside the box and use whatever means necessary to remind Antwone how much he still has to live for.

This sequel to Sullivan’s Together is filled with the same heartwarming stories and informative descriptions that made the first book so endearing, and where the first book highlighted different areas of visual impairment, this book focuses more on the difficulties faced by veterans.  This book is a bit clunky at times, but that is easy to overlook in comparison with the rest of the engaging, quick read.  Besides the last chapter that seems unnecessary, Alive Day is a captivating, realistic story and a must-read for animal lovers.