Always Looking Up: The Adventures of an Incurable Optimist »

Michael J. Fox gained fame playing Alex P. Keaton on the sitcom Family Ties. His many other acting successes include the Back to the Future trilogy, and his award-winning lead role in Spin City, from which he retired in 2000. That same year, he launched the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson s Research, which has leapt to the forefront of the effort to find a cure. He is the author of a previous book, the #1 bestseller Lucky Man, and lives with his family in New York City.

There are many words to describe Michael J. Fox: Actor. Husband. Father. Activist. But listeners of Always Looking Up will soon add another to the list: Optimist. Michael writes about the hard-won perspective that helped him see challenges as opportunities. Instead of building walls around himself, he developed a personal policy of engagement and discovery: an emotional, psychological, intellectual, and spiritual outlook that has served him throughout his struggle with Parkinson's disease. Michael's exit from a very demanding, very public arena offered him the time and the inspiration to open up new doors leading to unexpected places. One door even led him to the center of his own family, the greatest destination of all.

Always Looking Up is a memoir of Michael's past decade, told through the critical themes of his life: work, politics, faith, and family. The book is a journey of self-discovery and reinvention, and a testament to the consolations that...

Publishers Weekly

Considering that this audio book opens with the author detailing the laborious steps necessary just to get out of bed, it's miraculous that Fox's voice sounds just as charming, stalwart and nearly as steady as it did during his long film and television career. There are no frills of any kind with this recording, but none are needed; Fox's tale is engrossing on its own. He pulls no punches describing the hardships—both physical and emotional—that accompanied his diagnosis with Parkinson's, but listeners are quickly reminded that for every challenge the disease brought, Fox trained himself to find the silver lining. The first CD is enhanced with five photos (both viewable and printable) featuring Fox; his wife of two decades, Tracy Pollan; their children; and his eponymous foundation—photos are accessible by using the embedded PDF or via a Web link. A Hyperion hardcover. (Apr.)

Prologue 1

Part 1 Work 7

Part 2 Politics 69

Part 3 Faith 157

Part 4 Family 211

Epilogue 263

Acknowledgments 277