AFTER THE CHEERING STOPS by Cyndy Feasel

After the Cheering Stops is primarily a memoir. Cyndy Feasel is the writer, co-writing this book with Mike Yorkey. An NFL wife. she shares the tragic story of her athlete husband's devastating injuries from repeated concussions. She covers what this all has done to her family. Feasel was married for for 29 years to her late husband, NFL Lineman Grant Feasel. An art teacher in Dallas, Forth Worth TX, Cyndy has devoted herself to getting out the word about the long-term damage of concussions. She also raises awareness about CTE (a complication of concussions), the degenerative brain disease which killed her husband.She begins her story with an Introduction to readers. Then she spreads her memoir across 20 chapters. Dr. Daniel G. Amen closes the this book with his Afterward. Then Feasel uses her Acknowledgments to give credit to those who made her story possible, Source notes, and a Bio of the two authors.

This is a riveting book. I read it in a matter of days. It's a heartbreaking book. I found it an education about concussions in contact sports. I always know that concussions can do much damage. I'm fairly familiar with the story of Muhammad Ali, though I'm not a sports fan. And not being a sports fan, I was not familiar with Cyndy's late husband, Grant, as a sports figure; I don't follow sports celebrities or any celebrities. Cyndi's story shows just how devastating the effects of repeated concussions can be. The abuse she experienced at her husband's hand was heart-wrenching. She records how Grant slowly and imperceptibly deteriorated from a godly, loving man, to an unrecognizable shadow of himself. Sadly, I can relate to what substances can to, altering your faculties, making you into a totally different person--for ill. In my case, I was a teen, and my doctors had given me prescription drugs that interacted with each other. I exhibited many of the behaviors Cyndy reports that Grant did. And reading about Grant's tragic change after his many concussions reminded me of that. I find myself wondering how responsible God holds a person whose actions are due to brain injuries from concussions, or from prescription drugs (especially as a child). But I know that we can, as Cyndi makes clear, trust in and pray for God's mercy. And I'm heartened by her closing her book with declaring that she looks forward to seeing her husband in heaven, this time completely whole.

I highly recommend this book for all coaches of contact sports players, including basketball and soccer. This includes school coaches and professional coaches. This book comes much recommended to all parents who enroll their children in soccer or basketball or other contact sports. Parents and coaches need to place the health of their athletes and children above winning. It's fine to push athletes and children to do their best, but that can be overdone. I recommend this book for all sports fans, especially fans of contact sports. Spectator or not. They need to see that while it's fine to enjoy and follow their game, that it must not be done at all costs. Let's make sure that the story of Grant and his family don't get repeated in any sports-loving family.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Book Look Bloggers in exchange for my honest review. I wasn't required to give a favorable review of this book.