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[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "I Know My Way Memoir" by Theresa Marafito with Linda Odubayo Thompson.]

Are you a sighted person who is unsatisfied with life? If you are, then you should read I Know My Way Memoir by Theresa Marafito, with Linda Odubayo Thompson. This book provides a vivid description of Theresa's life. Having low vision from birth, she grew up trying to adjust to the world. This narrative shows how she coped with the challenges of elementary school, high school and college. It follows her journey into womanhood, marriage, and motherhood. The authors' aim of writing this memoir is to help sighted people understand the everyday life of a suburban family, having some members with vision problems.

Theresa is the mother of the co-author, Linda. She started writing the memoir at some point in her life, but it was finished, after her death, by Linda. Married to Jerry, who is far-sighted, Theresa reveals her family's financial and health challenges. Nevertheless, she narrates how she and her loved ones had fun. They tried to make the most out of life in spite of the curve balls life occasionally threw them. Also, she relates how she and Jerry started a business to improve their finances.

At one point, I thought I was reading a novel because the memoir is written in an entertaining way. It consists of interesting dialogues and narration. Filled with pictures of family members and valuable stuff, I could easily relate to the story, and comprising fascinating events, it's gripping. Written in the first-person point of view, it's coherent and easy to read.

However, at the end of the account, after Theresa's death, Theresa kept on narrating. She even described her out-of-body experiences. For example, "You see, I died on the Tuesday before Easter, and by church law, I couldn’t be buried until the following week. It must have seemed like an eternity for all those I loved to wait so long to give me a proper sendoff." That's an extract from the end of the book. Dead persons don't narrate, and I wonder how the co-author got her late mother's thoughts. The book is very touching. It features the deaths of some family members due to illness. Hence, it may not be a good read for extremely emotional readers.

The book is full of adventures, and it unveils how Theresa made a difference by mentoring a group of college students seeking degrees to teach blind and virtually impaired people. Drawing on her personal experiences, she imparted the right knowledge to them.

In conclusion, the memoir is enlightening and encouraging. It shows Theresa's strength and determination during tough times. It was well edited; I didn't see any typos or typographical errors. Therefore, I rate it 4 out of 4 stars. I don't have any reason to rate it lower, and I recommend it to partially sighted persons and relatives of blind children and adults.

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I Know My Way Memoir
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I absolutely love the fact that even after Theresa's death, her last experience (at least the last one related to earth) was being described by her daughter, still in first person. I do not doubt you one bit when you say it was written in an entertaining way and with a purpose to help others who are going through a similar issue. This book really seems very touching and your review really translates that very well to the people reading it. Good job!

Sahar Majid wrote: ↑08 Sep 2018, 05:25 I absolutely love the fact that even after Theresa's death, her last experience (at least the last one related to earth) was being described by her daughter, still in first person. I do not doubt you one bit when you say it was written in an entertaining way and with a purpose to help others who are going through a similar issue. This book really seems very touching and your review really translates that very well to the people reading it. Good job!

Thank you Sahar.

I feel like even for someone who isn’t blind that this is a good novel to read. It does sound like it gets sad at one point though, which makes it a more emotional read for those who do pick it up. I do enjoy the premise of it though and I love that she helped others too. I definitely might have to pick up this book to read one of these days.

I love memoirs that are written in such an interesting way that you forget you're reading about someone's life. But, still the lesson to be learned are many. Sounds like it was a real struggle for her. Thanks for your insights on this one.

The amount of courage, love and joy in this book is beyond anything and I wished that I had met Theresa and befriended her for she is such a great human being who contributed beauty to this dark worlda