Book ~ "Goodnight, Brian" (2013) Steven Manchester

 From Goodreads ~ Fate was working against little Brian Mauretti. The food that was meant to nourish him was poisoning him instead, and the doctors said the damage was devastating and absolute. Fate had written off Brian. But fate didn’t count on a woman as determined as Brian’s grandmother, Angela DiMartino, who everyone knew as Mama. Loving her grandson with everything she had, Mama endeavored to battle fate. Fate had no idea what it was in for.

An emotional tale about the strength of family bonds, unconditional love, and the perseverance to do our best with the challenging gifts we receive, Goodnight, Brian is an uplifting tribute to what happens when giving up is not an option.

Frank and Joan are the proud parents of Brian.  When Brian can't keep any food down, his doctor puts him on a soy-based food.  It turns out that the soy-based food is cutting corners and poisoning Brian and other babies.  As a result, his doctor determines that Brian will never walk, talk or develop mentally and emotionally.  But his grandmother, Mama, won't accept this.  Drawing her strength from her religion, she pulls her family together with the goal that one day Brian will indeed walk and talk.  This is the story of Brian's journey.

This is the second book by Steven Manchester that I've read and I enjoyed it.  The writing is well-paced and refreshingly clean (no violence or mature language).  It almost read like an autobiography to me ... Brian's story.

I liked the characters ... I could feel the bond between them all even as the situations became more serious.  Mama is a very strong character ... she means well and no one says "no" to Mama.  There's no doubt that she adores her kids and grandkids and would do anything for them.