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Saigon Siren: Memoir of a Stroke Recovery
When a near-fatal stroke gate-crashes his family holiday in Vietnam, Antonio must fight to stay alive.
At the surprisingly young age of thirty-eight, he thought he had lost everything. As he lay completely paralysed in an intensive care unit, trapped in a foreign country with his distraught young family by his side, his life completely turned upside down.
After a harrowing rescue flight home to Melbourne, Antonio realises his journey has only just begun. Challenged by his inability to sit, stand, walk, or even talk, he must confront the emotional anguish, the highs and lows, and the heartache and pain that accompany the gruelling rehabilitation process as he adjusts to his new normal.
Saigon Siren is an alarmingly honest and refreshingly humorous account of Antonio’s ongoing battle with the dirty stroke demon Vaughn, as he came to call it. He details his meandering road to recovery with endearing intimacy and amusing anecdotes—the kinds of stories you never hear. Unfolding into a delicate and uplifting quest for self-discovery, Antonio shares the healing power of creativity, love, and peace as he stumbles through the seemingly countless obstacles his new disability presents.
At the surprisingly young age of thirty-eight, he thought he had lost everything. As he lay completely paralysed in an intensive care unit, trapped in a foreign country with his distraught young family by his side, his life completely turned upside down.
After a harrowing rescue flight home to Melbourne, Antonio realises his journey has only just begun. Challenged by his inability to sit, stand, walk, or even talk, he must confront the emotional anguish, the highs and lows, and the heartache and pain that accompany the gruelling rehabilitation process as he adjusts to his new normal.
Saigon Siren is an alarmingly honest and refreshingly humorous account of Antonio’s ongoing battle with the dirty stroke demon Vaughn, as he came to call it. He details his meandering road to recovery with endearing intimacy and amusing anecdotes—the kinds of stories you never hear. Unfolding into a delicate and uplifting quest for self-discovery, Antonio shares the healing power of creativity, love, and peace as he stumbles through the seemingly countless obstacles his new disability presents.
291 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 18, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
November 25, 2025
As the title suggests, this is the true story of Antonio Iannella’s brush with death when at the young age of thirty-eight, he had a stroke while on a family holiday.
The story of his recovery is detailed and gives the reader a genuine idea of what having a stroke is like but more importantly what happens in the recovery stage.
He details the moments before and after the stroke and the trauma of being in a foreign country dealing with a language barrier as if what happened wasn’t enough to contend with. As you could imagine those obstacles would cause inordinate stress.
Taking us behind the scenes, Iannella shows us in detail the remarkable people who worked on his recovery. He had been unable to walk, could barely talk and effectively paralysed from the neck down. The occupational therapists, physiotherapists, speech pathologists as well as the rest of the medical doctors and nurses were numerous but integral to his recovery. It gave me a thorough appreciation of the amazing people in our medical system.
This is a book of enlightenment which is also filled with useful information and inspiration. Iannella doesn’t take himself too seriously either as there are some quite genuine laugh-out loud bits as he nicknames his helpers, and makes light of some of the more serious issues he faces.
“Wrapped like a burrito, I was suspended above my bed. … hanging mid-air like an Italian salami my dad would tie to the rafters.”
There are metaphors for just about everything and maybe a bit too many but sometimes they're needed to lighten the darkness of his horrendous experience.
It’s a well written and hopeful story. Give this one a go.
The story of his recovery is detailed and gives the reader a genuine idea of what having a stroke is like but more importantly what happens in the recovery stage.
He details the moments before and after the stroke and the trauma of being in a foreign country dealing with a language barrier as if what happened wasn’t enough to contend with. As you could imagine those obstacles would cause inordinate stress.
Taking us behind the scenes, Iannella shows us in detail the remarkable people who worked on his recovery. He had been unable to walk, could barely talk and effectively paralysed from the neck down. The occupational therapists, physiotherapists, speech pathologists as well as the rest of the medical doctors and nurses were numerous but integral to his recovery. It gave me a thorough appreciation of the amazing people in our medical system.
This is a book of enlightenment which is also filled with useful information and inspiration. Iannella doesn’t take himself too seriously either as there are some quite genuine laugh-out loud bits as he nicknames his helpers, and makes light of some of the more serious issues he faces.
“Wrapped like a burrito, I was suspended above my bed. … hanging mid-air like an Italian salami my dad would tie to the rafters.”
There are metaphors for just about everything and maybe a bit too many but sometimes they're needed to lighten the darkness of his horrendous experience.
It’s a well written and hopeful story. Give this one a go.
October 21, 2024
A deeply personal memoir covering a time of immense change. The serious subject matter and detailed descriptions of the rehabilitation process could have resulted in a dry and heavy story. However, this was softened by the author’s sense of humour his vivid descriptions of Vietnam and his clear love of music. As a reader , I found it powerful to be able to celebrate each step of his progress. A skillful storyteller who draws us into the experience and keeps us engaged throughout. This memoir would be enjoyed by anyone who is drawn to strong stories of triumph over adversity.
October 16, 2024
If you enjoy memoirs, you will thoroughly enjoy Saigon Siren. Iannella's writing style just draws you in. You actually feel as if you are there. This story is beautifully written and inspiring.
October 20, 2024
Amazing read.
Once I started reading I couldn’t stop.
The way the author, Antonio, takes you on a journey through his experiences is incredible.
Once I started reading I couldn’t stop.
The way the author, Antonio, takes you on a journey through his experiences is incredible.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews