His Bright Light: The Story of My Son, Nick Traina

by Danielle Steel

"This is the story of an extraordinary boy with a brilliant mind, a heart of gold, and a tortured soul. It is the story of an illness, a fight to live, and a race against death."

From the day he was born, Nick Traina was his mother's joy. By nineteen, he was dead. This is Danielle Steel's powerful personal story of the son she lost and the lessons she learned during his courageous battle against darkness. Sharing tender, painful memories and Nick's remarkable journals, Steel brings us a haunting duet between a singular young man and the mother who loved him--and a harrowing portrait of a masked killer called manic depression, which afflicts between two and three million Americans.

Nick rocketed through life like a shooting star. Signs of his illness were subtle, often paradoxical. He spoke in full sentences at age one. He was a brilliant, charming child who never slept. And at first, even his mother explained away his quicksilver moods. Nick always marched to a different drummer. His gift for writing was extraordinary, his musical talent promised a golden future. But by the time he entered junior high, Danielle Steel saw her beloved son hurtling toward disaster and tried desperately to get Nick the help he needed--the opening salvos of what would become a ferocious pitched battle for his life.

Even as he struggled, Nick's charisma and accomplishments remained undimmed. He bared his soul in his journal with uncanny insight, in searing prose, poetry, and song. When he was finally diagnosed and treated, it bought time, but too little. In the end, perhaps nothing could have saved him from the insidious disease that had shadowed him from his earliest years.

At once a loving legacy and an unsparing depiction of a devastating illness, Danielle Steel's tribute to her lost son is a gift of life, hope, healing, and understanding to us all.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Mental Health, Memoir, Mental Illness, Psychology, Biography Memoir

409 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Danielle Steel has been hailed as one of the world's bestselling authors, with almost a billion copies of her novels sold. Her many international bestsellers include All That Glitters, Royal, Daddy's Girls, The Wedding Dress, The Numbers Game, Moral Compass, Spy, and other highly acclaimed novels. She is also the author of His Bright Light, the story of her son Nick Traina's life and death; A Gift of Hope, a memoir of her work with the homeless; Expect a Miracle, a book of her favorite quotations for inspiration and comfort; Pure Joy, about the dogs she and her family have loved; and the children's books Pretty Minnie in Paris and Pretty Minnie in Hollywood.

Facebook.com/DanielleSteelOfficial
Instagram: @officialdaniellesteel

Reviews

[Diane Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Read! a memoir on the struggles that her family suffered because of mental illness and then finally tragedy at the end..well written (paperback!)

[Carol Storm · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so astonished by this true story. I knew that Danielle Steel could tell a good story, and I knew that a true story of how she lost one of her children would be incredibly wrenching and tragic. But I never would have believed an author who writes so often about wealthy, jet-set type people would have a personal voice that was so warm, direct, down to earth and candid.

It's hard to make this clear in a review, but this is not at all a sad or depressing book. The fact that Nick didn't make it is shown in all it's heartbreak, but what really comes across is love. Not just the author's love for her doomed son, but his love for her, and his amazing siblings, and their father. Danielle Steel is so incredibly generous in telling Nick's story, she even has time to mention the Playboy playmate Nick was dating just before the end. (It's hard to imagine a "literary" writer like Mary Gordon or Anna Quindlen acknowledging that Playboy playmates exist, let alone that their sons were dating one!)

There's so much surprising humor in this book, too. Like when Nick was only twelve and was already trying to pick up girls twice his age! Danielle Steel shows a lot of surprising gifts as a writer, making laughter as much a part of this story as tears. And there was one paragraph that just stayed with me for weeks, about how the whole medical system is set up so parents can't get the care their kids need. I can't quote it exactly, but she said something like, "all right, I'm rich. I've been around rich people my whole life, and I have a lot of powerful friends. And with all those advantages it was still almost impossible to find the right program for Nick. What would have happened if I'd been poor, shy, and badly educated?"

I knew Danielle Steel was a talented romance author, but I had no idea she was so smart. Or so funny. Or so brave!

[Randye Kaye · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my favorite Danielle Steel book. Yes, it is partly because I share her experience of parenting a child with mental illness (though Nick had childhood-onset bipolar disorder and my Ben has schizophrenia which began to appear gradually in his mid-teens) - but, this common thread aside, I couldn't help but applaud Steel's candor and courage in sharing her experiences with the world.

Her Nick is vibrant, charming, brilliant - and troubled. Steel struggles to understand, especially in the light of all the "experts" who tell her that the illness she suspects simply doesn't exist. This memoir not only lets us into the family experience, it also shines a spotlight on the mental health system, with the flaws and limitations of too little research and too much closed-mindedness.

And, oh boy, are there flaws. From laws that forbid the family to "force" medication on someone who is so clearly helped by it to psychiatrists who are all too quick to "blame the mother", these "flaws" quickly close door after door.

Kudos to Steel for telling her story. There is no fairy-tale ending here. Perhaps that's why she writes so many such endings in her novels.

Mom-to-Mom, and I thank Steel for this book. And my heart goes out to all in her family.

[Holly Weston Bull · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reading His Bright Light certainly left me feeling tremendous empathy for both Nick Traina and his mother, Danielle Steel. Nick’s life was short, explosive, and tragic. What Steel had to go through as a parent during Nick’s life and then upon his suicide - no words.

The reason I’m not giving this book a higher rating is that I didn’t find the writing very compelling at all. I know that Steel is an incredibly prolific and supremely successful romance novelist - certainly millions of people love her novels and her writing style. I’ve never read any of her fiction, romance not being a genre I’ve ever explored.

So I don’t know - maybe it’s me who’s missing something here - but I honestly found His Bright Light to be mawkish but also pretty shallow. Maybe mawkish isn’t quite right word; I guess it’s more that she spends so many words proclaiming Nick’s brilliance and beauty and vivacity and describing in great detail how close their bond was —- but very few words on self-reflection or, it seems to me, a deep and honest examination of Nick’s struggles.

Certainly she had every right to feel vindicated when it turned out that she was completely right about the severity of his mental illness - but she quickly dismisses the views of anyone who breathes a word of criticism of how she parented him.

I get that her son had a severe psychiatric disorder, I do. But I guess my main sense of annoyance with the book is that she seemed to ascribe all his bad traits to his illness. So … mixed feelings about this one.

I do think it’s a tragic, deeply interesting story. But I also think that the story would have been better in the hands of a professional biographer - someone more skilled at writing non-fiction and with a more objective perspective on Nick and his mental illness.


Two and a half stars rounded down to two.

[Kelly Furniss · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book starts from the birth of Nick, Danielle's second child and we follow their lives right through his unusual quirks and deemed 'odd' behaviour until he is given a label & continues on the road to battle Manic depression/Bipolar Disease.
What stands out from the story is the deep love, fiercely strong parental instinct and hard determination not to give up but yet we see the tortured constant questioning herself about decisions she makes with his treatment/medication. Nick was bright, talented and loved so very much in his large close family but ultimately he was such a tortured soul and plagued by his demons of emotion and thoughts and despite the constant medical/psychiatric help they ruled him and sadly took his life away.
For any fan of this author this book is a must as Danielle had just started writing and rose to fame whilst going through all these motions with Nick plus raising her large family and suffering the breakdown of marriages which is quite incredible within itself.
It at times is a heartbreaking and harrowing read as for years she believed her concerns were been ignored and brushed under the carpet but yet the story is lifted with moments of humour as she re-tells her happy, fun memories. Ultimately there is a strong message that she urges families of people who recognise these symptoms not to give up and be put aside and I'd like to think that her mission to save a life with this book is fulfilled!.
Be prepared to go on an emotional rollercoaster but my admiration goes to Danielle as to write this book and lay open the story for all to see in its raw state must of took such courage.
A huge compelling read as a Mother of a Son it hit me hard and will stay with me for a long time after I've put it down.

[Luckngrace · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book because of my own bipolar daughter. She's also been suicidal several times, but she'll soon die anyway from hepatitis C or liver cancer. You see, bipolars don't want to take their meds but, since their body needs the meds, they're drawn to cocaine or pain pills or heroin. I say hep C or liver cancer because people who do drugs lie and lie and manipulate and manipulate, but I can see her dying before my eyes. I have to wonder what help I could have given her had I possessed Danielle Steele's connections and resources. It's interesting that Nick was so loveable. My girld also has Borderline Personality Disorder as well as BP and only me, her mother, really loves her. Even her sisters and grandparents are weary of bailing her out of trouble, being her victim of theft, dramatic and embarrassing episodes that damage their reputations and job performance.

There are millions of families here in America who, like Danielle Steele and me, put our children into mental health care as young children only to find after many years that real help is just not there. In my state of North Carolina, the mental health system has been GUTTED. My town used to have it's own mental health system, but now there is only one mental health system for FIVE COUNTIES. That's way too far for poor families to travel for treatment. And the county where they based this system is the one that is famous for international golf tournaments. Money still talks, right?

I already lost 2 stepchildren to suicide, both at 35 years of age. My daughter is 32. Everybody who reads this, please pray for her...and for me and my other children and grandchildren. And young people, ask that guy or gal you love if they have any mental illness in their family before you marry. It is inherited.

[shauna · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am interested in reading about mental illnesses and I've never read another Danielle Steel book.

The story is a sad one - her son is bipolar and kills himself at 19 years old. She describes at length what it was like raising a child with mental illnesses.

I liked that it implicitly shone a light on the flawed mental health system in the USA.

I don't like that she was so repetitive. Distractingly so. Does she think her readers are incompetent?

I don't like how much she sexualized her young son. It was disgusting.

I don't like that she comes from enormous privilege even before becoming a successful writer, but never once acknowledges that she wouldn't have been able to do a tenth of what she did for Nick had she not had great financial security.

I don't like that this was a book about mental health, but not a single line in the summation of the book gave any sort of shout out of what to do if someone you know may have a mental illness and need help. If you're going to write about mental illness, personal story or not, I have a basic expectation that somewhere there's a call to action for someone who needs help or is supporting someone. It's irresponsible not to.

[Gina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having a child with Bipolar disorder and suffering from it myself I can only say that Danielle Steel is not only and amazing writer in my opinion but a damn good mother! To have lived through the trials and tribulations of Nick's precious short life, to fight to help him win and only lose him in the end must have been more then hell. I can only imagine what this woman went through.
From the other perspective though, Nick's as it is told by Danielle Steel, wow she really did understand.
I know he must have loved his mother very much and been grateful that she cared enough to push the doc's on the diagnosis and to not give up through all the changes in meds and trying to find something that would work.
Nick would definitely have known he was not going to be with her long so I am very glad that from the sounds of it she supported him completely in his good and difficult times...that is putting it mildly from my perspective of how things can be too.
I loved reading this book and have read it twice more since I bought it years ago. It holds a special place on my bookshelf among the other Danielle Steel books but it always seems to stand out on it's own anyway.
Incredible insight into his life and hers.
Thank you so much Danielle!

[Mimi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a heartbreaking book. As a mother of a bipolar son, it was a difficult read. After reading part way through the first chapter, I tossed the book across the room and couldn't pick it up again for months. I was frustrated with the mom's lack of education about bipolar illness and the many freedoms her money allowed him to gain access to without proper supervision. Ultimately, Nick was bent on a path of self-destruction, as many who suffer from bipolar are. His death was a tragedy and I cried along with her at his loss. She did everything in her power, with her knowledge, to provide the best care she could and ultimately lost her only son. No matter what we do as parents, no matter how much we love them, no matter the way or means by which we try our best to help our struggling children, they ultimately choose their own path. Nick was a bright light. I feel deeply for Ms. Steel's loss as if it were my own and am grateful every day that my son is still alive, still fighting, although not without difficulty, and still here.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1998, when Danielle Steel’s son Nick died, what is now “bipolar disorder” was still called “manic-depressive.” In this book from the heart, Steel documents what this condition does to those who have it and those around them, in the context of her son’s short but remarkable life. I admire the author’s courage in sharing her story.

Although much is now known about the brain and common mental disorders, including bipolar, there is still a general lack of understanding and awareness in our culture. People who have it are routinely blamed, ostracized, and punished for not being able to conform to society’s expectations. Those who love them are encouraged to practice “tough love” by well-meaning family and friends who don’t understand that some people just can’t learn from aversive experience because their brains won’t let them.

Well written and compelling as the very best fiction, His Bright Light is an important book.

[Jennifer Ware · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hated this book from the opening paragraph. Yes, I ached for her as a mother, but my personal experiences got in the way. She had finances beyond what most of us will ever obtain and those finances and lack of supervision led her son down more dangerous paths. As a mother that was not able to receive needed medical help for my own child because of a lack of finances, made this book even more difficult to take. Some stories should be written for yourself and kept to yourself.

[María Greene F · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mi debilidad son los libros sobre historias reales, en especial cuando tales historias tienen que ver con todo lo que significa probar las fronteras de la experiencia humana (no querís nada, jajaja), y este fue una sorpresa de lo más agridulce. Dulce, porque QUÉ INTERESANTE ES y CUÁNTO APRENDIMOS, y amargo porque... es TERRIBLE lo que pasó este pobre ser, y toda su familia consigo.

Hablamos del trastorno bipolar, una enfermedad de lo más devastadora. El hijo de la Danielle Steel nació con esa aflicción, y terminó suicidándose a los 19 años, y no lo cuento como spoiler, porque ella misma desde el principio lo dice así y también cómo comparte su historia para evitar que cosas así se repitan, y cuánto hubiera querido saber que en verdad era algo tan delicado, puesto que nunca pensó que su hijo realmente intentaría suicidarse. No había tanta información en esos tiempos, y no era tomado tan en serio, aunque la pobre Danielle siempre tuvo corazonadas al respecto, y así se pasó la mitad del libro persiguiendo a doctores y psicólogos, tratando de que le dieran algo. Desde chico había visto que su cuerpo se regulaba de una manera distinta, y que no era capaz de mantener ánimos estables, etcétera, etcétera... pero igual la pescaron POCAZO.

El libro es muy interesante, aunque terrible, y muy frustrante. El hijo no muere porque ella no intentara salvarlo, ni porque él no quisiera salvarse, sino que solo porque es tan difícil. Es, perdonen la expresión, una vida de mierda. Al menos así fue la de él, tan mal diagnosticado.

Pero hay esperanzas, y eso es lo que la autora promulga. Con más información, con mejor tratamiento, podría haber sido funcional, y las cosas podrían haber sido distintas.

En fin, que un libro muy recomendable, para todos los interesados en el tema, y también para los que tienen un trastorno parecido, o que conocen a gente que lo haga. Las enfermedades de la mente siguen en un lugar donde no son tomadas en serio, porque uno "debiera resolverlas" mágicamente. Aunque, por suerte, menos que antes. En parte, gracias a libros como este, y a gente que se atreve a compartir estas experiencias. Eso sí, como es tan personal, nunca queda tan "artísticamente" descrita (hay partes reiterativas, hay partes muy privadas que uno no sabe si querría saber, etc), pero da lo mismo, porque el mensaje final es más fuerte, y quizá sería imposible describirlo con más distancia.

En fin, que GRACIAS DANIELLE STEEL por compartir tu historia. Eres muy valiente y nos sirve mucho.


De bonus track, adjunto un extracto que me gustó, sobre el alivio de ella cuando AL FIN encuentra un psiquiatra que lo diagnostica adecuadamente (los otros no la pescaron ni en bajada, estuvo AÑOS pidiendo ayuda y oyendo que era exagerada):

"Tal como el psiquiatra había sospechado desde el principio, Nick sufría una alteración química que debía corregirse. Lo más importante era observar los efectos que le producían los fármacos hasta encontrar la medicación adecuada para él. Su problema no tenía nada que ver con mi experiencia, la de John, o la de los niños con el control de esfínteres, ni con "decirle que no", ni con (...). Tenía que ver principalmente con sustancias químicas y con los medicamentos capaces de equilibrar su mente.

Naturalmente, recibiría tratamiento psicológico para ayudarle a razonar, a mantener el equilibrio, y a controlar sus impulsos, aunque sus problemas en ese ámbito también eran inducidos por las alteraciones químicas. Lo único que queríamos era ayudarlo a llevar una vida lo más feliz y normal posible. Pero lo más importante, lo esencial, era la medicación.

- ¿Cómo se encuentran los fármacos adecuados?, pregunté con inocencia y con la esperanza de que hubiera una píldora mágica que lo solucionara todo. En el caso de Nick, aún no habíamos encontrado una solución. Los medicamentos que había tomado no lo habían mejorado lo suficiente.

- Es una buena pregunta, respondió el doctor y añadió, con una sonrisa- Para decirlo en términos científicos, de ahora en adelante nos pondremos a arrojar un montón de dardos contra una pared hasta que uno de ellos se clave. Es una técnica muy primitiva, pero es la única disponible. Nick tendrá que tener paciencia.

La paciencia no se contaba entre sus virtudes, pero era obvio que no teníamos alternativa. Lo que más me ayudó fue que el psiquiatra fuera tan franco y directo. Me había ofrecido alivio, consuelo, realismo, esperanzas para Nick."

[Trisha Bjorklund · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't even finish it, horrible writing!! The book is more about why Danielle Steel is not to blame for what happened to her son. There's got to be a lot of guilt there from putting herself and her career first and not helping out her son when he needed it most.

[Dora Santos Marques · Rating 5 out of 5]

A minha opinião em vídeo: https://youtu.be/oYQDPhnTGyg

[Karyl · Rating 3 out of 5]

The struggles of people with mental illness has always drawn me, and I'm very glad to live in an age where we have therapy and medication that helps those with mental illness, instead of shutting them away in terrible institutions. However, we still have a long way to go when it comes to mental illness.

Danielle Steel's son Nick Traina suffered from bipolar disorder. Steel knew that there was something different about Nick since the time he was born, and through his issues and problems growing up, she tried so hard to get him some help. Yet she was always told by doctors and nurses and psychiatrists that he was probably fine and that he didn't need medication. Because of this, he would continually spiral down into the depths of despair, only to spiral back up into a manic episode. His life was never easy, and it wasn't until Steel finally found a doctor that would prescribe him lithium that Nick finally found some semblance of normalcy. Unfortunately, he lost his battle and took his own life at the age of 19.

My heart goes out to Steel and to Nick's biological father and to the father who raised him, plus all of his siblings, to have had such a bright light in their lives and to have it extinguished far too soon. That said, I found this book to be rather repetitive. It's as though Steel feels that if it's good to tell us something once, it's even better to say it three or four times, sometimes in quick succession. It was also difficult to read Steel's overly effusive expressions of love for her son. I understand she's grieving, but she harps on how much she loves her son to what seems like an unhealthy degree.

I wish I could have liked this book more. But I do hope it brings to light the struggles of those with bipolar disorder, and that we need to find more ways to help those who have it.

[Sheree · Rating 5 out of 5]

Daniel Steele's hopes in writing about her son's life-long struggle with the condition 'manic depression' now known as Bipolar Disorder are expressed in her quote -

"I want to share the story, and the pain, the courage, the love, and what I learned in living through it. I want Nick's life to be not only a tender memory for us, but a gift to others...
I would like to offer people hope and the realities we lived with. I want to make a difference. My hope is that someone will be able to use what we learned and save a life with it."

Nick Traina was initially diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder (A.D.D.) in early adolescence and I read this book not long after my own son was diagnosed with ADHD and depression. Danielle opens the door and her heart and with honesty and courage reveals Nick's gifts and troubles during childhood, as a teen, and during his aspiring career as a musician with band Link 80 through to his suicide at age 19. The most frightening aspect of the book was the realisation of a mother's inability to save her son, even with all the resources available to her.
The reviewers who say this book is repetitive and melodramatic have obviously never lived with someone with mental illness or taken the harrowing journey to gain a diagnosis.

[Lauren Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Second time around, it's been years since I read this touching, inspiring, yet tragic story. It not only tells the story of Danielle Steel's son but also sheds light on bipolar disorder in so far as at what age can you diagnosis and medication treatments available. It shows both sides of the mental health community- the good and the bad.
All the money and access to treatment her son had and we, as a society, wonder why there are so many less fortunate people struggling and suffering with mediocre mental health care. This book will make you both laugh and cry, but never mocks the seriousness and also fatal nature of mental illness; in this case, manic depression ( bipolar disorder. Highly recommend for anyone suffering or loved ones who want to learn more and ways to help.

I was never a DS fan, in fact I never read one of her books until this one and its written with love, compassion and honesty. She is an amazing mother, fought with all she had and never gave up on her son. She exemplifies what a real mother is all about. This book is life changing, read it and pass it along....

[Redfox5 · Rating 2 out of 5]

What could have been a beautiful and moving book was ruinned slightly by Danielle's waffling. This is the third book I've read by her and I'm seeing a pattern. The stories she tells are interesting she just ends up making them less so by repeating herself. I'm not sure why she does this? To make the book longer? Because she thinks the reader is stupid and unable to remember something she told them a couple of pages ago? I have loads of books by her on my tbr list and I hope they are not all like this!

This is the story of Danielle's son, Nick. Who tragically killed himself when he was 19. I think this book was a way for Danielle to work though her grief, she obviously loved him very much and did everything she could to help him. I had to keep pushing myself to read this, for the reasons listed above, there are only so many times I can be told how amazing and bright Nick was. He seemed to fit alot into his short life and I enjoyed reading about his rise to fame with his band. There were some poems in the book, I didn't like the ones written by Nick but the ones written by Danielle are beautiful.

The chapter written after Nick's death was the most page turning and sad. She stops repeating herself here and just tells what seems to be a really honest and heartbreaking account of events. I was reading this in the staff canteen at work and it was a struggle not to cry.

If you are a fan of Steel then this will be worth it but for fans of tragic life stories, you may want to go elsewhere for something to pull at your heartstrings. And it always makes me feel really mean when I've not "enjoyed" books like this but thats just how I feel about it.

[Esther David · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of the kinds of books you both love and hate. At least it was for me. I had started reading after a gap and I hated that I started off with it. But now looking back, I think it was definitely a good book. The way Danielle Steel takes us through the rollercoaster ride of bringing up a son like Nicholas Traina was fabulous. Only a mother who brought up a person like him could write such a moving tale. However I hated that since she had money as celebrity, Nick had a lot of access to things that were so damaging to his bipolar disorder. I also hated that even though she had suspicions about his mental health and knew that he used to write a journal, she tried to respect his right to privacy. I just could not understand her. Maybe if she had read his journals she would have got a better idea of his mental state and probably started his medications early. Even the doctors in those era were handicapped in a lot of ways and would have given their diagnosis much earlier. But these are merely my buts and ifs, the reality in all possibilities would have been scary. It took great courage not to give up on him. However, towards the end I felt Danielle was justifying what she did and why she did so. But on the whole, it is a must read if you want to know about this condition. Nicholas's journals tell you a lot.

[Megan Fiedler · Rating 2 out of 5]

I appreciate Danielle sharing Nick's struggles and my heart went out to her and his whole family for the indescribable pain they must have felt as well as the years of stress and worry they faced prior to his passing.
There were many things about the writing of this book that made me so uncomfortable. Steel spoke so much of her "conservativeness" aka wealth and privilege. She came off as very ostentatious. Her many references to her travels, taking her 8 children to France then Paris then their summer home and beyond felt unnecessary, as most of her readers undoubtedly can't relate. I was frustrated with her decisions to stay with psychiatrists who refused to try medications for Nick, despite her claiming many times she knew that's what he needed. The part of the writing that most disturbed me was the borderline, and sometimes outright, sexualization of her son. When she bragged about him leaving his sisters wedding with the best looking woman at the wedding, a 30 year old when he was only 19 was icky to me. She also talks about his body and how good looking he was to the point that it was uncomfortable to me. Although I understand the fresh pain she was experiencing, sometimes she described their relationship as borderline romantic. I respect the tribute and what she was trying to do, but the book has very uncomfortable moments and was unnecessarily repetitive.

[Jill Robbertze · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have very mixed feelings about this book. I'm deeply sorry for what happened to Nick and for D.S and her family's loss but I couldn't help suspecting that drug abuse played a bigger part than what was described in the story. I do think Nick's whole situation was very unique due to the family background, being brought up very spoiled, having so many siblings, having a famous and busy mother. Although interesting, I also found this a somewhat tedious read due to too much repetition.

[Pilar · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Beautiful Tribute

This memoir is a tribute of Danielle Steele's son Nick who lived a full life, but was plagued with a brain disorder called bi-polar.

I learned a great deal from his experiences, which I am grateful.

As much as I can appreciate Danielle Steele's writing, her memoir chronicling her son's life contained too much detail. Thus, it dragged at certain points, and was taxing to read at times.

[Pilar · Rating 4 out of 5]

His Bright Light was written as a tribute to Danielle Steel's son, Nick Traina who was born with bi-polar disorder and committed suicide at the age of nineteen.

This is a well written, detailed account chronicling his life and everything he/she went through trying to get help within the medical community. The failures and the successes, the ups and downs, the sadness and the joy.

It was heart wrenching and difficult for me to read. I had to put it book down a couple of times, because I felt bad for Nick and all he suffered, as well as Danielle Steel and her family.

Mental illness is real and it not only effects the person who is suffering from it, but it also impacts everyone else around them.

At that time, there wasn't as much information regarding treating bi-polar disorder, (otherwise known as manic depression) as there is now. Although I'm grateful to see there have been strides in the medical field, there is still more to be uncovered and revealed regarding brain disorders.

I get into more detail about my thoughts in my vlog review: https://youtu.be/YC8qgK_JpQQ

If you want to learn more about what bi-polar looks like, I highly recommend His Bright Light.

[Ghizlane Eddiba · Rating 5 out of 5]

Danielle Steel, the famous writer, speaks in this book about the story of her son Nick. Since his early age, Nick was seen as a bright, talented and charming child. His gift for writing was astonishing for a child his age, his musical talent was extraordinary, his social intelligence was at its top level, but the time he started the junior school, some alarming signs were seen in this extraordinary child, like not being able to sleep, having depression, panicking during social events, not being able to handle minor stressful situations and committing suicide attempts several times. After struggling with doctors, hospitals, therapists, his mother got finally a diagnosis, explaining his disease as being a manic depression. His mother did her best of efforts to help him, but whenever he grows up his disease became more dangerous and incontrollable, his last attempt of suicide was successful....This book is an alarming sign for everyone suffering from depression, it warns everyone to take the symptoms seriously, to get the right diagnosis at the early age, and to get the right doses of medication in the right time, no one is excluded even kids could suffer from this disease.

[Danielle · Rating 2 out of 5]

My grandma recommended this book to me because I am a Special Education teacher who deals daily with children diagnosed with depression, anxiety, and ADHD who exhibit symptoms similar to Nick's. It feels wrong to write a review of this book with any commentary on Danielle and Nick, the life they shared, or the decisions that were made. I know that in publishing this book, Danielle opens herself to such commentary but I don't feel it necessary. The purpose of the book was to share her story and process her grief, and I can appreciate that. Unfortunately, I am also a person who appreciates good writing. And that (my fellow readers) is why, no matter how intriguing Nick may be or how fascinating I found it to read such a personal account of this family's trauma, I do not recommend reading this one.

[Sophie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure how to feel about this book.

It was interesting, but I felt she wanted to explain her mistakes, to gain redemption. It is hard to have anyone you love with mental illness. But pushing him this hard, conjuring the feeling in him that "I'm not healthy", isn't a good way.

Not one calm moment, no wonder he was frustrated. There is always a chance to commit suicide, mental illness is hard to bear. But there are more gentle ways, with a calm environment, some relief will come.

He was a great guy, I feel so sorry to lose such person. He was talented and intelligent. I'm sure he would be a great writer or poet.

[Tweedledum · Rating 5 out of 5]

A harroŵing read especially if, like me, you are living with the spectre of mental illness in the family. Danielle Steel's battles to get her son properly diagnosed and then her descriptions of the difficulties of everyday life reverberate loudly with my own experience. The unwritten messages I received from this book are :

Don't give up fighting for your loved one.
Don't lose sight of who they really are.
Keep on encouraging and supporting them no matter what they say or do.
Try and develop a network of true friends around everyone.
Celebrate life.

I stumbled across this book by chance. i am so glad I did.

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is not my usual reading matter, and though the book is affecting, showing the impossible difficulties involved in raising a bipolar son, and the impossible difficulties of being a bipolar teenager, the story is read through his Mum's lens, and Danielle Steel seems to be as much, if not more concerned with describe the special love between her and her son. I don't think that their love for each other was any greater or lesser than most mother-son bonds, and the continual stressing of how deep that love was did nothing other than cause me to wonder why she felt the need to reiterate that at such length.

[Quiltyknitwit · Rating 2 out of 5]

The famous romance author tells the story of her son Nick's short life. He suffered from bipolar disorder but wasn't properly diagnosed for many years. I can appreciate the author's torment, but felt the book would've benefited from better editing and less hyperbole. Also, the author doesn't reveal how the rest of the family was affected, nor does she disclose what therapies or interventions she and her husband attempted for themselves (this is a family disease).

[Kami · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tragic, truly truly tragic. To be honest I fell in love with the smiling face on the cover so I read it not knowing who he was or what the book was about. Turns out it is a biography written by Danielle Steele about the life and death of her son, Nick Traina, who was an amazing and unique person, but he suffered from bipolar disorder and ultimately died from an overdose. Again, truly tragic.