Breaking Back: How I Lost Everything And Won Back My Life

Tracing the rising tennis star's life in the wake of three cataclysmic events, "Breaking Back" tells how Blake used the lessons from these heartbreaks to become one of the best tennis players in the world. 16-page photo insert.

James Blake's life was getting better every day. A rising tennis star and "People" magazine's Sexiest Male Athlete of 2002, he was leading a charmed life and loving every minute of it. But all that ended in May 2004, when Blake fractured his neck in an on-court freak accident. As he recovered, his father--who had been the inspiration for his tennis career--lost his battle with stomach cancer. Shortly after his father's death, Blake was dealt a third blow when he contracted zoster, a rare virus that paralyzed half of his face and threatened to end his already jeopardized career.

In "Breaking Back," Blake provides a remarkable account of how he came back from this terrible heartbreak and self-doubt to become one of the top tennis players in the world. A story of strength, passion, courage, and the unbreakable bonds between a father and son, "Breaking Back" is a celebration of one extraordinary athlete's indomitable spirit and his inspiring ability to find hope in the bleakest of times.