Reviews of Ken Jacuzzi's Autobiography

Read what these people had to say after reading Jacuzzi: A Father's Invention to Ease a Son's Pain, Ken Jacuzzi's autobiography:

"Kenneth Jacuzzi and his family are a very much respected American story. His book about his life and family is of great interest to all who keep abreast and enjoy reading the struggle and successes that immigrants and their families encounter. In Mr. Jacuzzi's case, it is of even more interest to the manner in which Ken and members of his family overcame not only problems that immigrants face like discrimination and disorientation due to language and culture differences, but also physical difficulties by disabilities as they relate to your physical health. Mr. Jacuzzi lays out in clear terms many of the problems that he and members of his family encountered.

"I have known Ken Jacuzzi for more than 25 years and have admired and worked with him in the political and social service area in Arizona. He represents the good things that have come from immigrant families that make America so strong today."

-- Sen. Dennis DeConcini, retired U.S. Senator for Arizona.

"If you want to understand the words 'courage, perseverance, and determination,' you must read Ken Jacuzzi's autobiography. His amazing life is an inspiration."

-- Jana Bommersbach, author and journalist.

"This is a book that, first, looks back on the life of a family crammed with such activity and achievement as to make it globally famous as a household name and symbolic of American quality living. It also provides a vivid self-portrait by the author, and a description of the challenges he has faced through severe disablement. The result is both refreshing and fascinating. It is simply the story of a struggle for survival -- courageous, deeply sensitive, sharply observant -- but one that is triumphant in the end, and captures the imagination.

"The author describes his extraordinary background and antecedents, his remarkable parents, his early experience, and the strength that can come from close family life. He ties together family and personal strands in a compelling narrative which illuminates and unravels the complexities of a degree of disablement that would crush many another person. Vigorously written, candid, and self-revealing, it is concerned with the substance of policy as with personal reminiscence, and we are presented, happily, with a thoughtful and well-written reflection on a most fulfilling life despite the severest physical constraints. Through the reader is made aware in an account both honest and generous of the realities of such a life, and how it culminated in a happy marriage. The result, in an eminently lucid and entirely undoctrinaire way, is an important social document.

"Whilst Britain's Minister for the Navy in the 'seventies and President of NATO's Parliamentary Assembly in the 'eighties, I was a constant visitor to the Pentagon, the State Department and Capitol Hill, where I often sat in on meetings of the Armed Services committees of the House and Senate. I worked closely during those dark days of the Cold War with senior military as well as major figures in public life in America and elsewhere in the Western Alliance. I rarely encountered anyone as impressive as the author, or anyone who could match his incisive intellect, insatiable curiosity and relentless questioning. The intellectual and moral command, the insights, the common sense, the kindness and the sense of humor that appear in this unflinching book -- and of which his friends have always been aware -- are the true characteristics of its author."

-- Sir Patrick Duffy, Ph.D.

"Ken Jacuzzi's engaging writing style draws the reader into an open and honest picture of the complexities of the day-to-day struggles of living with a disability and the resulting challenges and tensions that plague family, friends, and care-givers. Along the way, he tells a fascinating story of an entrepreneurial Italian immigrant family. The successes, the failures, the missed opportunities, the family in-fighting are all present. There is much to be learned from this book about disabilities, about family businesses, but most importantly, about being human."

-- Regina Wentzel Wolfe, Ph.D., Christian Chair in Business Ethics, Dominican University.

"Ken Jacuzzi has added an extraordinary book to an extraordinary life. His graphic yet matter-of-fact descriptions of leading a meaningful life despite daunting disabilities are an example for anyone who has ever felt sorry for himself."

-- Dino J. DeConcini, attorney, businessman, civic activist.

"This is a landmark story of how an invention for arthritis made the Jacuzzi name famous worldwide, starting with the immigration of the Jacuzzi family from Italy to Ken's struggle to help others with disabilities. This Horatio Alger story of invention derived from a father's determination to reduce his young son's pain from juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. Here you can glimpse the Jacuzzi family from their early invention of the first enclosed cabin monoplane to the world's most recognized brand of whirlpool baths and spas."

-- Barbara Barrett, attorney and Chairman, U.S. Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy.

"Readers with and without disabilities will appreciate the different journey Ken has taken through life. Ken Jacuzzi elegantly carries us through the challenging and rewarding times of his life. He fosters disability culture by his direct, thoughtful discussion of living with a disability with dignity and honesty. What a hero to us all!"

-- John D. Kemp, Esq., lawyer and author of
Reflections From A Different Journey: What People With Disabilities Wish All Parents Knew

"Before I met Ken Jacuzzi personally, his life had impacted mine. In the hippie days when I had moved to California, hot tubs with "Jacuzzis" were the rage. None of us knew of the irony that these "pleasure machines" had been invented as a therapeutic device for a debilitating condition. Thanks, Ken. I am grateful for your human story now being available in your book."

-- Kenneth Ray Stubbs, Ph.D., author and sexologist

"Ken Jacuzzi has meant a great deal to me in the six years that I've known him. He taught me a lot about being a human being in a wheelchair. When I was first told that I was going to meet Ken, I did not know that we had so much in common, such as that he used an electric wheelchair or that he and I knew a lot about history and other school subjects. Ken has inspired me to become more serious about getting a good job and good life and sticking to these goals. Ken makes me feel calm and relaxed and it's always interesting to talk with him about various subjects."

-- Aaron Wake, student and Goodwill worker, age 24.

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(Updated 2 Sep 2009) - Copyright 2009