Name of a book?

Question

I read a book in high school, and can't remember the name of it. It's a true story about a woman who loses her leg as a child in a car accident, and it goes into detail about her life as an amputee. Some of the details are fuzzy, but I can remember that she was riding her bicycle when she was hit by a car, and as she grew older she tried several kinds of prosthetic legs, but found her wooden leg was most comfortable. It's a great book, and would like to suggest it to a young friend of mine looking for a good true story.

Answer 1

If you are looking for "Out on a Limb" by Louise Baker, you can read it on line here:
http://www.overground.be/OutOnALimb/

"This is a charming autobiography. Louise Baker lost her right leg above the knee as a result of a road accident; she was on her very first bike ride. She grew up in a small town in America and could hardly have had more idyllic childhood, coming to terms with her impairment and disability in a supportive and caring community. "

From Amazon:
"

Useful, Serious, Amusing Self-Story, April 22, 2000
Reviewer: Margaret Hall Dunn (New Haven, CT USA) - See all my reviews
At the age of eight, Louise Baker lost her right leg in a bicycle-meets-car accident. Out on a Limb is her story of her subsequent life as a uniped. Throughout the book she maintains a fine balance, never denying the difficulties of her handicap, never inviting pity for her plight, as she recounts adventures she might never have had with two legs.
The book is filled with potentially useful information about living with a handicap: for instance, to prevent nerve damage that can incapacitate the arms, the proper way to walk on crutches is to bear your weight with your hands, not on the armpit saddles,. Also, the skilled crutch user keeps the crutches straight and close to the body, not flung wide, where they may trip a by-passer. (Baker does point out that if you want to trip someone, you can fling the crutches wide and trip, and the victim of this minor perfect crime will be apologizing for his clumsiness before he is back on his feet!)

As balanced as the narrative perspective is the prose: even, deceptively simple, every word right. Baker's light sense of humor plays well against the serious elements of her story. Mournful self-pity is certainly not her style, but she can show her handicap to be a terrible nuisance. Example: She went horseback riding with a man who wanted to propose to her. Unaware of his intentions but acutely aware of how unglamorous she was on the remount, she refused his invitation to dismount and talk for a while. At that interesting moment her horse took off back to the stable, and he was forced to ask her to marry him at the top of his lungs as his horse galloped behind. (She accepted.)

This little episode, lightly told, is typical of the method of the book, where potentially serious situations work out well in the end, even though everything would have been easier (but possibly less fun) with two legs

I love this little book, and I wish it were back in print at a price I could afford.."


http://www.amazon.com/Limb-American-Autobiography-Louise-Baker/dp/0781284465/sr=1-5/qid=1167404446/ref=sr_1_5/104-8412583-2845536?ie=UTF8&s=books

Answer 2

Ask a librarian. If they don't know the book, they can point you to resources you can use to track it down.

Answer 3

I think that it was Joni (she was an artist?)