The Comeback Kid

The Memoirs of Thomas L. Hay

Non-Fiction - Autobiography
257 Pages
Reviewed on 01/31/2016
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Author Biography

Thomas L. Hay was raised in the Golden Valley town of Clinton, Missouri. He is a Vietnam veteran. He retired from TWA/American Airlines. He currently resides in Lake Waukomis, Missouri with his lovely wife Karen, along with some hyperactive squirrels, too many irritating geese, and a few cranky old cat fish.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Renee Taylor for Readers' Favorite

The Comeback Kid: The Memoirs of Thomas L. Hay by Thomas Leonard Hay is an autobiography that chronicles a fun and interesting life worth looking into. The story starts in Thomas Leonard Hay's small town childhood in Clinton, Missouri in the 1950s. The story quickly moves through the Vietnam War and his time in the U.S. Navy. It takes readers to Saudi Arabia and teaches many interesting facts and lessons, like why one should never use dynamite in place of fireworks. There are lessons about golf, like why there are 18 rounds of golf and why we shout "Fore." There are lessons about geography, like why Navy men prefer the top bunk and why men from Saudi Arabia eat left handed. The book contains love story after love story, and is a fresh and honest look at the hearts Hay broke throughout his life, and the times that his own heart was broken. It is a funny, comical, and emotional ride about the many challenges he overcame in his life (hence the title). Many were situational, but unfortunately, some were inflicted by people close to him, including himself.

Some sections in The Comeback Kid included song lyrics, which was a nice way to draw the reader in. I especially liked reading the author's description of the 1970s. There were also some interesting hints of stories about alien abductions, which made the book mysterious and intriguing at the same time. It was charming and witty, but also bittersweet and sad. It was an adventure story, but also included romance and mystery and heartbreak. I read it very quickly and didn't want to put it down. I appreciated Hay's honesty regarding emotional topics that could have been hard to write about, but were shared openly and fairly, as if I wasn't just a reader, but the author's friend.