At 49 - with two grown-up children and a divorce behind her - Ann Amann craves a self-determined life beyond the narrow minds of 'petty bourgeois' Switzerland. She founds her own travel company, commits herself to meditation, and leaps headfirst into an exciting new chapter of adventure beyond maternal duties.
She believes her days of romance and attachment are behind her, until she collides with Martin - the charming, exuberant 'lover of life' and expert in the human brain - who sees the sunny side of every situation, including forcing her off her path to be with him.
Soulmates at first sight, love and seemingly endless opportunity blossom before them: Martin illuminating the inner world of the brain and Ann sharing the bounties of her world - from mountain gorillas in Uganda and hot-air balloon rides in Myanmar, to charity work with refugee camps and the orphanages of Kathmandu.
The world is their oyster-until their whirlwind romance is cut mercilessly short: Martin, the neuroscientist, suffers a debilitating stroke. Ann is transformed-at once-from wife to carer; partner to parent; from nomadic 'free spirit' to the legs and mouthpiece of her beloved husband, who can no longer walk or speak.
Suddenly torn out of life and thrust into a devastating world of barriers, bureaucracy and burnout, Ann desperately seeks help - only to discover the inadequacies of the Western 'system' at the moment she most relys upon it.
Powered by a ferocious love and refusing to 'park' her husband in a cold, uncaring institution, she fights against all odds for a humane, loving alternative where independence, joy and beauty can flourish once more.
In this extraordinary journey into the mind, around the world, and back to happiness, she risks everything for the chance to save a life worth living, with and for her husband-and for herself.
Part love story, part travelogue and part road-map to a world less travelled, Hearts, Brains and Wandering Souls is a joyous, compassionate, unflinchingly honest and unwaveringly poignant account of life after crisis, and hope beyond it.
Amann's powerful book is sure to inspire 'free spirits' and independently minded people everywhere, especially those afflicted by hardship or tragedy, who believe 'there must be a better way'.
There is - discover it now.
★★★★★
About the Author
Ann Amann lives in Zurich, Switzerland and Chiang Mai, Thailand. When her husband-the cognitive neuroscientist Martin Amann-suffered a stroke in 2019, her refusal to abandon him to a 'care' home forced her to seek alternatives - eventually finding a more dignified, humane and sustainable solution to a life of limits in the 'Land of Smiles'. Her mission is to spread this message of hope to others afflicted by hardship, whether stroke or otherwise-to empower them to question the basic package of 'care' offered in the affluent West, and to illuminate a viable blueprint for an alternative in Asia... or at home, if we have the courage to demand it. Brains, Hearts and Wandering Souls is an inspirational true story of courage and perseverance, and a Call to Arms for a more positive vision of the future. Combining insights from decades of meditation, a fascination with neuroscience, the worldliness of an insatiably curious "professional" traveler and stubborn determination, Ann Amann is the only woman who could write it.
To read more about the author, the book and the story, including a cost breakdown of Martin's care in Thailand, please visit: Ann-Amann.com/en/
