One of the oldest and most revered and respected diabetes organizations in the country, Joslin presented a featured blog on its website, newsletter and social media platforms about Ron, The Amendment Killer and, of course, 11-year-old Cassie Webber’s story, to its legions of Team Joslin friends and supporters around the world. Here’s what Joslin had to say:
New Novel Sheds Light on Life with Diabetes
In his lifetime, Ron Barak has competed as an Olympic athlete, received a law degree with honors, built his career as an experienced trial lawyer and judge, and most recently became a novelist. When he was diagnosed with diabetes over thirty years ago, he refused to let it slow him down and continues to live his life to the fullest.
Aside from his many professional and personal triumps, Ron also works hard to manage his diabetes. He uses an insulin pump to help control his blood glucose and checks his blood sugar levels on a consistent and disciplined basis.
In Ron’s newest novel, The Amendment Killer, available November 1, 2017, he illustrates this very principle, that diabetes is by no means a prescription for failure, through one of his characters, Cassie, an 11-year-old with type 1 diabetes. Cassie is a confident and self-assured aspiring professional golfer who does not let her diabetes slow her down.
“I wanted my readers, both those with and without diabetes, to see that responsible diabetics do not need to lead a life any differently than those who do not have diabetes,” Ron said. “Cassie became a way to illustrate that in a hopefully entertaining manner.”
“The Amendment Killer is a political and legal thriller in which Cassie is kidnapped by people trying to control the swing vote of her grandfather, a Supreme Court justice, in a case with great constitutional importance to our country.
Anne Peters, M.D. Professor of Medicine and Director of The USC Westside Center for Diabetes notes, “Ron has merged the worlds of political and legal intrigue and diabetes reality with the same precision, sensitivity and enthusiasm he demonstrates every day in managing his own real-world diabetes.”
Throughout the story confronting the political dysfunction in our country today, Cassie is portrayed by Ron as a determined young girl who manages her diabetes while being held hostage and isolated from her family. Despite her situation, Cassie doe not stop caring for her diabetes and continuing to pursue her dream of one day becoming “not the best diabetic golfer, but the best golfer, period.”
“I want young people with diabetes everywhere to know that they can have all that life has to offer so long as they take care of their health, which Cassie demonstrates is not all that difficult to do,” said Ron. “There are hundreds of thousand of real world kids like Cassie achieving great things every day,” he added.
To support the 30 million Americans with diabetes today, Ron and his wife plan to donate 50% of the book’s net proceeds to diabetes research. Joslin Diabetes Center is one of four diabetes charities to whom Ron will be donating.
“We all know diabetes can have dire consequences. Millions of diabetics in the U.S. today are undiagnosed until the damage is irreversible. However, with early detection, responsible management and treatment, that no longer has to be the case. What a nice thing it will be if ‘Cassie’ is able to help raise the level of that awareness and knowledge,” Ron said.
For more information, please visit www.ronaldsbarak.com.
Joslin Diabetes Center is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. Joslin does not endorse specific products or companies. This post is meant to be informational only.
