As our Healthcare and Humanity Reading Series continues, we welcome Greg Marshall to share his debut memoir Leg: The Story of a Limb and the Boy Who Grew from It. Conjure the image of a teenager limping across a high school stage, or in a wheelchair after leg surgeries, pondering why he’s crushing on half of the Utah Jazz. Add to this a mom clacking away at her newspaper column between chemos, a dad with ALS, and a cast of foulmouthed siblings, and you have Greg Marshall’s early years. Years pass and you find Greg happily settled into his life as a gay man only to discover he’s been living in another closet his whole life: he has cerebral palsy. With wit, charm, and intimate honesty, Greg guides us through the particular trials and tribulations of his unique life so far in the extraordinarily funny and insightful triumph that is Leg. 

Amid outrageous anecdotes of singular childhood, Greg’s memoir also provides a tender examination of what it means to transform when there are parts of yourself you can’t change, a moving portrait of a family in crisis, and a tale of resilience of spirit. In Greg’s deft hands, we see a story both personal and universal—of being young and wanting the world, even when the world doesn’t feel like yours to want.

This reading is followed by a moderated conversation with Theresa Brown, an audience Q&A, and a book signing. You can purchase your own copy of Greg’s book, Leg, at City of Asylum Bookstore.

About the Author:

Greg Marshall (he/him) has been anthologized in The Best American Essays and published in Fourth Genre, Literary Hub, and elsewhere. He has received fellowships from MacDowell, the Corporation of Yaddo, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Greg used to work as an arts and entertainment reporter for a community newspaper in Utah, where he grew up, and he holds degrees from the Medill School of Journalism and the University of Texas at Austin, where he was a James A. Michener Fellow. His debut memoir, Leg, is out now from Abrams Press. 

About the Moderator:

Theresa Brown, PhD, BSN, RN, is a nurse and best-selling author who lives in Pittsburgh, PA. Her third book, Healing: When a Nurse Becomes a Patient, was released April 2022. It explores her diagnosis of and treatment for breast cancer in the context of her own nursing work. Theresa has been a frequent contributor to the New York Times and her writing has appeared on CNN.com, and in The American Journal of Nursing, The Journal of the American Medical Association, and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Theresa has been a guest on MSNBC Live and NPR’s Fresh Air. Theresa has a BSN from the University of Pittsburgh and a PhD in English from the University of Chicago. She lectures nationally and internationally on issues related to nursing, health care, and end of life. Becoming a mom led Theresa to leave academia and pursue nursing. It is a career change she has never regretted.

About Your Visit: 

The in-house restaurant 40 North is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, but a cash wine bar will be available.