In Every Second Counts, Armstrong confronts the challenge of moving beyond his cancer experience, his first Tour victory and his celebrity status. Few of Armstrong's readers will ever compete in the Tour de France (though cyclists will relish Armstrong's detailed recounting of his 2000-2003 tour victories), but all will relate to his discussions of loss and disappointment in his personal and professional life since 1999. They will relate to his battles with petty bureaucracies, such as the French court system during the doping scandal that almost halted his career. And they will especially relate to constant struggles with work/life balance.
In the face of September 11, which arrives halfway through the narrative (just before the fifth anniversary of his diagnosis), Armstrong draws from his experiences to show that suffering, fear and death are the essential human condition. In so openly using his own life to illustrate how to face this reality, he proves that he truly is a hero, and not just because of the bike. (Patrick O'Kelley)