Can someone please explain to me the story of Saul of Tarsus?

Okay, from what I've heard, he was on the road to Damascus and had a vision of the resurrected Jesus who told him to stop persecuting Christians. My children's Bible stories book says that first God made him go blind and then Jesus cured him of his blindness; is that part of the actual story? Any information will be appreciated. It's for a novel I'm writing, so atheists, if you don't have anything useful to contribute, you can keep your opinions to yourselves. The novel is fiction, but I just want to keep it consistent with the Biblical account.