A Real Boy: a True Story of Autism, Early Intervention, and Recovery
It probably says something uncomplimentary about me that I keep taking offense to the various book titles I run across in the library. But I mean, come on... how does that title not shriek "Pinocchio" at anyone? Like the kid in question wasn't a real person until after he got therapy.
But if you read the book, that's really not at all what the parent-author is saying. The "real boy" phrase is something the author's kid said, after a lot of therapy and exhaustive work. So my ire is mostly unwarranted. Mostly. I realize unique titles are hard to find, but. Uff. There's an entire chapter devoted to talking about how autism isn't inherently awful and autistic people can be a huge asset to society. Given that insight, you'd think someone (maybe glaring at you, publishing company) would take more care with the title.
My not-entirely-deserved umbrage aside, this is the story of one family trying to get their son to thrive. The mother-author is your guide through the trying, exhausting, and even heartbreaking months and years of early-intervention for her son. The story is told matter-of-factly, not sparing the feelings or actions of the people in the story. This is not a fairy tale story. It ends happily, thankfully, but there are plenty of moments of despair, loss, fear, and dread. There is blame and conflict alongside the joy and hope. The marriage of the author and her husband is tested, repeatedly. I somehow doubt this book goes into every pitfall, trial, and unkind word that happened in this time period, and it seems to me like the author is a bit too perfect of a character in her recollection, but I can't say I'd do any better if I wrote a memoir.
Like many success stories, this one involves not one single effective therapy, but many. This is most commonly the case with autism. There is no single fix. There is no magic pill. Instead, you're left weaving together psychologists with ABA (applied behavioral analysis) with gluten-free casein-free diets with prescription drugs... Even chiropractic, neurofeedback (oh hey that's me), and supplements. Any of these fields on average, will swear that they and they alone have the key to helping you or your child, but in reality, it usually doesn't work that way.
The author is an excellent writer, and I found it easy (if depressing, often) to follow the thread of the narrative and empathize with her trials. I kind of got lost on the timeline of things, and if there was a recap or summary at the end, I missed it. Best I can tell is that it's a story from birth to about age 6. I somehow doubt the kid's story is over... he struggled hard to get as far as he did, as did his parents... but the difficulty level of his life is about to ramp up. School gets tougher, emotional spectrums expand, societal pressures and expectations broaden, hormones hit... I didn't, as far as I know, struggle that hard at that age... but middle school and high school were all kinds of awful.
It probably says something uncomplimentary about me that I keep taking offense to the various book titles I run across in the library. But I mean, come on... how does that title not shriek "Pinocchio" at anyone? Like the kid in question wasn't a real person until after he got therapy.
But if you read the book, that's really not at all what the parent-author is saying. The "real boy" phrase is something the author's kid said, after a lot of therapy and exhaustive work. So my ire is mostly unwarranted. Mostly. I realize unique titles are hard to find, but. Uff. There's an entire chapter devoted to talking about how autism isn't inherently awful and autistic people can be a huge asset to society. Given that insight, you'd think someone (maybe glaring at you, publishing company) would take more care with the title.
My not-entirely-deserved umbrage aside, this is the story of one family trying to get their son to thrive. The mother-author is your guide through the trying, exhausting, and even heartbreaking months and years of early-intervention for her son. The story is told matter-of-factly, not sparing the feelings or actions of the people in the story. This is not a fairy tale story. It ends happily, thankfully, but there are plenty of moments of despair, loss, fear, and dread. There is blame and conflict alongside the joy and hope. The marriage of the author and her husband is tested, repeatedly. I somehow doubt this book goes into every pitfall, trial, and unkind word that happened in this time period, and it seems to me like the author is a bit too perfect of a character in her recollection, but I can't say I'd do any better if I wrote a memoir.
Like many success stories, this one involves not one single effective therapy, but many. This is most commonly the case with autism. There is no single fix. There is no magic pill. Instead, you're left weaving together psychologists with ABA (applied behavioral analysis) with gluten-free casein-free diets with prescription drugs... Even chiropractic, neurofeedback (oh hey that's me), and supplements. Any of these fields on average, will swear that they and they alone have the key to helping you or your child, but in reality, it usually doesn't work that way.
The author is an excellent writer, and I found it easy (if depressing, often) to follow the thread of the narrative and empathize with her trials. I kind of got lost on the timeline of things, and if there was a recap or summary at the end, I missed it. Best I can tell is that it's a story from birth to about age 6. I somehow doubt the kid's story is over... he struggled hard to get as far as he did, as did his parents... but the difficulty level of his life is about to ramp up. School gets tougher, emotional spectrums expand, societal pressures and expectations broaden, hormones hit... I didn't, as far as I know, struggle that hard at that age... but middle school and high school were all kinds of awful.
The book may end here, but I have no doubt further challenges are in store. I can only hope the parents will face them with the same tenacity they faced these early challenges.
Read This Book If:
You want an idea of the struggles a family (and a marriage) can go through when a child is diagnosed autistic and struggles to find the right therapies and supports. Especially since you can be assured it's a story of success in the end.
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