The Boy Who Fell To Earth
by
Kathy Lette
Meet Merlin. He's Lucy's bright, beautiful son - who just happens to be autistic.
Since Merlin's father left them in the lurch shortly after his diagnosis, Lucy has made Merlin the centre of her world. Struggling with the joys and tribulations of raising her eccentrically adorable yet challenging child, (if only Merlin came with operating instructions) Lucy doesn't have roo...more
Since Merlin's father left them in the lurch shortly after his diagnosis, Lucy has made Merlin the centre of her world. Struggling with the joys and tribulations of raising her eccentrically adorable yet challenging child, (if only Merlin came with operating instructions) Lucy doesn't have roo...more
Hardcover, 336 pages
Published
March 1st 2012
by Bantam Books (Transworld Publishers a division of the Random House Group)
(first published January 1st 2012)
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This book joins the Fifty Shades Trilogy in being awarded one star (and both of them only get that because What Hannah Read doesn’t have a zero star rating). I wondered whether that was perhaps too harsh, but I honestly can’t think of a single thing to recommend it. Admittedly, this book is way more “chick lit” than my usual choice of reading material, but I gave it a try anyway – partly because I try to keep an open mind about genre (especially as “chick lit” is such a dismissive and sexist ter...more
Time Taken to read - 1 day
Blurb From Goodreads
Meet Merlin. He's Lucy's bright, beautiful son - who just happens to be autistic.
Since Merlin's father left them in the lurch shortly after his diagnosis, Lucy has made Merlin the centre of her world. Struggling with the joys and tribulations of raising her eccentrically adorable yet challenging child, (if only Merlin came with operating instructions) Lucy doesn't have room for any other man in her life.
By the time Merlin turns ten, Lucy is seriously...more
Blurb From Goodreads
Meet Merlin. He's Lucy's bright, beautiful son - who just happens to be autistic.
Since Merlin's father left them in the lurch shortly after his diagnosis, Lucy has made Merlin the centre of her world. Struggling with the joys and tribulations of raising her eccentrically adorable yet challenging child, (if only Merlin came with operating instructions) Lucy doesn't have room for any other man in her life.
By the time Merlin turns ten, Lucy is seriously...more
Very disappointed, unfortunately (and I don't say that too often, do I?). The focus of the book settled on the mother's struggle, rather than the son's condition (the son was diagnosed with Asperger's). Of course I understood her problems, but she lacked my sympathy. She was incapable of responding to others normally, every aside and response was ironic and sarcastic (albeit sometimes amusing). Her snark was exaggerated. The education authority's inability to pick up the boy's condition was rema...more
When I first heard about this book, I had high hopes for it, as I have a daughter with high-functioning Asperger's. Though admittedly Kathy Lette's novels have never really interested me much - not my sort of reading choice. I wish I had followed my first impression of her work rather than give this a chance, unfortunately.
The story follows Cassandra, the single mother of Asperboy Merlin. It traces their abandonment by Merlin's natural father and Cassandra's exploits, or should I say 'sexploits'...more
The story follows Cassandra, the single mother of Asperboy Merlin. It traces their abandonment by Merlin's natural father and Cassandra's exploits, or should I say 'sexploits'...more
My Thoughts: I could write reams on why I enjoyed this book and there is so much that the blurb doesn’t tell you about the highs and lows of life with an autistic child as Lucy tries to raise her child and stay sane; and author Lucy Lette should know as her 21-year-old son, Julius, was diagnoses as having Asperger’s (high-functioning autism) when he was a toddler. In an interview Kathy said there is a lot of Julius in Merlin but the book is fiction and not a memoir. In amongst the hilarious one-...more
Make no mistake, this is chick-lit. This is a Kathy Lette book. Folks expecting a deep analysis on life as the mother of a child with autism written by someone who knows will be disappointed. That is not to say that the book has no substance at all; the frustrations of being a parent of an autistic child are made plain but in some ways only scratch the surface. The truth would be too painful and that wouldn't be any fun to read!
Kathy Lette's style of amusing one-liners run through the book whic...more
Kathy Lette's style of amusing one-liners run through the book whic...more
This is the story of Lucy and Merlin. Merlin is Lucy's son who was diagnosed with autism at aged two. Exit stage left the father and you have a single mother who is coping on her own having to deal with the education system that fails to support special needs kids. Her son, she is told by her mother and sister needs a role model and Lucy joins an online dating service to find the right man. Merlin will aways be the main man in her life but perhaps there is someone else out there?
Kathy Lette neve...more
Kathy Lette neve...more
As a mom of an 8 year old boy on the autistic spectrum, I could really relate to Lucy's constant anxiety about her son and how the rest of her life takes a back seat to being there for him. It also gave me insight as to what I am in for during his teenage years. Coincidentally, I am also an English teacher, like Lucy, so I related even more. Some readers said they felt she focused too much on how Merlin's condition affected her life but if you have never been there you cannot fathom how it real...more
I still cannot decide if this is chick lit or not... I shall call it serious chick lit - light reading for the intelligent women.
I imagine a book like this gets quite a lot of flak for its treatment of autistism, but as i don't have any particular experience aside from listening to my mum who has been a teacher for 30 years, I will respond in the way I think Lette meant us to respond: emotionally.
I was moved by Lucy and Merlin, I fell for them through both struggle and triumph. There were bursts...more
I imagine a book like this gets quite a lot of flak for its treatment of autistism, but as i don't have any particular experience aside from listening to my mum who has been a teacher for 30 years, I will respond in the way I think Lette meant us to respond: emotionally.
I was moved by Lucy and Merlin, I fell for them through both struggle and triumph. There were bursts...more
The Boy Who Fell to Earth, a strong poignant tale of a mother struggling to raise her child alone. Lucy was once in what she thought was the perfect marriage and falling pregnant only added to her joy. But when Lucy gave birth to Merlin everything changed within the space of a few years. Her pilot husband who once made sure to do short haul flights to be at home with his family was spending more and more time in the air. The problem? Merlin was diagnosed with Autism. This is a touching story abo...more
I had an infatuation with Kathy Lette years ago, especially after seeing Puberty Blues at the movies while an impressionable teenager. I loved a book, I did, but somewhere along the way we broke up, and went our separate ways. So this is the first book of hers I have picked up for a good ten years.
This is the story of Lucy, who after her husband ran off, is left with her autistic son Merlin to raise. We get to join Lucy, in her search for a new man in her life, where Merlin often inadvertently s...more
This is the story of Lucy, who after her husband ran off, is left with her autistic son Merlin to raise. We get to join Lucy, in her search for a new man in her life, where Merlin often inadvertently s...more
Reading this book is like being cornered and repeatedly splattered with paint balls! The one liners are RELENTLESS. Oh for an assertive editor!
I waited patiently on a long list of library requests to read this and was bewildered and disappointed. Great subject - dealing with an autistic child but what strange execution. I have worked with Autistic young adults for a decade and they do not let out this stream of thoughts and ideas like Merlin does. They usually quietly struggle to interpret and f...more
I waited patiently on a long list of library requests to read this and was bewildered and disappointed. Great subject - dealing with an autistic child but what strange execution. I have worked with Autistic young adults for a decade and they do not let out this stream of thoughts and ideas like Merlin does. They usually quietly struggle to interpret and f...more
Kathy Lette writes from experience. Like her own child, Merlin is Lucy’s intelligent and autistic son. He can rattle of cricket scores from every match over the past twenty years but can’t remember how to dress himself. With Merlin’s father fleeing from the family home not long after the diagnosis, Lucy is left to raise Merlin on her own and Merlin becomes the only man that Lucy has room for in her life. Written with the quick wit you would expect from Lette. Despite not being a factual read, th...more
I'm sitting in the middle of the road over this book. It is a typical dark humoured book by Kathy Lette. Merlin was wonderful. I could feel for his mother Lucy through a lot of this book, but was frustrated with her inability to take charge at times... going back to her pathetic ex, Jeremy, with an cringe worthy decision on her part ARGH! I think the amount of sarcastic humour used in the book made it loose some of the strength of it's subject matter, Aspergers, and the plight of the struggling...more
There is no question in my mind that Puberty Blues by Kathy Lette is an important piece of modern Australian literature. And I did laugh out loud when I read Foetal Attraction and Mad Cows. I probably smiled during Dead Sexy and How to Kill Your Husband but I honestly can’t remember. After reading Lette’s latest release, The Boy Who Fell to Earth, I have resolved to leave Lette out of my reading future (re-readings of Puberty Blues excepted). You see, the problem is I’ve heard the jokes before....more
An annoying book, I felt. The plot was great and compelling. I wanted to know how things turned out so I kept on reading it. The characters were well drawn albeit a bit cliched. What I found really irritating was the continuous sarcastic dialogue. No-one actually spoke in what I'd call a normal way, they were all making nasty comparisons, witty metaphors and so on. I found it very hard to read. I think it was supposed to be funny and it would possibly have been if only one character had done it,...more
I think this book has the wrong title. I enjoyed it, but it really wasn't about a boy who feel to Earth, rather a mother who struggled to find love who happened to have a son that was on the spectrum.
I could relate to her feelings for her son in so many ways. Her frustrations, her tenderness, her struggles and her love, and what wasn't to love about Merlin? He was gorgeous. The book does touch on the issues of Aspergers and the struggles of raising a child with the syndrome but it left me wantin...more
I could relate to her feelings for her son in so many ways. Her frustrations, her tenderness, her struggles and her love, and what wasn't to love about Merlin? He was gorgeous. The book does touch on the issues of Aspergers and the struggles of raising a child with the syndrome but it left me wantin...more
May 10, 2012
Jennifer
added it
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Kathy Lette is a very funny writer. The Boy Who Fell to earth is not my normal fare, more chick-lit really, but I really enjoyed it nonethless. Despite the serious nature of the subject matter, a mostly single mother coping with an autistic son, Lette's approach of self parody and a just laugh out loud descriptions keeps you wanting more. Throw in an ex who comes back, an unlikely Aussie lodger who becomes a lover, the maturing of the Asperger's driven Merlin, and Lucy's narrative takes on a som...more
It's safe to say I wish this was better than it was. I know the number one rule of books is 'never judge a book by its cover' but the cover is so pretty. It just makes me want to have it on my bookshelf and my eye is immediately drawn to it every time I'm in the bookstore or looking online. It's beautiful.
Lucy, the protagonist, tells the story of her life with her son Merlin, who suffers with Aspergers syndrome, and their struggles after her husband Jeremy left her when Merlin was young. Having...more
Lucy, the protagonist, tells the story of her life with her son Merlin, who suffers with Aspergers syndrome, and their struggles after her husband Jeremy left her when Merlin was young. Having...more
I struggled between 2 and 3 stars for this book, and I’m sorry to say I didn’t really enjoy it though the basis of the plot was good!
The problem I had with it was the story centred around Lucy, Merlin’s mother, and her struggles to get herself a man, her hatred of her ex-husband, who deserted Merlin and Lucy when Merlin’s diagnosis was announced..and men in general, plus the continual sarcastic jokes, whatever the situation. The one-liners got a bit tedious after awhile.
I felt extremely sorry f...more
The problem I had with it was the story centred around Lucy, Merlin’s mother, and her struggles to get herself a man, her hatred of her ex-husband, who deserted Merlin and Lucy when Merlin’s diagnosis was announced..and men in general, plus the continual sarcastic jokes, whatever the situation. The one-liners got a bit tedious after awhile.
I felt extremely sorry f...more
Brilliant book about a mum with a son who has Aspergers (it's fictional I think)and the mum's quest to meet someone. The authors knowledge of Aspergers is impressive and she handles all situations with a healthy dose of humour which is peppered with poignancy throughout. I read the book on the recommendation of Ruby Wax (yes, the comedian/mental health campaigner) and I am more than happy to recommend it to others too.............loved it and couldn't wait to get back to it everytime I put it do...more
I wasn't a kathy lette fan , she is witty but obvious, but then I met her at Hay. She talked about this book, incredibly movingly and she was absolutely amazing, she spent alot of time with my friend, she was self effacing and totally charming .... So I bought the book. She is actually a clever and articulate writer, I feel she has under sold herself in the past, this is worth a read. This is her story and I loved that she never wrote it until her son was old enough to give his permission.
Disappointing - it was full of really corny one-liners and all the characters spoke in the same manner - you couldn't tell them apart to be honest. The most disappointing factor was the very carful avoidance of dealing with the negativity of a child on the austism spectrum although regular references to Merlin's dark moods were made they were never evidenced. In addition the mother was weak and feeble who did nothing but whinge - really you had no desire for her to get her happy ending.
When I first read the blurb of this book, I had high hopes. I've read other books about characters with Asperger's and really enjoyed them (ie. House Rules by Jodi Picoult). This book ... well, it kind of missed the mark a little with me. My main problem was the humour. Now, I like a good humour book, but this book was back to back one liners and sarcasm and it all became a little cringeworthy after a while. The story seemed to get lost amongst the overload of similies and metaphors, and I felt...more
I enjoyed this... but... I really don't think Kathy Lette actually 'writes'. Instead she puts together hillarious one-liner after hillarious one-liner. Seriously - its a laugh a sentence. Considering the topic is a 'serious' one (having an Autistic child) I'm not sure that its appropriate to treat every part of it with irreverant humour - but maybe thats what keeps everyone sane in this sort of situation. Not one of her best - but well worth the read.
Started really well, and then I think the poignancy of the story got lost. She is very clever with words, she can twist a sentence into something funny with enviable ease, but I found it too much in this sort of story.
A light touch for such an intense topic could really have worked, and enhanced the impact. Possibly if it hadn't been in the first person, and the humour was only in conversation, I might have found it more effective.
A light touch for such an intense topic could really have worked, and enhanced the impact. Possibly if it hadn't been in the first person, and the humour was only in conversation, I might have found it more effective.
Jul 09, 2012
Tracey Slater
added it
in my opinion, this is Kathy Lette's best book. It has her trademark punny humour and quirky characters. What is different about this book is the pathos injected into it. I found myself feeling for the main character, the mother of a son with Asperger's syndrome. The tragedy and comedy are knitted together seamlessly, making for a satisfying read.
from experience, I can say her description of a failing/failed marriage are spot-on.
from experience, I can say her description of a failing/failed marriage are spot-on.
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| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Is she for Merlin or her? | 1 | 6 | Apr 15, 2012 12:23pm |
Kathy Lette divides her time between being a full time writer,
demented mother (now there's a tautology) and trying to find a shopping trolley that doesn't have a clubbed wheel.
Kathy first achieved succés de scandale as a teenager with the novel Puberty Blues, now a major motion picture.
After several years as a singer with the Salami Sisters and a newspaper columnist in Sydney and New York (collec...more
More about Kathy Lette...
demented mother (now there's a tautology) and trying to find a shopping trolley that doesn't have a clubbed wheel.
Kathy first achieved succés de scandale as a teenager with the novel Puberty Blues, now a major motion picture.
After several years as a singer with the Salami Sisters and a newspaper columnist in Sydney and New York (collec...more
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