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Nacido en un día azul

by Daniel Tammet

3.74 · rating details · 5,515 ratings · 1,116 reviews

Este extraordinario relato nos ofrece una perspectiva inédita: el interior de la mente de un joven autista de 27 años. Afectado por el síndrome de Aspenger, Daniel Tammet es capaz de realizar complicadas operaciones aritméticas con la velocidad del rayo, puede aprender un idioma en tan sólo unos días y ha establecido un nuevo récord al memorizar y recitar más de 22.500 dec...more

Paperback, 253 pages

Published December 3rd 2007 by Editorial Sirio

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Jan 30, 2008

Kate rated it

· review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. With a full title (in the States) of Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant, Daniel Tammet's memoir might seem intimidating. Yet the text itself is anything but--the chapters are relatively short, his sentences are easy to follow, and (aside from the first chapter, "Blue Nines and Red Words") it is told in straightforward chronology.

Tammet is 28 years old; he's been diagnosed as both a savant and autistic, which means that he can remember ne...moreWith a full title (in the States) of Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant, Daniel Tammet's memoir might seem intimidating. Yet the text itself is anything but--the chapters are relatively short, his sentences are easy to follow, and (aside from the first chapter, "Blue Nines and Red Words") it is told in straightforward chronology.

Tammet is 28 years old; he's been diagnosed as both a savant and autistic, which means that he can remember nearly everything he's read, including massive amounts of numbers, but that he spent most of his life feeling like an outsider unsure of how to interact with other people. I first learned of the memoir both through a book review somewhere else and a special on TV about him--in which, among other things, he learned to speak Icelandic fluently in one week. He sees words and numbers as colors and textures, with different characters having different sizes and shapes.

I would love to say that it is a brilliant memoir, but to be honest, there were few points where it lived up to the dust jacket's "triumphant and uplifting" description. True, he has been incredibly successful in spite of his autism-related limitations (he runs a successful online language learning business, and is considered one of the most socially functional autistic cases ever studied--as a result, he's a scientist's wet dream to studying the brain, savantism, and autism).

While the text is quite informative into how his mind works and what his life has been like, there were large chunks where I felt disconnected from the text. This sense of distance was a result of two elements. First, in the entire book--though most noticeably in the first few chapters--it seems like Tammet and his editors just can't seem to decide what exactly they want this memoir to do. Tammet swings from describing how he sees the world (fairly passionately and intricately) to listing off events of his childhood, to offering somewhat stilted advice to those with autism and their friends and family. Since the advice frequently takes the form of a paragraph awkwardly tacked on at the end of a chapter, I felt like it wasn't really organically grown from the text.

Secondly, in many cases, Tammet is simply listing and recounting events. The most engaging passages are where he discusses how he sees certain letters and words, how he learned Icelandic, how he memorized over 22,500 numbers of pi for a public recital, the ins and outs of his relationship, and when he meets Kim Peek (on whom Dustin Hoffman's Rain Man is based). In short, when he's writing about things that matter to him, it's an incredibly engaging memoir. But so much of his recounting has the air of something he's telling us because he expects it's what we're interested in--and that he'd kind of bored by it. As a result, the rest of the memoir is consumed by an almost list-like, fairly dispassionate chronology of his experiences in grade school, secondary school, teaching abroad, etc.

In some ways, this second "problem" seems a result of the first: the focus of the text seems torn. The shorter early chapters seem to exacerbate the problem by skipping rather quickly through things--many of them things Tammet does not remember but his parents do, which could account for his lack of energy when discussing them.

His is a fascinating mind and experience, and the book is definitely worth reading if you're interested in how the brain works, how autism or savantism work, and particularly how Tammet sees numbers, letters, etc. (he includes illustrations of what some letters and numbers look like to him, which are cool). It does provide a lot of insight into how someone with Asperger's syndrome (considered a milder, more social form of autism) functions and thinks. (The UK title, Born on a Blue Day: A Memoir of Asperger's and an Extraordinary Mind, actually seems more representative of the text itself.) Otherwise, this is one story where the condensed version of the TV special might actually be preferable, as the stilted style in portions of this text rob it of its due.(less)

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Feb 06, 2008

Lena rated it

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Shelves: memoir

Daniel Tammet first became known to the world for such feats as setting the world record for memorizing the most digits of PI (22,514) and learning to speak Icelandic in a week. Tammet is a high-functioning autistic savant who also has synesthesia, a neurological mixing of the senses that allows him to see numbers in shapes and colors.

Tammet's autobiography provides a fascinating glimpse into the inner world of a man who experiences life very differently from the rest of us. As h...more

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Sep 02, 2009

Modern Hermeneut rated it

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The author of this autobiography is a gay, Christian, epileptic, synesthete with a photographic memory. Unfortunately, he also has Asperger's, so instead of serving up a boldly self-satirizing confessional, he subjects us to a robotic catalogue of chronologically ordered facts about his life, wholly devoid of emotional connection, thematic unity, narrative tension, and moral value. There is virtually nothing here that would interest a non-autistic person.

To give you an idea of what...moreThe author of this autobiography is a gay, Christian, epileptic, synesthete with a photographic memory. Unfortunately, he also has Asperger's, so instead of serving up a boldly self-satirizing confessional, he subjects us to a robotic catalogue of chronologically ordered facts about his life, wholly devoid of emotional connection, thematic unity, narrative tension, and moral value. There is virtually nothing here that would interest a non-autistic person.

To give you an idea of what I mean, consider that Tammet devotes three full pages to describing (proudly, and in excruciating detail) his unique permutation on the card game Solitaire; and yet he is happy to squeeze into a single, short paragraph the stories of how he and his boyfriend first met one another's respective parents.

Tammet's profound social and emotional deficits are matched only by the embarrassing artlessness of his prose. I can say, without exaggeration, that I have never read a more stilted and unsophisticated published work in my entire life. The fact that this volume ever saw the light of day -- and the fact that it apparently hoodwinked some professional critics (all of whom should be ashamed of themselves) -- is a testament to the current craze for neurological novelty of the cheapest variety.

Like Kim Meek (the real-life inspiration for "Rain Man"), who also makes an appearance in the book, Daniel Tammet's "abilities" are notable only for their grotesque other-ness and not for their practical utility or moral virtue. He is nothing more than a freakshow, who has benefited from a diseased strain of Western liberalism that embraces "differentness" even at the expense of normative values like empathy, humility, and humor.

If you think I'm going too far, I invite you to read page 82 on which the author recounts how he hit a little girl (one of the precious few people in the book whose name he fails to remember) with no good reason and without a hint of remorse. One has the impression that Tammet's life is littered with such victims of his pathology, even as his relatives and teachers bend over backwards to accommodate him.(less)

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Nov 25, 2008

Sun rated it

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Shelves: bookaweek2008

The problem with autobiography is that extraordinary people are not necessary good writers. Daniel Tammet has an extraordinary mind - he can visualise numbers, recite pi to record-breaking decimal places and learn languages with astounding ease*. This is linked to his Asperger's and also to epilepsy.

Although a novel human story, this does not provide much insight into how Tammet's brain works and why other brains are not like his. I expected his unique cognition would be illuminate...more

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Nov 22, 2008

David rated it

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I've seen publicity of this book and have wanted to read it. I found a copy at the Orem library and checked it out, just in time to read the whole thing during a flight from SLC to New Orleans. It's a very interesting personal account of a man living in England who has both Savant Syndrome and Asperger's. He has a stunningly brilliant mind for numbers - he visualizes them as shapes and colors - and can perform incredibly complex mathematical tasks in his mind in seconds by merging the shapes. He...more

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Dec 07, 2008

Uen rated it

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Recommends it for: Everyone

Recommended to Uen by: library

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Before I read this book I had known nothing about Daniel Tammet. But now, I'm positively obsessed with learning every little detail about his life.

When I began the book, I was excited because the intro on the inside cover of the book seemed interesting. I mean who wouldn't wan tot read about an autistic genius? But the first chapter of the book, I have to admit, was a little dry becuase he was trying to introduce you to his mind and how he percieved numbers as shapes. Not until ...moreBefore I read this book I had known nothing about Daniel Tammet. But now, I'm positively obsessed with learning every little detail about his life.

When I began the book, I was excited because the intro on the inside cover of the book seemed interesting. I mean who wouldn't wan tot read about an autistic genius? But the first chapter of the book, I have to admit, was a little dry becuase he was trying to introduce you to his mind and how he percieved numbers as shapes. Not until the 2nd or 3rd chapter did I start to get really absorbed into understand the quirks he grew up with including collecting acorns and how he really didn't care that he was different from other children. What really astounded me about his childhood days was how great his parents were and how much they cared about him even with their SEVEN other younger children. I really have to applaud the wonderfull patience and understanding they had with him that make them truly exceptional parents.

But on with Daniel's life. Chapters, I think, 5 thru 6 were narrating Daniel's gradual independence. I feel that I also have to applaud Daniel for being able to go out by his own without a significant push from others to get him started. He simply decided to get out of the house and applied to be sent to Lithuania to help people there learn English. Judging from his social awkwardness at times, I think Daniel got situated very quickly and learned all by himself how to interact with others. What really made him comfortable with talking was probably when he taught himself the language extremely quickly. Daniel also made a great decision when he got with a group gay guys and got comfortable with them.

After Lithuania Daniel went home and eventually met Neil online. That was what spurred Daniel to come out to his parents that he's gay and they understood and wanted only the best for him. Then began Neil and Daniel's life together.

The rest of the book is basically talking about Daniel's experience filming Brainman which included reciting pi to 22,500 digits and learnign icelandic in a week. All I'd like to say about this part is that it was really interesting knowing how the filming of the movie went for Daniel. I would strongly encourage anyone to see but reading about the experience makes it all the better.

I learned a lot from reading this book. I learned about a savant that I'd never heard of before as well as how autism works. I was really amazing to understand how he thinks and even now I haven't finished marveling all that he has done and what scientists think of him. I just want to say how cool it is that he can do what he can do and how he's been able to learn past all his social awkwardness and progressed so far.

(less)

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Sep 28, 2011

Velvetink rated it

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Shelves: autobiography-memoir, medical, psychology, non-fiction, science, 2011-read

Daniel Tammet is a savant who sees numbers as shapes, colors, and textures, and who can perform unbelievable feats of calculation in his head. In 2004 he became something of a celebrity in England when he memorized and recited the first 22,000 digits of pi, setting a new world record.

The cover is a bit misleading with the tagline, "inside the extraordinary mind of an autistic savant". The author is not, in fact, autistic, and never was. He suffered from epilepsy & seizures...moreDaniel Tammet is a savant who sees numbers as shapes, colors, and textures, and who can perform unbelievable feats of calculation in his head. In 2004 he became something of a celebrity in England when he memorized and recited the first 22,000 digits of pi, setting a new world record.

The cover is a bit misleading with the tagline, "inside the extraordinary mind of an autistic savant". The author is not, in fact, autistic, and never was. He suffered from epilepsy & seizures during early childhood which doctors and scientists believe caused his savantism. This becomes immediately clear upon reading the first pages of the book. He does have Asperger's syndrome, but although Asperger's is considered to be loosely related to autism (or more accurately on the spectrum), it is certainly not the same. It is a much milder disorder, much less debilitating, and much more common. It is fairly common for someone with Asperger's to lead a more or less normal life and fairly common for many to go undiagnosed until much later in life…. Several major Silicon Valley CEOs have been diagnosed with it & many more well known people of note have been retroactively diagnosed as having it. There was an article on Wired a while back entitled “The Geek Syndrome”, which seems to cover Asperger's pretty well, at a layman's level, so I'm not going to detail it further here. Long story short, I consider this tagline disingenuous on the part of the publisher.

I found this book rather interesting. It is well-written and engaging, and the main character (the author himself) is interesting to get to know.

But I began to worry that the entire book would be a loose collection of examples of synesthesia. For an example, Tammet sees the number “1″ as a very bright white, the number “11″ is friendly, and “5″ is loud like a clap of thunder. Scientists are particularly interested in his ability to see numbers as landscapes with color and texture and Tammet is currently helping them with their studies. I wonder at the outcome of this as no two people think alike and worry that his way of seeing numbers etc will be interpreted as some kind of bible within the scientific community. Tammet’s input is important but like statistics he is only one not the majority.

While there is the assumption that synaesthesia is rare I don’t believe it is “that” rare and believe that many people have some degree of it in various ways. I myself see words in images or moods as I read them and I know many others that do – and many folk who do gravitate towards the arts in some form. Ditto many musicians report seeing music in ways that the rest of us don’t experience. I have to admit I can’t do much maths these days without anti-depressants (& I’d rather not take them) - I now have a mental block for it ~ although in primary school I was pretty good & developed my own math system based on what I now know to be a binary system, until the nun’s beat it out of me,(hence the mental block)…. Anyhow that’s probably TMI - but relevant to me, so when I came to Tammet’s chapter on pi and more detailed maths I just skipped it. Maths geeks though will love it – I guess to give him his due what he can do is nothing short of amazing and his ability is compared to the ‘Rainman”, Kim Peek, who Tammet later met & continues to remain friends with.

The subsequent chapters begin a more chronological journey through the author's life. Tammet had a very difficult education. He was bullied by his classmates because of his “weirdness” and compulsive behaviour. He was socially withdrawn and preferred his own company. His parents were accepting and supporting of him and he credits their help with getting him through difficult periods.

Tammet gives this advice to parents of children suffering from epilepsy or autism:
“Give your children the self-belief to hold on to their dreams, because they are the things that shape each person’s future”. (Something all parents should try to do).

Tammet is creating his own language, strongly influenced by the vowel and image-rich languages of northern Europe. (He already speaks French, German, Spanish, Lithuanian, Icelandic and Esperanto.) The vocabulary of his language - "Mänti", meaning a type of tree - reflects the relationships between different things. The word "ema", for instance, translates as "mother", and "ela" is what a mother creates: "life". "Päike" is "sun", and "päive" is what the sun creates: "day". Tammet hopes to launch Mänti in academic circles later this year, his own personal exploration of the power of words and their inter-relationship.His website, Optimnem sells foreign language courses. Personally I found the idea of his "Mänti" language a bit pointless and silly when he can already speak multiple languages and there exists already Esperanto., but whatever rocks his boat.

Some other reviews I’ve read find difficulty in the fact that he is homosexual and Christian but there will always be naysayers and haters out there. In the ¾ quarter section of the book the narrative drifts a bit during his discussion of how he sees God & that could be my own bias in not being particularly interested one way or the other - and while I appreciate why he included it (to show he does have empathy and feelings etc), his openness on his sexuality and beliefs have probably caused him more derision than acceptance in some religious sectors. He does delve into religious matters more deeply on his blog.

Overall I’d recommend “Born on a Blue Day” to anyone interested in the workings of the human mind (particularly if you love maths). Daniel Tammet is an interesting guy. Exceptional in some areas and pretty normal in others. I feel the most positive thing is the overriding sense you get from Tammet’s life is that you cannot hurl everyone into the same basket based on stereotypical medical categories like “savant” or “asperger’s”. While he is awesome calculating pi he does the dishes just like us.

*library borrow(less)

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Oct 17, 2010

Judith rated it

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Shelves: hot-books-read

Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of and Autistic Savant by Daniel Tammet is an extraordinary, indeed, unprecedented memoir. Because savant syndrome and autism, even in it’s mildest form, affect emotional experience, social interaction, and imagination, the public communication of individuals like Tammet is usually limited to displaying feats of calculation and memorization. Tammet’s life story highlights his acquisition of social skills and how the acceptance of family and frien...more

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Dec 09, 2008

Simmoril rated it

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I first heard about Daniel Tammet through a special the BBC did called 'Brainman', and I was so inspired by it, that I just had to find out more about this extraordinary person. His love of numbers and foreign languages, as well as his immense memory capabilities just absolutely blew me away.

When I first came across 'Born on a Blue Day', I thought that it would be a rehash of the BBC special in written form. But after just a few chapters, I realized that this book reveals a very diff...more

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Jan 24, 2009

Lindsay rated it

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Recommends it for: autistics, people interested in the mind

Shelves: autism, memoir, nonfiction, 2007, read-for-fun, read-postcollege

Daniel Tammet is an autistic savant whose special talents include lightning-fast calculation (including calendrical calculation --- telling on what day of the week any given date will fall), amazing facility with languages (he currently speaks ten, and has even made up his own language) and a near-perfect memory for facts and figures (he's the current European record-holder for reciting pi to the greatest number of digits). He's also a synesthete, which helps him considerably in performing these...moreDaniel Tammet is an autistic savant whose special talents include lightning-fast calculation (including calendrical calculation --- telling on what day of the week any given date will fall), amazing facility with languages (he currently speaks ten, and has even made up his own language) and a near-perfect memory for facts and figures (he's the current European record-holder for reciting pi to the greatest number of digits). He's also a synesthete, which helps him considerably in performing these mathematical and mnemonic feats by giving each number its own distinctive color, shape and emotion. He describes memorizing pi as a walk through a dreamscape, with the differently colored hills and valleys corresponding to different stretches of digits.

(My favorite turn of phrase in the whole book --- which admittedly is fairly artless, but I didn't mind that --- was when he compared memorizing pi to running a marathon in his head. I liked that because, given how he'd just described the experience, it was literally true.)

The book starts out with a brief chapter describing how his synesthesia works, and then goes on to chronicle his life. Other reviewers have complained that a lot of these sections feel forced, like Tammet is himself bored by recounting the trivial details of his life, but feels like he has to in order to write this book. I agree to an extent --- it is clear that the book's heart is in the sections describing numbers, languages and his meeting with fellow savant Kim Peek --- but I also understand why he chose to include his life history. He speaks near the end of the book of wanting to work closely with neuroscientists to figure out how his mind works, and to help answer larger questions about synesthesia, savantism, learning, and the extent to which abilities like his may be latent in most people's brains. To me, his laying out every detail of his infancy and childhood looked like a necessary part of that cooperation.

(Those sections also held some special interest for me, as another autistic person, because I could compare my development and experiences with his.)

I also feel like I have to answer the reviewer below who called Tammet a sociopath. My impression as I was reading his book could not have been further from that! I got the impression that he was loving, kind, deeply humble, and authentically curious about other people and willing to let them into his life. Indeed, of all the (other) autistic people whose autobiographies I've read, Daniel Tammet is one of two I'd most like to meet (the other is Dawn Prince-Hughes), and he seems to me to have the warmest personality.(less)

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Nov 21, 2008

Chrissie rated it

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Shelves: medical, kirkus, bio, text-checked, philo-psychol

Interesting - actually more questions have arisen in my mind about autism than when I started the book. Three stars - which means I liked it. Well I quess I liked it, sort of. What it did give me is a real feeling for how the author sees life. He has both Asperger's syndrome and synaesthesia. Look them up in Wikipedia if you don't know the terms. There they are explained better than any explanation I could give! What makes this person unique is his ability to explain to us how his brain is worki...moreInteresting - actually more questions have arisen in my mind about autism than when I started the book. Three stars - which means I liked it. Well I quess I liked it, sort of. What it did give me is a real feeling for how the author sees life. He has both Asperger's syndrome and synaesthesia. Look them up in Wikipedia if you don't know the terms. There they are explained better than any explanation I could give! What makes this person unique is his ability to explain to us how his brain is working. Most individuals with these syndromes cannot do this.

Individuals with Asperger's sybdrome cannot function well socially. One feels this in the way the book is written - there is always a distance between the reader and the writer. There is something missing in the emotional connection between the book and the reader. I didn't like this, but one cannot blame the author for this since he is autistic. What the author did to remarkably well is get me to understand how he thinks!

I can immediately relate to some of the ways he reacts to specific situations. I can understand how talking to himself when he is stressed gives him strength and security. I also understand how the constancy of numbers gives him security. They are so fixed and stable. On the other hand sometimes I am left totally out in the cold with no understanding and questions surround me. I don't understand how he can have difficulty with abstract concepts and yet feel religious. I can understand his proficiency with numbers because it is tied to his concrete, exact, logical way of looking at the world, but how can he be so good at learning languages which are not logically structured? Perhaps because he is able to see patterns which I do not see. Or maybe he suceeds because he uses visual images to aid him. I know I am not being clear here, but as I read the book so many questions arose that made me uncomfortable. OK, here is another one - how did he manage to go off to Lithuania by himself? It just doesn't fit with his other capabilities. But he did do it, and it is marvelous that he could. Still, I am left with question after question after question. This was upsetting.(less)

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Jul 07, 2008

Ro rated it

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Having two little brothers that fall on the Autistic Spectrum really made me empathize with Daniel Tammet and the struggles he faces every day just to function. I like that he never glamorized his eventual worldwide fame as one of the few savants that exist and are open enough to tell their stories to all of us so that we may better understand theirs.

Anyone who is familiar with the inflection (or lack thereof) of an Autistic person will instantly feel at ease with Tammet's voice....more

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May 10, 2008

Amie rated it

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Recommends it for: anyone interested in the human mind

Recommended to Amie by: Ron Phillips

This is an autobiographical account of a man with Asperger's Syndrome - a very high functioning autism. In addition, he is a mathematical savant (very few autistic individuals are like this). A couple of years ago I read The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, which is written from the perspective of an autistic boy. I was so intrigued by that book, that I definitely wanted to read this one. I didn't enjoy this one as much. They are very different reads, one fiction and one not.
...more

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Apr 15, 2008

Laura rated it

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Shelves: 2007-08

Born on a Blue Day is one of the only books I've read this year that actually taught me something. It provides a rare glimpse into the mind of a person who is both autistic and a savant. The MOST surprising thing, however, is how Daniel was able to overcome autism, write this book, and lead an independent and "normal" life. The memoir follows Daniel's progress from birth to adulthood and the author is very matter-of-fact and analytical when helping people without autism underst...more

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Jul 27, 2008

Silk rated it

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Recommends it for: everyone, teens with autism, parents of same

Recommended to Silk by: the gifted education director at my son's school

Ok, I'm not sure what to do about the star system, but I loved this book so much that it's a five for me. It's non-fiction, and I wouldn't say exactly that it's poetically written, or great literature, but I found it amazing. For one thing, forget the sexy title, the really interesting stuff in here is about this man's struggles, or may I even go so far as to be politically incorrect and say "deficits." How he copes with those differences is much more intriguing than his savant aptitud...moreOk, I'm not sure what to do about the star system, but I loved this book so much that it's a five for me. It's non-fiction, and I wouldn't say exactly that it's poetically written, or great literature, but I found it amazing. For one thing, forget the sexy title, the really interesting stuff in here is about this man's struggles, or may I even go so far as to be politically incorrect and say "deficits." How he copes with those differences is much more intriguing than his savant aptitudes.

I realize that people are getting more interested in hearing about autism currently, for which I am very thankful, but this book works for anyone who doesn't "fit in" or is going through the struggle of adolescence. How Daniel describes feeling like the odd one out in his family, being puzzled about how to make friends, being the proverbial square peg in a round hole are really universal themes. I don't downplay the autism aspect though, for anyone who wants to understand better what it's like to be in the shoes of someone who toils with the challenge of autism, either as an individual or a caretaker, this book really helps break it down very personally and clearly.

Frequently, one of the more difficult characteristics of autism is the strain to communicate, not only with speech but also in writing. Daniel is able to articulate so beautifully what goes on in his head and compare it with neuro typical experiences that I am doubly impressed. It really sheds a light for those of us who can't relate, and puts into words what other autistic individuals feel but can't express.

I think other parents of kids with aspergers or high functioning autism are going to find great hope in these pages. No, he still can't drive, and his life isn't easy, but it's definitely blessed; he lives independently, and by focusing on his strengths rather than problems he is financially independent with his own web business, has a healthy adult romantic relationship, and tries hard to advocate for others with autism by taking advantage of educational opportunities even though it's hard for him. It's a simple, quick read without a lot of scientific jargon to slow it down. I didn't just enjoy this book, I thank him for it.

By the way, I haven't taken the time to write a review, but another book that I really liked with similar themes is John Elder Robison's Look Me In the Eye.(less)

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Jan 14, 2008

Adam rated it

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Recommends it for: Parents or siblings of someone with Aspergers

Recommended to Adam by: Costco

Shelves: non-fiction

I think I was expecting something different when I picked up this book and even after I had seen part of the movie that was made about Daniel Tammet's life. I was hoping for more detail pertaining to how he sees numbers, people, letters, languages, etc. differently from other people. More about synesthesia. Maybe more amazing stories and exercises demonstrating his ability to work out math problems or logic puzzles quicker than a person who is not a savant. Instead, most of the book is a slow sl...more

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Jan 02, 2008

Valerie rated it

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How interesting, this book works in a number of ways, and fails in a few others. It's nearly as interesting for its failings as for its successes. It is, as promised, a glimpse into an "extraordinary mind," but it's not just all the things the author says about his experiences (the time he recited the digits of pi for a record setting length, the time he first overcame significant fear to fly on a plane, when he become public speaker counseling others on the minds of savants) there's a...more

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Oct 25, 2007

Irishcoda rated it

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Wow! I read this book because I wanted to understand more about autistic spectrum disorders since T (my grandson) was diagnosed with pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified. When Born On A Blue Day first came out, I wanted it right away. What better way to learn about autism than by reading a book by a person who has it?

Daniel Tammet has another form of autism, Asperger's Syndrome. Asperger's is considered a higher functioning form of autism because the kids diag...moreWow! I read this book because I wanted to understand more about autistic spectrum disorders since T (my grandson) was diagnosed with pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified. When Born On A Blue Day first came out, I wanted it right away. What better way to learn about autism than by reading a book by a person who has it?

Daniel Tammet has another form of autism, Asperger's Syndrome. Asperger's is considered a higher functioning form of autism because the kids diagnosed with it usually don't have language delays. All ASDs involve problems with socialization and with connecting to people. One of the issues the author discusses is his lack of feeling toward other classmates. He didn't care that they teased him or tried to embarrass him. He barely noticed them. Another example is when his father became very ill. Tammet writes that he wasn't sure how to react as his father collapsed. He knew that he should stay with his father until his mother arrived. At the end of the book, he does write that he realizes how much his family loves him and as much as he is able, he loves them back.

Parts of the book just totally blew my mind away. Tammet describes how he thinks--in shapes, numbers and colors. He explains his thought processes as he solves a puzzle. There is no way I can repeat any of it here because it was beyond my ability to understand or conceptualize. We don't think that way, most of us, and that's not to say it's wrong but it is most definitely different. Reading this book helped me to understand better why our T has trouble processing language and repeating sounds.

Daniel Tammet also has savant syndrome. He is able to do the most amazing feats with numbers. He raised money for the epilepsy foundation by memorizing a record breaking number of decimal place numerals for pi--over 20,000. It took him over five hours to recite all those numbers by memory!

One of his proudest moments was meeting Kim Peek, the autistic savant upon whom Dustin Hoffman's character in Rain Man was based. Tammet has participated in a lot of research projects to help us understand more about how people with autism think and process. He is self-employed and works from home although he did recount troubles he's had with job interviews. He is in a long lasting relationship with his partner overcoming issues of becoming emotionally close with another person. He and his partner own their own home.

It's an amazing, inspiring story. Daniel Trammet is awesome. Read his book and see for yourselves!(less)

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May 09, 2008

Rachel rated it

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An absolutely fascinating book by a savant, Daniel Hammet, who has struggled his way to being incredibly warm and loving and communicative in addition to being eerily brilliant (learned Icelandic in a week; recited more than 24,000 digits of pi from memory). The book is his recounting of his struggle to come out of himself -- an engrossing place to be -- to connect with others. This is a huge challenge for him, distracted as he is by the fact that he sees beautiful shapes and colors when he sees...more

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Jun 11, 2008

Annie rated it

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Recommended to Annie by: Kim

Shelves: memoirs

My sister Kim recommended this book to me and I am very glad she did. It concerns an interesting topic,austism. Daniel is an austic savant and in this book he tells his life story and the way he experiences the world. For an austic person (he is obviously on the high-functioning scale) to clearly articulate his feelings and his life is relatively rare. His mind is very unique and this book gives readers an understanding of the differences between "normal" and autistic. He recounts f...more

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Dec 03, 2009

Heidi Larew rated it

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Favorite quotation: "I had eventually come to understand that friendship was a delicate gradual process that musn't be rushed or seized upon but allowed and encouraged to take its course over time. I pictured it as a beautiful butterfly, simultaneously beautiful and fragile that once afloat belonged to the air and any attempt to grab at it would only destroy it."

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Aug 03, 2011

Moray Barclay added it · review of another edition

The title of this autobiography is literal, as is every expression in the book; there is no figurative language. Anecdotes are used to explain things, but there is a sense that this is accidental. The timeline is completely linear. As a result, this book reads as though it was written by a clever child.

But the result is compelling because Daniel Tammet has a rare combination of Asperger’s and synaesthesia. Also known as savant syndrome, the latter condition means that he sees every numbe...moreThe title of this autobiography is literal, as is every expression in the book; there is no figurative language. Anecdotes are used to explain things, but there is a sense that this is accidental. The timeline is completely linear. As a result, this book reads as though it was written by a clever child.

But the result is compelling because Daniel Tammet has a rare combination of Asperger’s and synaesthesia. Also known as savant syndrome, the latter condition means that he sees every number as a unique combination of colour, shape, texture and emotion. As a result, he has incredible calculating and learning powers in numerical sequences and languages. This, of itself, would be interesting enough. What is fascinating is that he has, to a large extent, been able to overcome Asperger’s by using his synaesthesia to learn how to empathise: when someone says they are upset, for example, he has taught himself to picture the number six, a number which he sees, and feels, as small, dark and lonely.

Daniel came to the public eye in 2003 when he raised money for an epilepsy charity by reciting pi to over twenty thousand places. The Chapter in which he describes this feat is as compelling as any recollections of great sporting achievements. Subsequently, he was the subject of a fly-on-the-wall documentary, part of which included a successful challenge to learn Icelandic in one week. During this chapter, we see that he has also learned to overcome many of the insecurities that Asperger’s brings. Indeed, by appearing on national television, he has gone further than many people without this condition.

The book also raises public policy issues: only 12% of those with Asperger’s, or high functioning autism, are in employment. And yet by definition they have many positive work qualities including reliability, honesty, and attention to detail.

Daniel does work: he runs his on-line business, providing language learning material. He has also volunteered himself as a guinea pig for scientists studying the human brain. Reading about his early childhood, his progress is remarkable, and towards the end it is clear that he is beginning to understand abstract concepts. His next book, I am sure, will have a title which is figurative.

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Mar 19, 2009

Cait rated it

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Not a bad book, but it could've been better. While the story is interesting to read, it never really managed to touch me or draw me in. It's informative to have a look into the mind of someone like Daniel Tammet, but I feel a collection of short essays on various aspects of how his mind works might have been a better format to communicated that information. For while the way his mind works is interesting enough, Tammet's life-story really isn't all that unusual. Yes, he perceives things differen...more

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Oct 10, 2008

Homeschoolmama rated it

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This was an excellent book written by a man who is an autistic savant. I was very touched by his graciousness and humility. He recounts his childhood, a very difficult and painful time, and yet there is no bitterness. His trials growing up 'different' did not keep him from remaining grateful for his extraordinary gifts, and for the people around him who helped him along the way. I recommend this book to anyone, but especially those who are on the spectrum, as they say, and their family/friends.

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Dec 14, 2011

Brian Hauenstein rated it

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Born on a Blue Day is a memoir written by Daniel Tammet, a man that lives in the UK with a rare form of Aspergers syndrome. Aspergers makes it so Daniel is an idiot savant and sees the world in a completely different way. Instead of seeing everyday objects like everyone else, he sees them in numbers or shapes. The way he sees things is a way that people with normal minds cannot even comprehend. He also has the math skills of a calculator. He can answer the simple math question
21...more

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Nov 13, 2011

PF rated it

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Shelves: health-healthcare, people

I read this book as yet another about ASD to try to help gain more insights and understanding to help understand my family members who are on the autism spectrum. While it succeeded in that, sometimes making me laugh as he said something that sounded like someone I knew, and offering helpful practical day-to-day insights on how he solved certain sensory integration issues, I was not expecting that it would offer me new insights into my own thought and how my own brain works with certain topics (...more

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Jun 27, 2011

Sheila rated it

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Shelves: cultural, current_issues, memoir

Being a mathematician gives me an automatic interest in a book that has numbers on its cover. Being a writer brings the image of a blue day vividly to life. And knowing a number of people with diagnoses on the autistic spectrum means Daniel Tammet’s memoir, Born on a Blue Day, has to intrigue me. What I didn’t know was just how much I would enjoy it.

Like Temple Grandin, Daniel Tammet uses events from his life to provide insight into his way of feeling and thinking. He tells how he perc...more

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Jan 31, 2011

Jennifer (JC-S) rated it

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Shelves: librarybooks

‘It’s just the way my brain works.’

In this memoir, Daniel Tammet recounts his early life, of growing up as part of a large and loving family, and of becoming aware that he is different from those around him. Daniel has been diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome or high-functioning autism, and has had epilepsy.

What is particularly wonderful about this book is that Daniel is able to write so clearly of the way in which he experiences the world. He may have some of the isola...more‘It’s just the way my brain works.’

In this memoir, Daniel Tammet recounts his early life, of growing up as part of a large and loving family, and of becoming aware that he is different from those around him. Daniel has been diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome or high-functioning autism, and has had epilepsy.

What is particularly wonderful about this book is that Daniel is able to write so clearly of the way in which he experiences the world. He may have some of the isolating features of autism, but he is able to write about his perceptions of the world in a way which those of us who are not autistic can understand.

Daniel’s particular form of autism is combined with synaesthesia, an unusual ability to see numbers, words and letters as shapes and colours, sometimes involving motion and texture. This enhances Daniel’s capacity for recognising particular patterns and has enabled his ability to learn languages as well as to memorise pi to 22,514 decimal places.

Speaking of this achievement, Daniel writes:
‘Why learn a number like pi to so many decimal places? The answer I gave then as I do now is that pi is for me an extremely beautiful and utterly unique thing. Like the Mona Lisa or a Mozart symphony, pi is its own reason for loving it.’

Daniel is an autistic savant, and displays extraordinary capabilities in relation to memory, calculation and language. He can undertake very large calculations in his head, and is also able to learn to fluently speak a language (even one as challenging as Icelandic) in a week.

‘The relationship I have with a language is quite an aesthetic one, with certain words and combinations of words being particularly beautiful and stimulating to me. Sometimes I will read a sentence in a book over and over again because of the way the words make me feel inside.’

Daniel’s story is inspiring: generally autistic savants are not able to either live independently or express themselves as clearly as he does. This means, as well, that Daniel can be (and is) of great assistance to those researching autism. I am looking forward to reading his second book, ‘Embracing the Wide Sky’ which was published in 2009.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith
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Dec 30, 2010

Kendra rated it

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I enjoyed this book much more than I thought I was going to. I hate math and at the beginning when he was talking about numbers and how he sees them, I was wondering if I could get through the whole book. I also thought he spent a lot of time talking about his early life and wasn't for sure that I was going to enjoy the book. I am glad I stuck with it though, because it is such an inspiring story about someone who has overcome such odds. Not to mention that even though he has a type of Autism he...more

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Sep 03, 2010

Jee Soo rated it

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Human brain can be truly amazing when we think of how little of its true potential we are using. There are those rare geniuses who seem to use more of what's provided in their heads and have unimaginable talents and abilities. There are also people who channel their brains in such an extreme way that the other areas are malfunctioning. Some of these people are classified as disabled, or mentally disordered. Some others appear in the form of Aspergus, Autism or Savantism. This fine line of d...moreHuman brain can be truly amazing when we think of how little of its true potential we are using. There are those rare geniuses who seem to use more of what's provided in their heads and have unimaginable talents and abilities. There are also people who channel their brains in such an extreme way that the other areas are malfunctioning. Some of these people are classified as disabled, or mentally disordered. Some others appear in the form of Aspergus, Autism or Savantism. This fine line of disability and extreme talent could be something that is in fact only existent by societies that require certain rules in interacting with one another. The lucky ones are the ones who socially interact and still have the intelligence and focus to achieve progress in their field of interest. Some, however seem to be locked in their own world. And of course there are numerous people in between. Daniel Tammet is one of the rare cases of having extreme abilities particularly in numbers and language and also the Asperger’s syndrome, but managed to adapt to the society and is able to interact with other people without too much difficulty and this phenomenon is particularly useful to scientists who are trying to figure out exactly how a brain like that of Daniel Tammet would work. His entire book of his life story explains his amazing success-story of coping with the outside world without abandoning his rare abilities and how he can now use them to benefit others.

His story of growing up as an outsider at his school was something I could relate to very well. I had trouble making friends, as I was absorbed in what others would think as a trivial matter, such as watching the clock ticking(for hours at times), finding out for myself if the circle line of the Tube in Seoul was actually doing what it says by returning to the same stop I had got on without my having to get off and change. I am my devotion and talent in music was not unnoticeable and I have been very much interested in learning languages, although had a very hard time verbalizing my emotions and thoughts at the early stages of my life.
I consider myself someone who doesn’t fit into any categories of extreme case, but merely lacking interest and skills in human interactions, not being able to remember faces as much as other people but still classified as ‘normal’ hence no special attention needed.
I guess the other end of spectrum would people who can interact with people amazingly well without any hesitation or lack of confidence and that seem to be the one of the keys to success in workplaces nowadays.
As a composer, my personal concern (for the sake of true art) is towards those people who lack talent but have excellent social skills. The unfairness of them being more successful in their field can be frustrating for those who do have enough talent to spot those talentless ones, but not enough to actually interact the way those ‘talentless’ people do.

Going back to the book, the only part of the book I personally did not totally enjoy is at the end where he lapsed into chitchatting about his family and the lives of his 8 siblings at the time of writing the book. Although by that time the readers are emotionally involved in this beautiful family, it did seem somewhat irrelevant to be informing us of their stages of lives.

Nevertheless, I would say this is quite a unique life-story and it was very much worth having such an autobiography written. I found it interesting that he remembered quite trivial details of some events which seems to prove his exquisite memory and presented his story in quite a plain, emotionless way but nevertheless creates a lot of emotion for the reader as a whole.
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About Daniel Tammet

Daniel Tammet is a writer, linguist and educator. A 2007 poll of 4,000 Britons named him as one of the world's "100 living geniuses". He is the creator of 'Optimnem', a website company that has provided language learning instruction to thousands around the globe. His 2006 memoir 'Born On A Blue Day' describing his life with high-functioning autistic savant syndrome was a Sunday Times (UK...more

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“No relationship is without its difficulties and this is certainly true when one or both of the persons involved has an autistic spectrum disorder. Even so, I believe what is truly essential to the success of any relationship is not so much compatibility, but love. When you love someone, virtually anything is possible.” — 4 people liked it

“You don't have to be disabled to be different, because everybody's different.” — 3 people liked it

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