Goodreads | Dlora's review

Dlora's review

[close]

blog this review

Copy/paste the text below into your blog.

<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/96063.The_Speed_of_Dark?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="The Speed of Dark" border="0" src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/photo.goodreads.com/books/1171309231m/96063.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/96063.The_Speed_of_Dark?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">The Speed of Dark</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/10518.Elizabeth_Moon">Elizabeth Moon</a><br/><br/>
  <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/19899376?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
  rating: 5 of 5 stars<br/>I wouldn’t call this story science fiction even though it is set a little bit in the future. The timeframe is just far enough ahead to a time when scientiests have discovered how to correct the brain damage that causes autism. In <i>The Speed of Dark,</i> the protagonist was too old for the treatment by the time the breakthrough was made, but he was able to take advantage of some advanced treatment and training that helped him learn how to function in a more normal way than the autistic people of today. Despite those advances, he is still autistic and it is fascinating to see the world through his perceptions and read about his struggles to appear normal to other people. He is much more aware of the sensory input around him--colors and sounds and touch and smells--than I am. And yet he has trouble recognizing facial clues about meaning and needs coping skills (that seem odd to us) to deal with the overload of sensory data. Music and the complex patterns he sees around him help keep him calm and happy. It was fascinating to see how someone with autism views the world. You see him dealing with prejudice because he is different. And you see him struggling with the idea of change. If God made him autistic, then should that be something he should embrace? Should he try to be normal like other people or is that repudiating his own personality and who he really is? The book is very well written and points out interesting behaviors of normal people that confuse the autistic, like not always saying what you mean and the use of slang and meaningless, conventional comments. In addition to the interesting view of the world through autistic eyes, there is philosophy, and romance, and action that moves the story along, making this story both character and plot driven. I think you all ought to read it!
<br/>
<br/>I thought, though, that it might have been a better story if it had stopped at the end of chapter 20. What do you think? Email me and we'll talk.
  <br/><br/><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/951731?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Dlora's review
rating:
bookshelves: general-fiction
recommended for: Tom, Dawn, Luan, Melissa, Karen, Marci

I wouldn’t call this story science fiction even though it is set a little bit in the future. The timeframe is just far enough ahead to a time when scientiests have discovered how to correct the brain damage that causes autism. In The Speed of Dark, the protagonist was too old for the treatment by the time the breakthrough was made, but he was able to take advantage of some advanced treatment and training that helped him learn how to function in a more normal way than the autistic people of today. Despite those advances, he is still autistic and it is fascinating to see the world through his perceptions and read about his struggles to appear normal to other people. He is much more aware of the sensory input around him--colors and sounds and touch and smells--than I am. And yet he has trouble recognizing facial clues about meaning and needs coping skills (that seem odd to us) to deal with the overload of sensory data. Music and the complex patterns he sees around him help keep h...more

Like this review? yes (1 person liked it) flag

comments (showing 1-1 of 1)

newest »

date

message 1: by Karen

04/14/2008 07:22AM

I am putting this book on my to read list. I read another book about autism a couple of years ago that I really liked - The Curious Incident of the Dog Barking at Night by Mark Haddon. The story is told through the voice of a teen boy who has autism. He also understand he is very different than others but can't help his differences. It was a remarkable book.