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August 15
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Jen
added Charlotte's Web
to the book list Best Read-Aloud Chapter Books
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Jen
added Holes
to the book list The Most Deserving Newbery
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August 12
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Jen
added:
The Complete IEP Guide: How to Advocate for Your Special Ed Child, 4th Edition (Paperback)
by Lawrence M. Siegel
bookshelves:
child-dev--spd--autism
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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Jen said:
"Holy crap, this was a lot of information. But it was presented in a logical format and was very readable. And I love how many examples of correspondance and disputes there were, and the section in the appendix of forms and form letters to use.
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August 08
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Jen
added:
Parenting Your Asperger Child: Individualized Solutions for Teaching Your Child Practical Skills (Paperback)
by Alan Sohn
bookshelves:
child-dev--spd--autism
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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Jen
added:
The Game of My Life: A True Story Of Struggle, Triumph, and Growing Up Autistic (Hardcover)
by Jason J-Mac McElwain, Daniel Paisner
bookshelves:
child-dev--spd--autism
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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Jen
gave
to:
News from the Border: A Mother's Memoir of Her Autistic Son (Paperback)
by Jane Taylor McDonnell
bookshelves:
child-dev--spd--autism
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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Jen said:
"This is WONDERFULLY written.
My favorite quote, from the end:
But over time, I began slowly to redefine what I took to be our common humanity. I realized we are all only a car accident away from mental incapacity. People who are mentally hand...more
This is WONDERFULLY written.
My favorite quote, from the end:
But over time, I began slowly to redefine what I took to be our common humanity. I realized we are all only a car accident away from mental incapacity. People who are mentally handicapped are in no way essentially different from the rest of us. Our intelligence may seem to be an inherent part of our selves, but it simply resides in our bodies tentatively and always in grave danger....less
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August 07
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Jen
added:
Asperger Syndrome-a Love Story (Paperback)
by Sarah Hendrickx
bookshelves:
child-dev--spd--autism
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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Jen said:
"This was a great book -- a quick read, funny and honest.
my favorite excerpts:
Even when he is obviously annoyed with me, his use of language makes me laugh. When our relationship ended, I had made a final plea by text for him to come back an...more
This was a great book -- a quick read, funny and honest.
my favorite excerpts:
Even when he is obviously annoyed with me, his use of language makes me laugh. When our relationship ended, I had made a final plea by text for him to come back and work things out. I received the following response: ‘Sarah, do not have hope for me to return to you for I shall not. My decision is made and my mind is clear…’ On another occasion, when I had texted him something unknowingly cryptic: ‘Your last message was partial, stuttering and unclear. Please desist in corresponding unless you can be more transparent in your communication.’ He wasn’t even cross with me then, it was just a standard exchange!
He does not have the skills to realise what is required and play the game. Do I want him to lie? Quite often, yes, I do. Am I pretty? Does my bum look big? If I look at it like this, then yes, I do want lies. This is hard for the AS person to tell and comprehend. He doesn’t know the rules, which are subtle, multi-layered and ever-changing. I cannot ask him to play a game that he doesn’t have the rule book for.
Keith: I don’t need anyone to run around after me. I can function by myself, it may be a weird form of functioning by any conventional description, yet I am alive, I have made it this far, and Sarah has even agreed to spend time with me. Just let me be me, and understand that whilst I’m still around things are still good.
S: Darling, why won’t you marry me?
K: Because you might have an aberration and I might want
to get rid of you. If we were married I would have to give
you half my stuff, and I wouldn’t want to do that.
Kevin: I need to know that there has been at least one person during my lifetime I can relate to. The majority of my time is not spent with Sarah; I am not forever at her garment’s hem, to know that she is in the world is good enough, to spend time with her is a bonus....less
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August 05
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Jen
added:
Aromatherapy for the Healthy Child: More Than 300 Natural, Nontoxic, and Fragrant Essential Oil Blends (Paperback)
by Valerie Ann Worwood
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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read in August, 2008
Jen said:
"I'm reading this on my university's library web server -- it's a fascinating book! Aromatherapy is SO interesting, and the bulk of this book is the chapter "The A-Z of conditions" which is a nice primer in general first aid [with some esse...more
I'm reading this on my university's library web server -- it's a fascinating book! Aromatherapy is SO interesting, and the bulk of this book is the chapter "The A-Z of conditions" which is a nice primer in general first aid [with some essential oils thrown in. :)]...less
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August 04
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Jen
added:
Laughter And Tears: A Family's Journey To Understanding The Autism Spectrum (Paperback)
by Ann Hewetson
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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Jen said:
"Even though she's sappy at times (and tries a little too hard to include figurative language and weather/landscape descriptions), Jessica is a mother who is intelligent, intuitive, and resourceful. Her concerns are ignored by doctors, professionals,...more
Even though she's sappy at times (and tries a little too hard to include figurative language and weather/landscape descriptions), Jessica is a mother who is intelligent, intuitive, and resourceful. Her concerns are ignored by doctors, professionals, and even an anestheologist who tells her she's a bad mother for not being able to control her child for an x-ray. Her story is yet one more of a parent left to fend for herself in trying to deal with her autistic child's issues.
It would have been nice to know the location and time period that Mark's life takes place in, and to have more clues about the exact passage of time. By page 56 Mark is already to age 8. The back cover of the book indicates that Mark is now in his 30s, but some of us forget to read the back cover before we start. I also wish the author would have picked a tense -- tell the story as you're in the present, or tell it all as you're looking back, but for goodness' sake, stop switching between the two with no warning or transition! And when she switches back to the present, saying she recently tried something with Mark, the reader has no idea when she's talking about. Sometimes she'll refer to writing in her journal, so maybe at those points she was writing in the moment and she went back later to arrange it into a book? Editors should have helped her to be more clear.
So this book is good as far as memoirs of parenting an autistic child go -- but there's nothing specific that sets it apart from all the others.
Quotes that jumped out at me while reading:
He has become hyperactive, is always on the move as if in the grip of propulsion, and consequently is a danger to himself. (p. 20)
Mark's assessment has finished and I sit tonight to record it in my journal. What is there to record? A hyperactive Mark rampaging through the offices of the clinic – trailing his mantle of aloneness. Two fraught parents in the spotlight – on trial – asked to render an account of their stewardship. And behind their desks the impassive faces of the professionals. Based as it was on circumstantial evidence and handed down in censure but not sagacity, the verdict could only ever be "guilty" – guilty of parental culpability. As the fault lay entirely with us no effort need be expended in seeking what innate dysfunctions Mark might have or what might be done about them. (p. 41)
Over the months that follow Mark decides to give us official recognition. This same Mark who still has never looked us in the eye or in the face –mostly his gaze is directed at our hair – and who would pass us by in the street without identifying us, other than on the basis of sound, has at last decided to acknowledge us.We have names, we have substance – we are no longer disembodied voices in the ether – we have come out of the ethereal shadows and ipso facto we exist. In Mark's eyes we are "Bubby" and "Dao." had taken almost six years to achieve this recognition! (p. 44)
We consult an audiology clinic. They run their standards tests for hearing but can only tell us that Mark's hearing ability is within the normal range, emphasizing that their instruments are geared to testing children who hear too little. They have no facilities for testing those who hear too much, nor have they any treatment. So we are left with the only route we can take – eliminate sounds we can control and escape from those we cannot. (p. 65)
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July 24
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Jen
added:
Reflections from a Different Journey : What Adults with Disabilities Wish All Parents Knew (Hardcover)
by Stanley Klein, John Kemp
bookshelves:
child-dev--spd--autism
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in July, 2008
Jen said:
"This book of 40 essays is a fascinating (and quick!) read. I would recommend it for EVERYONE, because we all need a little more compassion and understanding toward anyone who has an obvious disability or doesn't look/act "normal."
My fa...more
This book of 40 essays is a fascinating (and quick!) read. I would recommend it for EVERYONE, because we all need a little more compassion and understanding toward anyone who has an obvious disability or doesn't look/act "normal."
My favorite quotes from this book:
"I wish that someone would tell parents about the virtues of ballpark normalcy. Ballpark normalcy refers to a life that is not quite normal—but is 'in the ballpark.' This type of life is a little harder than a normal life. It is also a little better because one has the heightened perception and quirky insight that comes from being on the circumference of the mainstream."
"I do not wish to change Mark, nor my own blindness. I truly believe that every life is worth living and that our fundamental equality as human beings springs from the deeper meaning of our common humanity."
"The diagnosis was made by a team of professionals at a school for children with disabilities. 'Atypical Development, Strong Autistic Tendencies, and Psychotic.' Why not throw in the kitchen sink,too?" (ha ha!!!) . . .(years later) . . . "Another evaluation placed me as 'neurotic' rather than 'psychotic.' Things were moving up in the world for me!" I love this guy's sense of humor. :)
"Every person is special in their own way. I walk with a major limp and have a disability. Some people have bad vision and need to wear thick glasses. Other people are born with big noses. All of these things sculpt who we are. We can’t do anything about it but accept it and embrace it."
"If I could rewrite my history . . . I would have been frequently reminded that I was unique and talented instead of only being told, at school, that I was lazy, willful, and not living up to my potential—and being told, at home, that I was a disappointment and embarrassment to the family. I’m sure that my parents really did love me, but in their frustration and disappointment, they forgot to tell me about their love."...less
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