Report on discussion of "Far from the tree" (****) August 28

[Sabine]

It is the start of another year at the PAEast Book Club. Far from the tree by Andrew Solomon was the first book that we read and we met in the school library on Wednesday, June 28 to share our reading experiences.

At 900 pages, this book about families, love and acceptance is a book that took its author 10 years to research. Based on the premise that we are all united in our shared diversity, Andrew Solomon presents very objective yet sensitive portrayals of families with children that are not like their parents - disabled, gifted, autistic, schizophrenic and criminals, to name a few. The journeys of these families and their stories make for a informative yet touching book about finding meaning in the face of profound adversity.

The book clubbers passionately discussed the book, its premise, as well as the people interviewed in the book. We agreed on the challenges of parenting, and disagreed on some of the choices that parents make.

And for a few hours that afternoon, we tried to inhabit the world of extra-ordinary individuals who are not like us, and yet they are.


NEETU AGGARWAL