By Kim Stagliano
As the mother of three children with autism, girls at that, the reality of the future often paralyzes me. Karl Taro Greenfeld's new memoir about growing up with an autistic brother, titled Boy Alone (that's an Amazon link) from Harper Collins has made me stop and think; and sit and cry. It has also re-affirmed why I am a biomed Mom, a Mother Warrior who will continue to seek treatments for my girls.
Noah Greenfeld is a 42 year old with profound autism. You might have read about him two weeks ago in Time Magazine HERE. His father Joshua Greenfeld wrote three books about Noah in the 1970s and '80s. The Greenfelds, now elderly, were among the earliest biomed parents, seeking answers, trying all available avenues, when autism was exceedingly rare. I have great respect for how hard they worked on behalf of Noah.
Karl, whom I've had the pleasure of meeting in the glorious literary splendor of the Algonquin Hotel while he was researching the book, has a wife and two daughters. He lives in New York City. His brother and parents are in California. Karl is preparing to move his own family to California to be closer to Noah. Back in 1978, Karl wrote a report for his 7th grade health class (HERE) on what it was like having a brother with autism. It ran in the New York Times. Not a bad start to his literary career, eh? You can read Karl's bio (HERE). I'll be running a contest shortly.
I wrote a piece on Boy Alone for HuffPo. It's up today HERE. I'd appreciate if you'd share your comments at HuffPo. It's important that those outside the autism community know what we face. This book will open up conversations about... the future.
Kim Stagliano is Managing Editor of Age of Autism.
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