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KUNATI BOOK PUBLISHERS
Infinity Publishing
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Category: Fiction, Mystery, Suspense ISBN: 0-9687986-0-8 Publisher: Macbee Publishing Price: $11.00 Cdn; trade paperback |
Description:Asperger’s Syndrome, high-functioning autism, is a
disability that affects 1 in 500 people. There is no single obvious identifying
characteristic. Children with AS are often made fun of and generally shunned because
they don’t fit in with their peers. In this book, an adult who has Asperger’s
Syndrome describes his experiences as he grew up, and his mother complements his
writing with an account of the family’s efforts to understand him. In the words of the man with Asperger’s Syndrome: “Since I was born, I knew I was different, that I
didn’t fit in anywhere. Such has been, and shall be, the case until I die. Have you ever seen a person who has no sense of
rhythm try to dance? Or heard a person with no musicality try to play? That, in a
phrase, sums up Asperger’s—while everyone else is trying to dance the waltz, I’m
dancing the two-step, and damned if I know why, but I’m always out of step.
I have no real clue as to how to behave in society,
how to attract and keep friends, how to work without supervision. Thoughts and
feelings go flying through me like a leaf down a river’s rapids—there, up to the
surface, and gone. Try as I might, I cannot do “the social dance,” and I am stuck
out of step, and out of place, wherever I go. Perhaps, then, it is time I do my own dance. Though
I would wish otherwise, I will always be alone. I have grown used to this fact."
—John Brine, November 10, 1998 The family’s experiences—mistakes, successes,
heartaches, and joys—are told in the hope they will help parents who are baffled by
similar behaviors in their own children. Classroom teachers, family doctors,
psychologists and therapists may find this account assists them in their quest to
better understand these “eccentric” children. Read the sequel: It's the Only Dance I Know
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Reviews:
"I have finished the book. I stayed up half the
night after the opera reading it. Obviously, I am not the voracious reader that John
is, but I get by. The book is spectacular and the format is excellent as it allows the
reader to follow the timeline of pain and frustrations that John and the family
experienced on a daily basis. It is a constant reminder of how cruel children can be
to each other. Thanks for sharing the book as you did. I’ll share it with my
colleagues on a frequent basis." ~ Johnny R Griggs MD, Chairman Department
Pediatrics, Medical Director Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Interim Director Nazih
Zuhdi Transplant Institute, INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center “I want to thank Patricia and John for the
precious gift you have given the world in writing the book on Asperger’s Syndrome.
Once I started reading it I couldn’t put it down. It is such a revealing book and
both (of you) are so open and trusting of the good will of the reader. You have
provided a great service to everyone who reads this book by informing them and
sensitizing them about this disabling condition. You have made the world a brighter
place.” ~ Catherine Breckenridge, Thunder Bay, Ontario “Thank you for this very private and emotional
look into your personal family life. I always read in bed before I fall asleep, and
the last time I lost this much sleep was reading “Into Thin Air and “Grizzly
Heart” by Andy Russell. I congratulate your family for putting your story into the
public domain. It demonstrates courage and fortitude that will surely help others to
persist in their life struggles." ~ Ron Nelson, Toronto, Ontario
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Two-Stepping
in a Waltz World
