Memoirs Special Needs

David Aguilar was born missing part of one arm, a small detail that seemed to define his life and limit people’s ideas of who he was and who he could be. But in this funny and heartfelt memoir, David proves that he can throw out the rulebook and people’s expectations and maybe even make a difference in the world—and all with a sense of humor.

My Autistic Fight Song is a memoir that follows Rosie Weldon’s journey from a college drop out as she tries to achieve her dream of being a qualified accountant. With the odds stacked against her and the stakes high, she refuses to give up on her dream. Of two things Rosie was sure. First, she wanted to be an accountant. Second, she was destined to be alone. But when life threw at her an autism diagnosis and a mystery girl, she was left asking: Who would employ her and was she capable of falling in love?

An unflinching and luminous memoir that explores a father’s philosophical transformation when he must reconsider the questions what makes us human? and whose life is worth living? Before becoming a father, Chris Gabbard was a fast-track academic finishing his doctoral dissertation at Stanford. A disciple of Enlightenment thinkers, he was a devotee of reason, believed in the reliability of science, and lived by the dictum that an unexamined life is not worth living. That is, until his son August was born.

Eloquent. Philosophical. Introspective. These are not the words usually associated with an autistic child. But in a remarkable display of courage and creativity, a boy named Tito has shattered stereotypes, and in The Mind Tree makes us question all of our previous assumptions about autism. For Tito is severely autistic and nearly nonverbal, and this is his story.

February 29th is a date that comes into existence just once every four years. It is also the birthday of Thais - author Anne-Dauphine Julliand's darling daughter - who died of a genetic disease. Thais lived just shy of her fourth birthday. She had a short life but good one. As this special day is about to reappear on her calendar for the first time since her daughter passed away, Anne-Dauphine struggles with how to mark this momentous occasion. She wants to live fully on this special day: Thais would have been eight years old.

I don't know whether this is the story of Jeff the autistic individual, Jeff the man of God, or Jeff the medical enigma; but I do know it is the story of Jeff, my son. Jeff was so autistic, and yet not autistic at all if you used the textbook definition. He had huge sensory integration issues and appeared to be living inside of himself, but he cared so much for God and other people that their needs always came above his own. He had severe speech issues, only spoke one-word answers, but wrote beautiful papers and prayers when given the Canon communicator.

In a single moment in time, Garret Frey was transformed from an active and energetic four-year-old to a quadriplegic, ventilator-dependent boy who struggled to make sense of a world in disarray. For seven years, Garret worked with Clinical Psychologist Dr. Karen Pirnot as Garret learned that his mental powers could help compensate for the loss of body function. As I Am details the struggles of Garret's mother to advocate for a "normal" childhood education for her son.

For both adults and kids, there is an epidemic going around. And no, I’m not talking about COVID. I’m talking about ADHD. In this book, you’ll learn how meditation can help children and adults focus and concentrate, calm their body and mind, and live happier and more peaceful lives. Hopefully, after learning the techniques in this book, we can turn that attention deficit into an attention surplus.

What do you do when you wake up in your mid-40s and realize you've been living a lie your whole life? Do you tell? Or do you keep it to yourself? Laura James found out that she was autistic as an adult, after she had forged a career for herself, married twice and raised four children. Odd Girl Out tracks the year of Laura's life after she receives a definitive diagnosis from her doctor, as she learns that 'different' doesn't need to mean 'less' and how there is a place for all of us, and it's never too late to find it.

For Magda Newman, normal was a goal—she wanted her son Nathaniel to be able to play on the playground, swim at the beach, enjoy the moments of childhood that are often taken for granted. But Nathaniel's severe Treacher Collins syndrome—a craniofacial condition—meant that other concerns came first. Could he eat without the aid of a gastrointestinal tube? Could he hear? Would he ever be able to breathe effortlessly?

When Judith Newman shared the story of how Apple's electronic personal assistant, Siri, helped Gus, her son who has autism, she received widespread media attention and an outpouring of affection from listeners around the world. Basking in the afterglow of media attention, Gus told anyone who would listen, "I'm a movie star". Judith's story of her son and his bond with Siri was an unusual tribute to technology. While many worry that our electronic gadgets are dumbing us down, she revealed how they can give voice to others.

One afternoon, Emma Nadler gets a call from her daughter's doctor that changes her life forever. Faced with the realities of raising a child with a rare genetic condition, Nadler must confront her preconceptions of motherhood and her perfectionistic beliefs. Nadler—who also happens to be a psychotherapist—offers a rare window into the unconventional ways she and her family adapt to their improbable path. Every relationship in her life—with herself, her husband, children, friends, and even clients—is reimagined as she navigates the heartbreak and hilarity of her daily life.

This is my story. After a lifetime of trying to help everyone else get their lives together, I have finally figured out how to get mine together. I am now 72 years old, semi-retired from a business I created to help young adults with autism function in the world. I live in Mexico with my loving partner. I have fulfilling relationships with my adult children and grandchildren.

When Carla Ciccone is diagnosed with ADHD at thirty-nine—an evaluation prompted by the demands of early motherhood—it flips the script on her life. After years of self-blame and self-sabotage, she discovers that her most reviled traits aren’t deep personality flaws, but symptoms of an undiagnosed disorder. And as she goes from being her own biggest hater to someone a bit more compassionate, she notices the growing community of women in the same situation.

Strange Son is the dramatic story (part memoir, part groundbreaking science) of how the author learned to communicate with her severely autistic son through meeting Soma Mukhopadhyay, a poor, single mother from Bangalore, India, whose own son, Tito, is a genius who is also severely autistic.

After three long years, Johnny’s young son, Sam, experiences a breakthrough. But even as calm comes to Sam's body, the illness makes off with his mind. Violent outbursts, strange obsessions - what has happened to his sweet boy? Cinematically weaving three generations of fatherhood, Remember, You’re the Greatest is a memoir of hard questions. Of unexpected joy in the ache of mystery. And the power of a special needs child to teach a father what greatness truly looks like.

A late bloomer’s coming-of-age memoir asks how does one accept and free themselves from visible and invisible disabilities and still retain their sense of connection and humor? Nothing Special is a disarmingly candid tale of two sisters growing up in the 1970s in rural Connecticut. Older sister Chris, who has Down syndrome, is an extrovert, while the author, her younger, typically developing sister, shoulders the burdens and grief of her parents.

Margaret Mohrmann has devoted most of her professional life to caring for children, and in Attending Children she shares the remarkable education those children and their families have given her. Her narratives are both painful and hopeful, tragic and funny, full of remarkable characters and sometimes bizarre families.

Patti M. Hall’s life is pitched into an abyss of uncertainty when a golf ball-sized tumour is discovered in her teenage son’s head and he is diagnosed with gigantism, a disease of both legend and stigma. After scrambling to access a handful of medical experts in the field, Patti learns that her son could grow uncontrollably, his mobility could be permanently limited, and his life could be cut short without timely and aggressive treatment. Patti’s attention shifts fully to her son, away from her relationships as well as her own career and health.

All Janine Urbaniak Reid ever wanted was for everyone she loved to be okay so she might relax and maybe be happy. Her life strategy was simple: do everything right. This included trying to be the perfect mother to her three kids so they would never experience the kind of pain she pretended not to feel growing up. What she didn’t expect was the chaos of an out-of-control life that begins when her young son’s hand begins to shake.