Like no other child could have, Jamie's arrival—and his Down syndrome—sets in motion a cascade of experiences, emotions, and reflections that his father, Michael, captures with remarkable clarity.
Though rooted in American life a decade ago, this recent Italian translation by Erickson reveals in Bérubé's words the paradoxes and contradictions that surface when a child considered abnormal enters a family.
The book is dense with reflection—on morality, ethics, aesthetics, economics, philosophy, and social justice. The reading is rich but occasionally demanding, particularly because the long chapters lack paragraph breaks to guide the reader.
Bérubé takes on prenatal diagnosis and abortion, healthcare and education policy, medical and cultural representations of disability, and what genuine integration of a disabled child actually requires. He examines all of this through the lens of Jamie's first four years: his medical challenges, his developmental milestones, and above all his triumphs—moments the father observes and describes with wonder.
C.T., 2009