Michael Klonovsky is a journalist who found himself confronted, overnight, with the reality of what is called "autism." He tells us plainly that when he first met Birger Sellin on the subject, he had everything to learn. After seventeen years of complete silence, the young man had astonished those around him: through a new technique called facilitated communication, he revealed the richness of his inner world, his knowledge, his culture.
In a lengthy introduction, Klonovsky offers us a simplified account of this new technique, of autism itself, its manifestations, its causes. But the full story of Birger Sellin emerges throughout. The book speaks of him through his own "messages": they strike us with their depth, even when they sometimes show a certain incoherence.
Birger's references to religious faith are rare. Yet we learned that his mother is a catechist. It is true that Michael Klonovsky says he made a selection from the young man's writings. Still, this book deserves our attention.
Henri Bissonier