Autism seen up close, narrated and cried out by those who live with it in their own families. The book opens with a letter from Maria Cristina, mother of Filippo, who describes with stark clarity the harrowing experience she and her husband share as parents of a thirteen-year-old autistic boy with severe mental disability. It is a voice crying out in the wilderness—and now, through the Internet.
Paola Molteni listens to that voice and tries to show us who people with autism really are, how they live in our country. Maria Cristina's words trace the stations of a crucifixion familiar to all 360,000 families touched by this condition. Yet each story remains singular, because autism is not one thing. A clear and thoughtful account describes the disease's characteristics—now understood as an organic pathology with vastly different manifestations: "one, hundred, thousand autisms."
There is no cure, no drug to heal this illness. But early diagnosis and prompt entry into a rehabilitative program can bring not only greater recovery but also more satisfying lives for those with the syndrome and for everyone who lives through it alongside their child, grandchild, sibling. Small and large things matter.
Through many voices, the book presents meaningful positive experiences and real answers.
A book for those living with autism—special parents of special children—so they need not face the wilderness alone. So they might understand that "something shines in the silence."
R.M., 2012