If you know someone with Autism or Asperger's, you need to know about this book (and perhaps you will win a free copy!)

If you know someone with Autism or Asperger’s, you need to know about this book (and perhaps you will win a free copy!)

October 1, 2008 in Uncategorized

My neighbor and dear incredible amazing friend, Catherine Faherty, has written another book helping individuals with Autism or Asperger’s and their loved ones, this one explaining death to them. I know she wrote it for that specific audience, but I believe it has great relevance for the rest of us, too. I will use my copy to help teach Tess about these important transition times in life.

In this gorgeously illustrated book, Catherine covers important topics such as illness and injury, when someone is dying, what happens to the person who dies, putting pets to sleep, rituals and traditions, what people say and do, and much more.

The book was illustrated by Thomas Johnson, a young man in college who has autism. His are extraordinary interpretations of Catherine’s words.

A leader in the field of Autism, Catherine (Tess calls her "Sweet Sweet Tina" and there have been many an over-the-backyard-fence tuba and accordian concerts between Catherine and Emma) will read from her book tonight at our fabulous local bookshop, Malaprop’s. We will all be there. I already have a wonderfully inscribed copy of her book–she stopped by one day and we exchanged books with one another!–but I will buy a copy tonight to present to a 37days reader who either has Autism or Asperger’s themselves or has someone in their life with Autism or Asperger’s.

Leave a comment below and include a favorite quote of yours (hey, what can I say? I like quotes) if you’d like to be considered for this giveaway and I’ll choose someone at random at 5pm Eastern on Friday.

About Patti Digh

Patti Digh is an author, speaker, and educator who builds learning communities and gets to the heart of difficult topics. Her work over the last three decades has focused on diversity, inclusion, social justice, and living and working mindfully. She has developed diversity strategies and educational programming for major nonprofit and corporate organizations and has been a featured speaker at many national and international conferences.

7 comments to " If you know someone with Autism or Asperger’s, you need to know about this book (and perhaps you will win a free copy!) "


joyce lukaczer

October 1, 2008 AT 9:25PM

this one bites me every-time :)

the trick is in what one emphasizes. we either make ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves happy. the amount of work is the same.

[carlos castaneda]

hooked into your feed recently … thanks, hmmmmm :)

— joyce

Nancy MacDonald

October 1, 2008 AT 9:59PM

The Importance of Having Gratitude!

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, and confusion into clarity…. It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

~ Melody Beattie

edie

October 1, 2008 AT 11:57PM

“When the student is ready, the teacher appears.” Does Ms. Faherty have a blog? Does she accept visits from strangers bearing gifts of homemade apple pie and fresh churned vegan ice dream who want to sit at her feet and absorb her teachings? If so, tell her I’ll be there at 1413…..desperately seeking wisdom!

edie

Beth Patterson

October 2, 2008 AT 9:41AM

Hi Patti–
As a person with 2 dear friends who care for children with autism, I’m very interested in Catherine’s work, especially related to how to be with them around issues of illness, dying and death. Thank you for letting us know about her work (it sounds like soul-work).

Here’s the quote I’m living with for the last little while (trying to take one at a time and wrestle with it, tickle it, and love it into giving me its juiciness!)

“The point is to make intimate contact with the real world, the real self. Sacred refers to that which takes us out of our little selves into the whole mountains-and-rivers mandala universe…nature is not a place to visit, it is home.”—Gary Snyder

Becky

October 2, 2008 AT 9:34PM

I’ll need to look into this book. As a former special ed. teacher who used to teach children with autism the explanations are so important. I also find that books that help people with autism understand are perfect for young children as well. If you’re ever interested in a great way to personally explain things to children try googling, ‘creating a social story’. It was also developed for children with autism but works with people of all ages. They are amazing!

A quote hey? How about this one:

” … research demonstrates that autistic traits are distributed into the non-autistic population; some people have more of them, some have fewer. History suggests that many individuals whom we would today diagnose as autistic – some severely so – contributed profoundly to our art, our math, our science, and our literature. ”

— Morton Gernsbacher, parent of an autistic child.

You could go look him up while you’re at UW-Madison. He’s a professor there.

mama kelly

October 3, 2008 AT 6:58AM

‘It does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg.’

Thomas Jefferson, 1781

Kim

October 8, 2008 AT 7:20AM

I work with special education fourth and fifth graders so I’ve seen these fabulously unique minds in action.

Here’s a favorite (lengthy) quote of mine…

“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.”
–Ralph Waldo Emerson