Faraway Child - Amy Maida Wadsworth

by Tristi Pinkston | More from this Blogger

16 Dec 2006 09:21 AM

Kaye Young is a typical two-year-old, isn't she? Her mother, Jen, is at the end of her rope, trying to control her daughter's behavior. Screaming fits and tantrums melt away into perfect behavior unpredictably and seemingly without cause. Jen never knows what to expect from Kaye. She can't take her shopping without the whole event turning into a nightmare. It's the terrible twos, she supposes.

But then Jen's visiting teacher asks her if Kaye is autistic. Jen immediately fights the diagnosis, not wanting to think that there could be anything wrong with her child. But not even a week later, a neighbor who is a nurse asks the same question. Knowing it can't be a coincidence, Jen makes a doctor appointment, only to have her fears confirmed: Kaye has autism.

Amy Maida Wadsworth is honest and revealing in her novel "Faraway Child." Her own daughter has autism, and as she writes to us about Jen, she is telling us of her own struggles, heartaches, and joys as she learned to deal with the challenge. I found the book to be startlingly open about the frustrations a mother would face; there's no sugar coating, no attempt to make the character seem more saint-like than she really is. Jen is approachable. We all fight against our challenges and when we see Jen doing the same, we feel that we are not alone.

By the end of the book, Jen has learned to appreciate the beauty that resides in her daughter, even though she has had to reevaluate her expectations for Kaye's life. She finds hope through faith and learns to lean on the Lord in ways she never has before, and while the book doesn't attempt to say that religion will make everything all right, it gives us a clear understanding that God loves us and walks with us through our trials.

(This book was published in 2005 by Covenant Communications.)

Related Blogs:

Have You Brushed Your Kid Today?

15 Steps to Find the Right Educational Program for Your Child

When Your Child on the Autism Spectrum Has Rage

Learn more about Tristi Pinkston

I've been a blogger for Families.com since August of 2006.

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