Most people know my son has Aspergers.
Because of this, I was very interested to read Raising Cubby: A Father and Son’s Adventures with Aspergers, Trains, Tractors, and High Explosives. It was written by John Elder Robison. That name might sound familiar because he also wrote Look Me In The Eye, which I have read and enjoyed.
Here is what the book is about from Amazon:
The slyly funny, sweetly moving memoir of an unconventional dad’s relationship with his equally offbeat son—complete with fast cars, tall tales, homemade explosives, and a whole lot of fun and trouble
Misfit, truant, delinquent. John Robison was never a model child, and he wasn’t a model dad either. Diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome at the age of forty, he approached fatherhood as a series of logic puzzles and practical jokes. When his son, Cubby, asked, “Where did I come from?” John said he’d bought him at the Kid Store and that the salesman had cheated him by promising Cubby would “do all chores.” He read electrical engineering manuals to Cubby at bedtime. He told Cubby that wizards turned children into stone when they misbehaved.
Still, John got the basics right. He made sure Cubby never drank diesel fuel at the automobile repair shop he owns. And he gave him a life of adventure: By the time Cubby was ten, he’d steered a Coast Guard cutter, driven a freight locomotive, and run an antique Rolls Royce into a fence.
The one thing John couldn’t figure out was what to do when school authorities decided that Cubby was dumb and stubborn—the very same thing he had been told as a child. Did Cubby have Asperger’s too? The answer was unclear. One thing was clear, though: By the time he turned seventeen, Cubby had become a brilliant chemist—smart enough to make military-grade explosives and bring state and federal agents calling. Afterward, with Cubby facing up to sixty years in prison, both father and son were forced to take stock of their lives, finally coming to terms with being “on the spectrum” as both a challenge and a unique gift.
By turns tender, suspenseful, and hilarious, this is more than just the story of raising Cubby. It’s the story of a father and son who grow up together.
The book starts off with John’s son, known as Cubby, in a courthouse because the state of Massachusetts claimed that when Cubby created explosive compounds (from legal chemicals, mind you) and set them off in the woods, away from people, that he had a malicious intent. Will he get sent to jail because of his obsession with chemistry? (I won't give it away!)
Reading the book reminded me of my own son. He becomes obsessed with certain things as well. For instance, he loves the weather. He wanted to learn everything he could about it. He also became obsessed with learning about the Revolutionary War. He loves to know how things are put together. So I could see him creating explosives on accident one day.
The book was really enjoyable to read—not only does Cubby’s father have Aspergers, but he is diagnosed with it too. It’s interesting to see how they both deal with it. Like they did, Tommy struggles with making social connections. He’d rather be on his own so I have to push him to converse with others.
I highly recommend the book even if you don’t know anyone with Aspergers. Since Autism is diagnosed quite a bit these days, you might run into someone with Aspergers at some point in your life and the book might help you be able to connect with them.
To find out more about the author John Elder Robison, check out his website here.
He even has a blog.
Random House is giving a reader a copy of the book. (If you don’t want to wait, you can purchase it from Amazon here.)
Giveaway Rules
--Must live in the US
--No PO Boxes
Mandatory Entry: LIKE John Elder Robison’s Facebook page.
Extra Entries:
TWEET about the giveaway on Twitter
FOLLOW John Elder Robison’s blog
I will pick a winner on March 25th.
Good luck!
**I was given a copy of the book to review. I was not paid for this post.
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