This review is a reprint from 11/27/15. The formatting was wonky in ways that I couldn't fix, so I decided to retype it here with minor editing.
Elijah's Cup is a refreshing and enlightening book to read as a healthcare professional. Elijah's mother Valarie Paradiz accepts her son for who he is, and takes us on a journey of discovery regarding autism and it's history. As an occupational therapist, I learned a lot of academic information about autism in school. But now that I'm practicing, I realize that nothing you can learn from a fact sheet is as powerful as hearing a personal account from the individual with ASD or some one close to them.
Paradiz attempts to find a 'autism culture" for her son to take part in, and explores the history of autism. The non-judgmental nature of this book is just wonderful. You get the good, the bad, and the ugly, and you come out of it knowing so much more about autism.
I wish I could recommend this book to more parents. Often parents are told by professionals to 'mourn what is lost' or hit with baseless predictions like 'your child will never read'. I want parents to read this book and see that acceptance does not mean giving up on your child or settling for any less than YOU believe is their full potential. Acceptance means putting in the effort to understand your child's unique perspective.
On her rambling journey of discovery, Paradiz not only gives us an in-depth look at her son's formative years, she also hops on the bandwagon of trying to diagnose historical figures, works in poetry by Gertrude Stein, and takes us along as she meets celebrities of the autism world like Jim Sinclair and Temple Grandin.
If you have any interest in autism, or know anyone who has autism (which you probably do, given the CDC's recent incidence estimate of 1 in 68), you should read this book. It is a very informative book that reads like a memoir.
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