Buzz: A Year of Paying Attention [Bargain Price] [Hardcover]

Katherine Ellison (Author)

Book Description

Release date: October 5, 2010

“An absorbing, sharply observed memoir.”
—Kirkus Reviews

A hilarious and heartrending account of one mother’s journey to understand and reconnect with her high-spirited preteen son—a true story sure to beguile parents grappling with a child’s bewildering behavior.

Popular literature is filled with the stories of self-sacrificing mothers bravely tending to their challenging children. Katherine Ellison offers a different kind of tale. Shortly after Ellison, an award-winning investigative reporter, and her twelve-year-old son, Buzz, were both diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, she found herself making such a hash of parenting that the two of them faced three alternatives: he’d go to boarding school; she’d go AWOL; or they’d make it their full-time job to work out their problems together. They decided to search for a solution while Ellison investigated what genuine relief, if any, might be found in the confusing array of goods sold by the modern mental health industry.

The number of diagnoses for childhood attention and behavior issues is exploding, leaving parents and educators on a confusing chase to find the best kind of help for each child. Buzz, a page-turner of a memoir, brings much relief. It is immensely engaging, laugh-out-loud funny, and honest—and packed with helpful insights.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

In this funny, well-written memoir, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist and former foreign correspondent Ellison describes life after she learns that her 12-year-old son, Buzz, suffers from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and that she’s got it, too. Looking back, the Stanford graduate sees the signs, even in her choice of profession. Who needs Ritalin when you can cover coups? Ellison expertly weaves together her family’s story (at one point her son grabs a huge butcher’s knife, waves it at her, then holds it against his own throat) with interesting information about impulsive behavior (the ancient Greeks used leeches to treat it because they thought it was caused by too much red blood). She gives her take on treatments they tried, and gives thumbs down to food additives (they appear to increase hyperactivity) and stimulants (at least for Buzz, they cause terrible insomnia), and thumbs up to neurofeedback, meditation, and a new pet dog. Parents of kids with ADHD should find comfort in this book, which combines helpful information on the disorder with Ellison’s personal story. --Karen Springen

About the Author

Katherine Ellison is a Pulitzer-Prize winning investigative journalist, former foreign correspondent, writing consultant, author of four books, and mother of two sons. Her most recent writing has focused primarily on neuroscience and the environment.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Voice (October 5, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401340881
• ASIN: B0052HL3R0
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #208,644 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #71 in Books > Humor & Entertainment > Humor > Doctors & Medicine

More About the Author

My dream from the time I was 13 and read I.F. Stone's essays and Oriana Fallaci's interviews was to be a foreign correspondent, and I was lucky enough to realize that dream. I covered the Philippine revolution against the Marcos dictatorship for the San Jose Mercury News in the 1980s and won a Pulitzer for International Reporting for my part in a series about corruption by the Marcoses. Then from 1987-'92 I was bureau chief in Mexico City for the Mercury News and Knight Ridder Newspapers, its parent company, after which I spent 7 years in Rio reporting on South America for the Miami Herald and KRN. These days I combine writing about neuroscience and the environment with raising two high-maintenance kids.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Full Speed Ahead! August 27, 2010

By BeatleBangs1964 TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

"Buzz" is a book that is refreshingly real, devoid of trite sentimentality and a self congratulatory tone. It is extraordinarily well researched and maintains a hopeful, yet serious and objective tone at all times. At no attempt is any effort made to sugar coat the problems that Buzz's (born 1995) ADD/ADHD cause him and how ADD/ADHD impacts his brother Max (b. 1998) and Katherine and Jack Ellison.

Katherine Ellison is a gifted writer who brings to the table her years of experience as a freelance writer. She was born in 1957 when the world was just coming to terms with "hyperactivity" as ADD was then called. She recognizes these problems in her son Buzz as well as the additional diagnostic onus of Oppositional Defiance Disorder or ODD. Buzz knows how to rile people up and, in one memorable meltdown he had when his Game Boy was taken away, Buzz, then 9 called Child Protective Services to report abuse.

All of this was taking place when Katherine was recovering from cancer, which she successfully battled twice during the boys' early years. Even so, Katherine and Jack never flag in their quest to help Buzz. Treatments include medication and neurofeedback, both of which have positive effects on their son.

Max, as do many siblings of children with major problems delighted in hounding and harassing Buzz, in turn pushing Buzz' buttons. I admit I did derive a certain amount of satisfaction when Max, after scratching Buzz' face was made the butt of a clever prank by Buzz. Buzz set Max' clock to ring at 2:00. At times, I thought Max was asking for it, like when he said in response to Katherine calling him her angel that "Buzz was their devil" and that he, Max "was a good guy and Buzz was a bad guy." I didn't like that at all and, while I understood, I also derived a measure of satisfaction at how Buzz got back at him. There were times when I thought Max was really asking for it when he called Buzz names; said he lacked intelligence (which wasn't true); said where Buzz was sure to hear him that "the Omega-3 wasn't working" and called Buzz "ADD! Special!" and sundry epithets underscoring the stigma of having a neurological condition. I really didn't like it when Max wiped himself with Buzz' toothbrush. Those were times when I felt Buzz' anger at him was justified.

I also liked the way Katherine realized that scolding Max, who most likely appeared to have it all in Buzz' eyes (Max is good/he does his homework as soon as he walks in/he knows how to tell about his day in a way that is well received/he plays the violin and doesn't have ADD/ODD) had a positive effect on Buzz, more potent, she says "than any pill or other treatment." She talks about her own siblings, all of whom are in the medical field.

Katherine Ellison talks about what worked for her son, what specifically helped Buzz to the point that he was able to thrive. She describes his horrific early school years, which were exacerbated by the boy's teachers demonstrating a lack of understanding as well as a lack of imagination or willingness to spark an interest in him. One teacher is lauded for her creative efforts and readers can't help but cheer at her clever resourcefulness.

I liked the list of resources that are included at the back of the book, such as fish oils and Omega-3. At no time does Katherine Ellison promise that these treatments are a panacea for all who suffer from ADD/ADHD as well as ODD. She talks about what worked for her and for her son and other resources that might prove to be helpful to others.

This book is mostly about research, the history of how ADD/ADHD treatments have evolved over time and about compassion and tolerance as well as the negative emotions of revenge, anger and desperation. This is a book that every educator, parent and medical professional should read. It is a book that the world needs.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Haven't even finished it - but love it! October 16, 2010

By Momof2

Format:Hardcover

I bought this book last night on my nook. It was the first book I've ever bought on an electronic reader and I'm already a little sad because this is a book that I want to pass around to others. I'm a school counselor, a mother of 2 young boys, and I very much relate to how Katherine feels while raising her children. It was nice to see that the curtain has been drawn back - to show the inside of a family struggling to like a child that they love. I love the research that she did for this book, her casual, yet intellectual way of presenting information, and she seems to be very current on her research.

I love how she approaches helping her son from a systematic view. He's not the only one that is making bad choices and she recongizes this - and starts to change the way she views situations, her son, and her reactions.

If you are struggling with a child that is suffering from ADD, or that you THINK might be suffering from ADD, buy this book. Read it, feel less alone, and you'll get great information on how to help the most important person in your life.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An absorbing and enlightening memoir about life with ADHD August 25, 2010

By Silicon Valley Girl VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

The only thing more exciting than being the first person to review a book on Amazon is being the first reviewer of a book that deserves five stars. "Buzz" has everything going for it: It's well written, scrupulously researched, and it tells an engrossing and hopeful story -- without being saccharine or "inspirational."

The deal: Katherine Ellison, freelance writer and married mother of two preteen boys, has attention deficit disorder (ADD). Her older son, called "Buzz" in the book, has ADD too, as well as oppositional defiant disorder (ODD). He's an expert at pushing her buttons. After one particularly bad parenting moment, Ellison decides that for her next book, she will use her journalistic skills to learn more about how her son's mind works -- and, hopefully, how to help him. Over the next year or so, Ellison researches ADD/ADHD and, to a lesser extent, ODD. She and her son also try several ADD treatments, including medication and neurofeedback. (They both help a lot, by the way.)

"Buzz" contains a lot of the information you might find in a standard "how to parent your ADD/ADHD" child book. But what makes it worth five stars is that it's really about Ellison's own journey toward understanding her son and herself. In the process, her relationship with Buzz improves tremendously. Probably not coincidentally, Buzz's behavior improves as well, although at no point does Ellison suggest that he's becoming an angel. Ellison never offers a prescription for "curing" ADD or ODD, but she does talk about what works.

This isn't just a book about ADD. It's also about mindfulness, compassion, love -- and getting stuff done. Anyone who lives and/or works with kids could both enjoy it and benefit from it. I'd particularly like to send a copy to my son's fifth-grade teacher -- in fact, I think I will.