Customer Reviews

Changed by a Child

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I only wish I had found this book a year ago, when I was first struggling with the facts of my child's disability. This is a book they should hand out to parents in hospitals and clinics. It is honest, heartbreaking, sweet and hopeful all at the same time. Not every one of the little notes will match your mood at any given time, but the book is structured so that you can pick and choose among them at random. Barbara Gill has managed to put into words the complex emotions of having a child that challenges every facet of your life in previously unimaginable ways, yet for whom you feel a deep and ferocious love. I keep it on my desk at work and pick it up when I feel myself flagging -- it never fails to help me pick up and go on.

This book was given to me by a friend and I have given it to countless others including my school district and my daughter's teachers through the years. This book means different things to me each time that I read it. I can pick it up after not reading it for several months and find something new and inspiring in it. I belong to a book club for moms who have kids with special needs and although we've read several books, we keep coming back to this one and each meeting we each read an exerpt and it can result in an entire night of sharing. This book can make you laugh, cry, reflect and give you strength to face another day. This is my favorite book of all times.

I bought this shortly after finding out my baby had severe cerebral palsy, blindess, and mental disabilities from brain damage. It was helpful to read the words of other parents whose children were didabled in various ways, because they knew what they were talking about. I did not feel the same as all of the contributors, but I could see their point of view. Reading some of the contributions, I felt so good knowing that some of these parents felt the same and had the same thoughts I did. At the time, I was deluged with advice and attempts at wisdom from people with healthy normal children. But this book offered me the shared wisdom and strength of parents who really know what it is like.

As the mother of a special needs child, if I had to choose one book to recommend, this would be that book! It is overwhelming sometimes how many books there are about our children and their conditions, behaviors, prognosis, etc. etc.. This book stands apart from all of that. It is one you will actually like to read and find time to read again and again and again. Thank you to Barbara Gill for having written the most amazingly wonderful and insightful book.

Barbara Gill is a writer, attorney, and disability advocate as well as the mother of a child with Down syndrome. In this book she shares short one or two page vignettes that honestly tell what she has experienced. With titles such as "Awareness", "Sorrow", "Magical Thinking", "Forgiveness", "Pain", she captures the emotions that parents of children with disabilities share. Each reading stands by itself and can be read over and over again. It is a book that you will always keep nearby and will want to read from for years to come.

I am a Child Psychiatrist and was touched by the excerpts in this book. So much so that I haved given copies to the parents of many of my patients.From mild to major disabilities,my patients teach me every day and their parents need to hear how others put these challenges into perspective. The book offers support and compassion to the caretakers and families of these children.

This book is a "must have" for parents of special needs children. The author and the other parents quoted in this book have honestly captured all of the feelings and thoughts of parents of special children. I have referred to it many times when tackling a particularly hard issue or challenge and it's very nice to see other parents who have shared the same experiences and feelings. I highly recommend it!!!

_Changed by a Child_ is a refreshing addition to the genre of disability literature for parents. Similar to mainstream books like _Meditations for Women Who Do Too Much_, Gill provides quick, readable vignettes for parents who often don't have time to read.

Inspirational insights- like the joy of finding the face of God in the face of a child with Down Syndrome, an argument that false hope is better than no hope at all, and a reminder that children's needs and wants need to be considered as often as their legal rights- give mothers and fathers the courage to move forward in the face of frustration, sadness and anger. For a population so frequently isolated from the rest of the world, "Changed By a Child" is one of those books that reaches into the living rooms of exceptional parents and says: "You are not alone!" Such affirmation is sure to strengthen many who need to return to physical therapy exercises, suctioning trach tubes, administering medications or battling with school districts as soon as they put the book down.

Great for personal reading, daily meditations, or as a study guide for a parent support group, "Changed by a Child" is a must read for every parent of a child with special needs.

This little book has been my constant companion for many years, since my own daughter was diagnosed with autism. There is an inspirational quotation on every page, coupled with a very brief story from a parent of a child with a disability. The little stories range from comical to heart-breaking - but never sentimental or sappy. All the entries resonate with honest words from other parents who have "been there" through it all. I return to this little book in every possible mood, and it has never failed to help me find comfort and inspiration. I have given away many, many copies over the years. Highly recommended.

Like most of the Moms I know, my courage can sometimes fail me. Or worse, my humor can fail me. I have wholeheartedly recommended Changed by a Child to hundreds of parents, and I have seen a reading of one page bring a roomful of people to tearful silence -- or to animated discussion. This is a useful book, a quiet and wise book. I need to buy another for myself -- the only book besides a cookbook that I ever wore out. And I need to buy more to give away -- because how often can you purchase a little package of genuine kindness to share with others who could really use it?