Customer Reviews

Independence Bound: A Mother and Her Autistic Son's Journey to Adulthood

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Marquette's middle son, Trent has severe autism. He is largely nonverbal and his behavior has been described as developmentally delayed. Marquette glosses over his boyhood and jumps right into the services that are sorely needed for autistic people with multiple challenges. I just loved it when she said that Trent "does not have savant abilities," thus eliminating any mental reflex many neurotypicals might have to think of Trent as being like that tired R*** M** character. Savantism affects less than 10% of those with autism, so it does make you wonder why it has ever become a stereotype.

Trent attended special programs in his neighborhood school. His older brother Todd and younger brother Travis were there to help ease the way for him as best they could. Trent appeared to thrive in a school setting and Marquette rehearsed with him what the expectations and changes in routine would be once he graduated. Photographs of her three sons, three brawny, husky men grace the book. One picture that stands out is Trent's high school graduation photo.

I like the way the services are described. Trent had several coaches living with and working with him one on one. He had jobs in the community and he did well as long as the job remained constant, fixed and routine. Any deviation from routine caused Trent to have melt downs.

Marquette's own personal challenges are listed alongside of Trent's: a marriage that ended in 1998; the former husband's impatience with Trent and the embarrassment he expressed whenever Trent had a meltdown or displayed severely autistic behavior in public; Travis and his bout with cancer and the growing concern about how she would provide for Trent throughout his adulthood. Fortunately, she remarried and the second husband took all three big sons under his wing. Trent appeared to be adjusting to the changes in his life; a new stepfather and a new home.

There are a few grammatical issues in this book, such as when Marquette said "I told ~ disappointingly" instead of "disappointedly," and "I excitingly expressed to ~" instead of "I expressed excitedly" or "I exitedly expressed." Small things, but they did jump out at readers.

The book, although about Trent up to a point is really about itemizing one's emotions and developing strategies for lifetime support for individuals with severe and multiple challenges. This particular book makes me think of the Woody Guthrie classic, "Bound For Glory." Letting Go of Jason: A Young Man with Asperger's Syndrome and Bipolar Disorder is a wonderful companion book to this one.