Customer Reviews

Reflections from a Different Journey : What Adults with Disabilities Wish All Parents Knew

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This book changed my life. I grew up with a disability and have been an advocate for years. This book gave me a huge sense of pride to be a member of the disabled community that was never there before. Many of the stories reflected my parents and my struggles and triumphs, the every day life of growing up with a disability. Many of the authors echo the advice I give parents. The book reminds me how important all our stories are and I find myself wanting to write mine.

I tell everyone I know or meet that they should read this book. I bought many copies of the book to give family members, friends and colleagues. I want everyone who knows me well to read it so they can have a fuller understanding of life with a disability, that I'm neither to be pitied nor thought extraordinary.

So I recommend this book to you if you want a picture of life for 40 people who had disabilities as children. Read this book if you want help to think about your own children or your children's friends, read this book if you want a human picture of families where one or more children had a disability. Read this book if you want to know the success stories of these 40 people.

The simple but real situations of growth and maturation are easy to read and flow from one essay to the next. The perspective of the "children" is an essential piece of the puzzle when you are raising a child with a disability. As a mother of 2 such children I value the insight and hope these essays give me.

"Reflections from a Different Journey" is one of the best books I've ever read. With grace and kindness, the authors selected by John Kemp and Stanley Klein give parents the wisdom they need to understand and nurture children with disabilities.

This isn't just a book for parents--it's a book for everyone.

Buy it for yourself or someone you love.

Chris K. Olander, Executive Director Emeritus, The JM Foundation and Milbank Foundation for Rehabilitation

I originally read Dr. Kline's inspirational book, You Will Dream New Dreams in 2001. It was wonderful to read about other parent's experiences and feel that you were not alone. Reflections, goes one step further and allows parents to actually go into the future to read about accomplished adults with disabilities who were willing to share their experiences, both good and bad. I couldn't put it down and wanted to meet each and every one of the essay authors.

Shortly after finishing the book, I got my wish and met Darren Cecil. His essay immediately made a difference in my decision to enroll our son in t-ball, something he showed an interest in, but I didn't think he was ready for. Mr. Cecil, born with his left arm missing below the elbow, successfully talked a coach into letting him play on the high school basketball team on a trial basis, after originally being turned down because he couldn't dribble with his left hand. He did this without his mother's knowledge because he had been taught to stick up for himself. Mr. Cecil ended up being the second highest scorer and went on to play in college, became a successful business owner, husband and father of three children.

"Perhaps if the mother had known then of her son's life purpose, she would have felt a deeper peace. The ties that bind and being able to tie one's life together are far more important than shoe ties that keep a child from tripping. Her boy may have fallen, but he always landed on his feet. If his mother had only known...."

This was just a small excerpt of the many essays that will warm your heart, give you hope for the future, help you make some important changes, and feel good about things you are already doing.

Leslie Fauquet M.A. CCC SLP
Parent and Professional
(...)

This book is a collection of personal narratives by adults with a variety of disabilities. As the parent of a child with cerebral palsy, reading these stories is a great experience. I have absolutely no doubt that my son will be a happy, loved, employed adult - but at the back of my mind is always the question of "are we making the right choices." It is really hard to balance all the "work" that comes with the territory of CP (physical therapy, OT, medical appointments, etc.) with the "play" part of being a child - and it helps to read stories of grownups on the other side. I recommend this book highly.

The personal essays in this book are incredibly helpful for anyone whose life is touched by a child with a physical or emotional challenge. As a parent of a child with a chronic illness, I found the first-hand advice unique and straightforward. The essays are short and really diverse -- each one of them had a gem that I could apply to my child's situation. This peek into the lives of the authors helps parents create a life that is blessedly ordinary for their kids when life may not feel very ordinary at all. The greatest gift of this book is that most solutions are quite simple -- it's our desire to overcome the disability that prevents us from treating it as another normal part of life. A great read for anyone touched by a child who faces medical challenges.

Fantastic book for those who live with disability and those who don't. Truly a masterful tool in helping the nondisabled understand what it means to live with a disability and know that we are NORMAL people. At a time when most books tell the story of a disabled person for them Mr. Klein has done an excellent job in letting the authors speak for themselves. A must have for parents and families raising children with special needs.

I have learned alot from reading this book! As a parent of a teenager with a disability, I often wonder if I am doing everything possible to help her reach her full potential. This book is helpful as it it a voice from different adults who have had disabilities since childhood and how their families impacted their future in both positive and negative ways. I highly recommend this book!

As a parent of a child with a disability, this book challenged my "over protective-ness" and helped me see things the way my child may see them. The insight given is amazing, and has assisted me to see that my child can do more than even I give him credit for. A must read for parents!

As the mother of a 33 year-old son with spina bifida, I have read hundreds of books over the years about disability and parenting issues, many of them quite useful. But this book--comprised of the diverse voices of a large variety of adults with disablities and chronic conditions--hit home in ways that other books haven't. To learn from the point of view of the grown-up child is really fascinating. Several of the writers expressed extreme gratitude for their parents, but some wrote longingly about not being listened to, or heard, as children. Quite a few incorporated the theme of "Honesty is the best policy" into their essays: a favorite quote of mine is "Be open and honest with your children in all aspects of their lives, from the most trivial to the major ones." The personal stories and writing styles vary, so I was never bored. This is a compassionate and much-needed book, and I hope it finds a very wide audience. Highly recommended. Mary Lee Moser, author,There and Back: A Journal Companion for Special Needs Parents