The Best Kind of Different: Our Family's Journey with Asperger's Syndrome [Hardcover]

Shonda Schilling (Author), Curt Schilling (Author)

Book Description

Release date: March 23, 2010

Shonda and Curt Schilling loved their son Grant with all their hearts, but raising him had always been something of a challenge. By the time Grant was seven, his misbehavior and refusal to listen had become nearly unmanageable - a situation exacerbated by Curt 's constant travel as a major league pitcher for the Boston Red Sox. Seemingly everyone Shonda encountered at home and on the road had an opinion - 'he's too spoiled', 'he needs a good spanking', 'he needs more discipline' - and they were more than willing to offer unsolicited parenting advice. Still no matter what Shonda and Curt tried, nothing seemed to alter Grant's behaviour. All that changed after a disastrous first attempt at summer camp in 2007; it was then that Shonda knew something was definitely wrong. Worried and desperate, she turned to a doctor, who tested Grant for a battery of childhood behavioral conditions. But instead of receiving a diagnosis of ADHD, Shonda was shocked to learn her son had Asperger's syndrome - a form of high functioning autism that is increasingly being diagnosed in children who at first glance appear disruptive and difficult. In "The Best Kind of Different", Shonda details every step in her family's journey through Asperger's, offering an intimate and candid portrait of this condition from a parent's point of view. In emotionally compelling prose, Shonda chronicles Grant's early years, confronts the guilt and pain that engulfed her after learning of her son's condition, and celebrates Grant's success in the two years since his diagnosis. With insight and helpful advice for parents, she provides an honest and moving glimpse inside her family - as two parents struggle to understand the complex beauty of their son and learn to live with Asperger's.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Until the summer of 2007 the word Asperger's was not a part of Shonda Schilling's vocabulary. But by then her household was in total chaos. Her young son Grant's acting out, irrational behavior, and apparent inability to relate to the people around him had grown to epic proportions. The fact that Shonda's husband, All-Star pitching great Curt Schilling, was constantly on the road with the Boston Red Sox only complicated matters. Then a neurologist diagnosed Grant with Asperger's syndrome—a form of high-functioning autism found in children who, at first glance, appear disruptive and difficult—and their entire lives changed.

In The Best Kind of Different, Shonda details every step of her family's journey with Asperger's, celebrating Grant's successes and learning from his setbacks. A tribute to Grant's strength and a candid glimpse into a family coming to terms with its differences, it is an intimate portrait of two parents struggling to understand the complex beauty of their son.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Shonda Schilling and her husband, Curt, have been married for seventeen years. The Schillings hope that by sharing their family's story, people will come to understand Asperger's in a new way, giving dignity and hope to all those who are touched with these issues. They live with their four children, Gehrig, Gabriella, Grant, and Garrison, in Medfield, Massachusetts.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; 1 edition (March 23, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061986836
• ISBN-13: 978-0061986833
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #639,930 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

55 of 58 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I laughed, I cried and I LOVED this book! March 24, 2010

By Kimberly Agostino

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I was so excited to receive this book and it did not disappoint. I am the mother of a 4 year old with PDD-NOS and have been told he may "graduate" to an Aspbergers diagnosis. When you're a mother to a child with a diagnosis on the autism spectrum you have your good core friends and family who "understand" and then you have many in the outside world who just don't "get it" when your child is having a sensory meltdown or a meltdown because their very rigid world is not in sync with their ways (i.e. foods, schedules, favorite things/obsessions, etc.). I can't say how nice it felt to read this book and know that someone who you think of as living a priveliged life (the glamorous wife of a major league ballplayer) is going through the same things as you and when Shonda explains how Christmas was interresting because her son, Grant would have his obsessions with particular toys,etc. and then suddently change gears to another obsession right before Christmas (therefore rendering all her previous Christmas purchases useless) I was laughing my head off because my son did the SAME thing last Christmas. Only another fellow "Autism Spectrum Mom" would get this kind of stuff.....and it's comforting to read Shonda's story and know "us Mom's are not alone". Thank you, Shonda for sharing your story and family experiences with your hubby and children. You have no idea how helpful it is to other Mom's going through similar situations. My son also has a huge heart and awareness of other's pain and is very sensitive to others disabilities or feelings. You never hear about this side of the spectrum so it was so refreshing to hear Shonda talk about Grant's softer side (his affection and kindness to his friend in a wheelchair). This book brings so much understanding to the world to accept our children the way they are - the BEST kind of different!

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Heartfelt and Real March 25, 2010

By H. Johnson

Format:Hardcover

Shonda's book is an honest and heartfelt journal of her family's life raising a child with a disability, in this case, Asperger's Syndrome. I applaud her candid and emotional writing, so fun and fast to read, that can help not only parents of kids like Grant but also parents whose children will inevitably meet a child like Grant whether at school, at a playground, at a store, etc. Her book makes you cry, giggle, and relate as a parent. I hope this book can help anyone who reads it have a deeper level of compassion and acceptance when around children with any type of disability. Grant is special and clearly so is his mom.

19 of 22 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars More about the Mom than the kid April 27, 2010

By K. Cugal

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I bought this book because I heard a small part of a radio interview with the authors. They sounded a lot like me--parents with a son with Asperger Syndrome who came to see their son as someone who, although different, has first-rate qualities, not someone to be fixed. What the book focuses on, however, is the parents' lives and lifestyle (the husband was a professional ball player), how their son didn't fall in line with it the way their other children did, and how the parents finally figured out what was wrong and what to do with him. I was really irritated by their attitude of sports being so important to a kid's life, to the extent that they enrolled him in sports for YEARS even though he wasn't enjoying it, would get confused, and had to know that he was (unintentionally)irritating coaches and other players. The authors seem like decent and loving people, but I wish they would have held off writing a book about their son until they could see beyond their own narrow world or sports, school, and achievement.