Caroline Elton Looking After Paperback Book

A beautiful, bracing gem of a book, quite unlike any other family memoir Ive ever read Polly Morland, author of A FORTUNATE WOMANBeautifully written, erudite and important . . . Looking After is a love letter to an autistic brother and to family itself, and a reminder of the power of empathy to save lives Christie Watson, author of THE LANGUAGE OF KINDNESSHeld me captive to the very last page. Wise, compassionate and compellingly told Monica Ali, author of LOVE MARRIAGEThis lifespanning memoir is an affecting and affectionate tribute Bookseller, Editors ChoiceMeet Lionel, Carolines older brother. Born in the late 1940s, when little was known about autism, Lionel was considered a peculiarity. From the beginning, he was a silent child, oblivious to the people around him and intent only on playing with his toy trucks. By the time he turned four, doctors declared him ineducable and advised that he be institutionalised a shockingly standard practise at the time. No one could have predicted that Lionel would go onto music college and find his place in the world. With the help of his mother who refused to send him away Lionel lived a life that was certainly unusual but never dull. He had perfect pitch, could multiply threefigure numbers in his head, or work out which day of the week you were born on, the instant you told him your birthday. But when Lionels mother dies, and shortly after he is diagnosed with cancer, his two sisters struggle to fill the void to become Lionels... | Caroline Elton Looking After Paperback Book