Anne. Talia. Ruthie. Brett. Four very different New York women. But when
their children are diagnosed with autism, they all find themselves
struggling with the same problem. Suddenly, these women - an ex-model
who owns a downtown bar, a high-powered magazine editor, an English
professor, and a physical therapist - find that they need each other, as
they face the ultimate challenge for any parent: How to help their
autistic children get the care they need. But as women, they struggle
with another daunting task: How to keep their marriages alive and not
find themselves on the wrong side of a frightening statistic--eighty
percent of the parents of autistic children divorce.
They join together in a support group, and each chapter follows a month
in their lives and ends with a meeting. It's a rocky road, as they
contend with other problems: Quacks peddling expensive alternative
therapies--and hope; husbands impatient with their children's
disability; other women only too happy to take advantage of the
pressures on their marriages; older children diagnosed with autism years
ago; newborn babies who have a one-in-five chance of suffering from the
disorder; scheming co-workers who try to turn this problem to their
advantage; grandparents who are anything but helpful; and resentful
teens who run wild while their mothers cope with the crisis. And through
it all, they help each other--with strength, humor, love, and wisdom.
