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Reviewed by Karen Pirnot for Readers' Favorite
If you have a child with autism spectrum disorder, you may well find some helpful hints in Learning to Dance in the Rain. Author Melanie Bennett described her three years as an assistant to an autistic child in which the child went from being unable to verbalize her thoughts to being able to carry through with simple requests for conforming behavior. I did wish Bennett had told us right up front how she happened to gain her position with the child, but once the event is finally revealed the story becomes much more clear. And, it is a compelling story, to be sure. Autism has so many varied manifestations that it is very difficult to become a caretaker. When the family death occurred, it became nearly impossible. But, at that very time, Bennett stepped up her interventions and success began to build upon success.
I really appreciated the honesty of the caretaker in Learning to Dance in the Rain. There was really nothing clinical about the book, only forthright attempts to help a child connect with the world in meaningful ways. Sometimes, the hit-and-miss activities were surprisingly effective and at other times, the child's caretakers had no clues how to approach her in times of distress. This is a lesson that many who work with moderate to severe autistic children need to learn and Bennett describes her interventions well. There is success and there is failure but above all, there are people dedicated to finding out how to provide special needs children with the best quality of life possible. You'll find this to be a heart-warming book.
