If You’re In DC This Weekend……..
“It is a possession for all time, not a competition piece to be heard for the moment, that has been composed.”
So writes Thucydides, the ancient Greek historian, about his account of The Peloponnesian War. Considering that he was writing in the fifth century B.C., and about events taking place from 431-411 B.C., Thucydides was right about his work being a “possession for all time”: In light of recent political, military, and international events, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof notes that Thucydides provides a “trenchant analysis of Iraq-style adventures” that goes beyond any analogy of the Iraq war to Vietnam.
I’ve been reading Thucydides’ histories tonight in preparation for my Greek history class but some more recent books have been on my mind, especially after a visit to the library this evening. I had to return an overdue book; usually Charlie prefers to wait in the car and I run, head turning back again and again, and hastily deposit my item in the drop-off bin. Tonight, though, as I was saying “Mom’s going to drop off the book fast,” Charlie said “library, yes.” And in we went: He smiled as we passed the children’s section, which he had visited a few times with a summer school class; he stood still and serious as I paid the fine and then—with Charlie showing no sign of needing to leave—renewed the book (a fine novel) and took a fast look in the “new non-fiction section,” and found a new book about vaccine history.
I’ve found blogging is well-suited for conveying the experience of autism, and of life raising an autistic child. It is every day; not too much to read; can be topical; enables exchanges of comments and views and experiences; can foster a sort of community. But books have a permanence: You can flip back and forth to reread a passage you are puzzling over, or just like a lot; you can carry them in your bag and read a few pages on the train, or while waiting (in line; to pick up your child).
A lot of autism books came out this year, like these two in September, and the novel I rechecked out. In the first part of this year, two books came out by two fathers—-Roy Richard Grinker and Ralph James Savarese—of two autistic children, Isabel Grinker and DJ Savarese. Both books—-Unstrange Minds: Remapping the World of Autism and Reasonable People: A Memoir of Autism and Adoption—and their authors, offer new insights about autism and about being the fathers of autistic children today. Professors Grinker and Savarese will both be reading at an event this Saturday, November 3rd:
EVENT IN WASHINGTON, D.C. Open to the public. Organized by Grinnell College, but being held on the GWU campus.
Reception featuring readings from the following:
Reasonable People: A Memoir of Autism and Adoption by Ralph James Savarese, Associate Professor of English, Grinnell College.
Unstrange Minds: Remapping the World of Autism by Roy Richard Grinker, The George Washington University.
The event will be this Saturday, November 3, 2007, 1 p.m., at The George Washington University, Media & Public Affairs Building, 805 21st Street, NW. The reception will begin at 1 p.m., with the program following at 1:30 p.m.
Come hear these authors read from, discuss, and sign copies of their books.
Since I can’t go, I’m glad I have the books to read.
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POSTED IN: Adoption, Autism Lit, Books, Literature, Weblogs
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