Book review: Jenny McCarthy’s “Louder Than Words”
by Beth
Jenny McCarthy’s book Louder Than Words: A Mother’s Journey in Healing Autism is about her son Evan, who was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in 2005. When the book came out last year, McCarthy promoted it on Oprah. And on ABC’s 20/20. And on Good Morning America. And on The View. And on Larry King Live.
There are plenty of good books about autism out there. This is not one of them.
The best thing I can say about McCarthy’s book is this: it sure brought a lot of attention to autism. This past Super Bowl weekend, in fact, the HollyRod Foundation awarded McCarthy the 2008 Trailblazer Award. The HollyRod Foundation was founded in 1997 by NFL quarterback Rodney Peete and actress Holly Robinson Peete. Their Trailblazer Award honors the achievements of individuals for their efforts to raise autism awareness.
It comes as no surprise that Jenny McCarthy won that award. I hope she isn’t holding her breath for any prizes in literature, though.
February 24th, 2008 at 11:11 pm
I completely disagree with Ms. Finke’s assessment of Jenny McCarthy’s book. While it may not be great literature, it is a good read. AS the mother of a son with autism, I could relate with Ms. McCarthy’s fears and frustrations. I think she did a fine job of expressing the plethra of emotions that parents of autistic children encounter. I appreciate the fact that she didn’t mince words when expressing her anger at the estabilished medical community. I applaud her efforts and would encourage anyone to read this book.
February 9th, 2008 at 8:01 pm
So interesting- we had hoped that the “stars” might bring the autism discussion forward- doesn’t work if it’s not a good read.