My Son’s Not Rainman: One Man, One Boy, a Million Adventures

Heartfelt, funny, and ultimately uplifting, one father discusses the life of a single dad raising a son who just so happens to have autism

My Son's Not Rainman is a heartfelt and uplifting account of everyday events in the life of John and his son (The Boy). The Boy is 12 years old and autistic. He isn't a genius. His only special power is making his dad laugh. A lot. Following the success of the blog of the same name, John talks not just about the difficulties of having a child who is considered "different" but also the joy of living with someone who looks at the world in a unique way. This isn't a story about autism. It's a story about a young boy who happens to have autism, and there is a big difference. It does relate the struggles of getting a diagnosis for The Boy and the dismay of having his child excluded from schools. However, John very rarely dwells on the downside of his son's condition, preferring instead to look at the happiness and insight his son has given him. Funny and heart-warming, this is a book about living with the often frustrating and bewildering, but always fascinating, world of the autistic mind. It's about finding the positive in everything, from the joy and wonder of the Special School Disco to the unadulterated thrill of getting the front seat on the Docklands Light Railway. Ultimately, it's a celebration of what it really means to be different.

John Williams is a stand-up comedian whose show is based on his life as a single parent to his son, who just happens to have autism.