Faced with the constantly changing, often escalating challenges of raising her first-born son Cooper, Kate Swenson’s poignant account of life with an autistic child will encourage other families to go the extra mile.

After Kate and Jamie happily tied the knot, they first had to deal with a miscarriage. Though discouraged, they were pleased when Kate became pregnant again and gave birth --- with some stresses --- to their new son. Cooper’s early days were difficult; he rarely slept, certainly not on any sort of schedule, and cried often. Eventually the cries turned into screams. There was no sign of his comprehension of environments or events, or any urge to say the simplest words.

"Having been through so many changes, experienced so many emotions, and seen so clearly what autism can do to a mother and a family unit, Swenson has written FOREVER BOY to enhearten other parents."

By the time Cooper was three, Kate and Jamie were involved in meetings and consultations before being given a diagnosis of autism. In fact, one professional coldly pronounced Cooper’s condition to be the worst she had ever observed. Yet he was their son, their cherished baby boy, and Kate was deeply attached to him despite the exhaustion of caring for him. The strain was mostly on her, though. Despite loving his son, Jamie left her to perform most of the motherly and wifely chores. She held down a job while his financial ventures were on shaky ground, and the family --- now with a second and then a third son --- had to move several times.

A divorce, followed by two years of separation before remarrying, made the couple’s story unique. They continued to seek some relief and positive change for Cooper, who seemed happiest watching cartoons --- the same ones over and over. With his entry into a special-needs childcare and Kate’s decision to allow him to take certain medications that remarkably reduced his anxieties and improved his sociability, life began to seem possible for the first time since Cooper’s birth. 

Having been through so many changes, experienced so many emotions, and seen so clearly what autism can do to a mother and a family unit, Swenson has written FOREVER BOY to enhearten other parents. A few positive encounters she had with other parents of autistic children were deeply moving and never forgotten. Therefore, she offers a book filled with the same empathic emphasis, balanced with a day-to-day view of the realities of Cooper’s needs, behaviors and care. A meeting at her home had to be curtailed when Cooper insisted on lining up every chair in the house; childcare was impossible for a boy who never spoke and tended to run away; family trips became a thing of the past; and Kate’s world became an endless series of appointments, paperwork and sleepless nights as Cooper might begin to kick and scream at any moment.

However, her motherly persistence paid off. This led to true acceptance and, ultimately, true joy, resulting in small, gratifying changes for Cooper and her realization that “he is a success story.” Kate Swenson, a skilled wordsmith who contributes to media sources to spread her words about parenting special-needs children, urges others to do likewise, reminding parents of autistic children that they are lucky “to have this beautiful, amazing, perfect child to be their teacher.”