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gmd316's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Genuinely a brand new topic for me. Done with tact and respect.
asia88's review against another edition
4.0
I have never heard of the Williams Syndrome before this. The author has done a thorough job of researching and presenting the life of a young boy with Williams Syndrome and the joys and worries of his single mother to the readers.
I'm also intrigued by the clinician who published the first paper about the Williams Syndrome and subsequently disappeared from the face of the Earth. I wonder if people do have a purpose in the grand scheme of things?
I'm also intrigued by the clinician who published the first paper about the Williams Syndrome and subsequently disappeared from the face of the Earth. I wonder if people do have a purpose in the grand scheme of things?
mhall's review
4.0
Edelweiss ebook ARC - publication date June 2017.
Fascinating look at Williams Syndrome - a genetic condition affecting 1 in 10,000 people in which a handful of genes are deleted from a chromosome. Features of the condition include developmental delays and health problems, but also highly social personalities, verbal skills, and musical ability.
Following 12-year-old Eli and his mom Gayle over the course of several years, this is an indictment of our health care system and a society which makes it almost impossible for the parents of children with special needs to keep from drowning in medical debt and working to exhaustion as caregivers to their kids. I was impressed by the author's ability to articulate Gayle's fears and worries about Eli - his trusting nature and childlike demeanor as he enters puberty and high school make him vulnerable in many ways. Gayle also has a lot of family support while raising Eli as a single mother, and she also is able to treasure and appreciate him, even as she feels isolated from others because of the challenges she faces.
The author also explains genetics in a way that was interesting and reminded me of [b: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks|6493208|The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks|Rebecca Skloot|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327878144s/6493208.jpg|6684634] in its ability to intersperse science with a more personal narrative.
Fascinating look at Williams Syndrome - a genetic condition affecting 1 in 10,000 people in which a handful of genes are deleted from a chromosome. Features of the condition include developmental delays and health problems, but also highly social personalities, verbal skills, and musical ability.
Following 12-year-old Eli and his mom Gayle over the course of several years, this is an indictment of our health care system and a society which makes it almost impossible for the parents of children with special needs to keep from drowning in medical debt and working to exhaustion as caregivers to their kids. I was impressed by the author's ability to articulate Gayle's fears and worries about Eli - his trusting nature and childlike demeanor as he enters puberty and high school make him vulnerable in many ways. Gayle also has a lot of family support while raising Eli as a single mother, and she also is able to treasure and appreciate him, even as she feels isolated from others because of the challenges she faces.
The author also explains genetics in a way that was interesting and reminded me of [b: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks|6493208|The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks|Rebecca Skloot|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327878144s/6493208.jpg|6684634] in its ability to intersperse science with a more personal narrative.
burdin87's review against another edition
4.0
The book chronicles a son with Williams Syndrome* (Eli), and his mother (Gayle).
The linguists in my feed will be familiar with Williams Syndrome, which often gets cited as evidence for a language facility separate from general intelligence: people with Williams Syndrome are linguistically gifted, but have intellectual disabilities, or so the story goes. I had heard that particular theory shot down before--further research has shown that people with WS do in fact have language disorders--but Larson adds the interesting twist that one of the original researchers pushing this story has since admitted that she was probably biased in her findings by simply being charmed by her subjects.
The book flirts with a problematic trope in literature about people with disabilities, focusing on the trials and tribulations of their caretakers. I almost stopped reading at the beginning, but was encouraged onwards by a blurb by Steve Silberman (author of NeuroTribes). And, overall, Latson generally side steps the trope, by (gently, and compassionately) hinting that Gayle's problems are somewhat self-inflicted, through an entirely understandable desire to protect her son from the world. And following Silberman, Latson generally frames Williams Syndrome within the neurodiversity, and wider disability rights, framework, suggestion that in some cases, its us neurotypicals with the problem, not people with William's Syndrome.
(*Latson does briefly discusses the term "Williams people", suggested by Oliver Sacks, and somewhat in the mould of "autistic people"; however, she generally uses person-first language throughout.)
The linguists in my feed will be familiar with Williams Syndrome, which often gets cited as evidence for a language facility separate from general intelligence: people with Williams Syndrome are linguistically gifted, but have intellectual disabilities, or so the story goes. I had heard that particular theory shot down before--further research has shown that people with WS do in fact have language disorders--but Larson adds the interesting twist that one of the original researchers pushing this story has since admitted that she was probably biased in her findings by simply being charmed by her subjects.
The book flirts with a problematic trope in literature about people with disabilities, focusing on the trials and tribulations of their caretakers. I almost stopped reading at the beginning, but was encouraged onwards by a blurb by Steve Silberman (author of NeuroTribes). And, overall, Latson generally side steps the trope, by (gently, and compassionately) hinting that Gayle's problems are somewhat self-inflicted, through an entirely understandable desire to protect her son from the world. And following Silberman, Latson generally frames Williams Syndrome within the neurodiversity, and wider disability rights, framework, suggestion that in some cases, its us neurotypicals with the problem, not people with William's Syndrome.
(*Latson does briefly discusses the term "Williams people", suggested by Oliver Sacks, and somewhat in the mould of "autistic people"; however, she generally uses person-first language throughout.)
previously's review against another edition
4.0
Really interesting case study of Williams syndrome--appreciated the discussion of the nuances and the deficits that are masked by relatively strong language and emotional perception skills.
sholloway56's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
4.0
bibirod's review against another edition
3.0
An interesting story. I had never heard of Williams' syndrome, and this book does a great job of explaining what it is and how it affects the people that have it as well as their families.
**I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.**
**I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.**
dorouu's review against another edition
4.0
Ugh, the feelings in this one.
The Boy Who Loved Too Much is a story about Williams Syndrome- a genetic disorder that makes people biologically incapable of distrust. They love everybody. They want to hug everybody. They will tell strangers "I love you!" when they see them, and will honestly feel incredibly sad and say "I miss you!" when the stranger leaves. This sounds odd in daily life- and it's hard to see how this genetic disorder can have a negative effect. But this book does a great job of giving a really good feel for what Williams Syndrome is. The story follows Eli, a young boy with Williams Syndrome, and his mother, Gayle; in three of the most important years of his life. He occasionally behaves like a toddler, her has grade outbursts and sometimes violent tantrums. He goes through puberty. All obstacles that normal teenagers go through, but with a much higher wall to climb and surpass. Like all parents, Gayle has to navigate parenthood and learn to juggle being too over-bearing and letting Eli have his own space- even if that means suddenly hug-attacking the waiter at the restaurant that they're at. Eli is learning about the world, and how he can navigate in it, and Gayle is learning alongside him.
The narrative in this book is split between an third person omniscient view of the life of Gayle and Eli, and then scientific studies and facts related to Williams Syndrome: genetic studies, possible treatments, behavioral studies, relationship with autism and other genetic disorders.. etc. The part I found most interesting was a really interesting passage about empathy and how humans have evolved to be equally selfish and empathetic. In one experiment, people were playing a game where they traded public goods and had the option to banish people from future games. Unsurprisingly, the selfish people who took but did not give were banished. But surprisingly, the selfless people (those who gave more than they took) were also banned.
"the social psychologists who ran the study concluded that selfless players were being punished for setting too high a social standard, demonstrating levels of generosity that the others weren't willing to match". This study was used to explain why people treat those with Williams Syndrome with aversion. Too much hugging and too much affections leaves people uncomfortable- maybe, just maybe, because they know they should be more affectionate and empathetic?
(Side note: does this explain the hate for the SJW movement/people?)
This book does a great job balancing between being informative and education, and being personal and telling the story of Eli and Gayle. I personally don't like the narrative style of the story parts, but that shouldn't keep you from reading this book.
The Boy Who Loved Too Much is a story about Williams Syndrome- a genetic disorder that makes people biologically incapable of distrust. They love everybody. They want to hug everybody. They will tell strangers "I love you!" when they see them, and will honestly feel incredibly sad and say "I miss you!" when the stranger leaves. This sounds odd in daily life- and it's hard to see how this genetic disorder can have a negative effect. But this book does a great job of giving a really good feel for what Williams Syndrome is. The story follows Eli, a young boy with Williams Syndrome, and his mother, Gayle; in three of the most important years of his life. He occasionally behaves like a toddler, her has grade outbursts and sometimes violent tantrums. He goes through puberty. All obstacles that normal teenagers go through, but with a much higher wall to climb and surpass. Like all parents, Gayle has to navigate parenthood and learn to juggle being too over-bearing and letting Eli have his own space- even if that means suddenly hug-attacking the waiter at the restaurant that they're at. Eli is learning about the world, and how he can navigate in it, and Gayle is learning alongside him.
The narrative in this book is split between an third person omniscient view of the life of Gayle and Eli, and then scientific studies and facts related to Williams Syndrome: genetic studies, possible treatments, behavioral studies, relationship with autism and other genetic disorders.. etc. The part I found most interesting was a really interesting passage about empathy and how humans have evolved to be equally selfish and empathetic. In one experiment, people were playing a game where they traded public goods and had the option to banish people from future games. Unsurprisingly, the selfish people who took but did not give were banished. But surprisingly, the selfless people (those who gave more than they took) were also banned.
"the social psychologists who ran the study concluded that selfless players were being punished for setting too high a social standard, demonstrating levels of generosity that the others weren't willing to match". This study was used to explain why people treat those with Williams Syndrome with aversion. Too much hugging and too much affections leaves people uncomfortable- maybe, just maybe, because they know they should be more affectionate and empathetic?
(Side note: does this explain the hate for the SJW movement/people?)
This book does a great job balancing between being informative and education, and being personal and telling the story of Eli and Gayle. I personally don't like the narrative style of the story parts, but that shouldn't keep you from reading this book.