Life as We Know It - by Michael Berube (Paperback)

About the Book

When Jamie Berube was born with Down's Syndrome in 1991, he was immediately subject to everything that surrounds every child our society designates as disabled. Here, Jamie's father describes the challenges and joys of raising his son. As he follows Jamie through his first four years of life, Berube evokes the sorrow and exhilaration of watching this loving child struggle for a place in the larger world.

Book Synopsis

When Jamie Bérubé was born with Down syndrome in 1991, he was immediately subject to the medical procedures, insurance guidelines, policies, and representations that surround every child our society designates as disabled. In this wrenching yet ultimately inspiring book, Jamie's father, literary scholar Michael Bérubé, describes not only the challenges of raising his son but the challenge of seeing him as a person rather than as a medical, genetic, or social problem.

About the Author

Michael Bérubé is director of the program for research in the humanities at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. He is the author of five books, including Public Access: Literary Theory and American Cultural Politics, and has written for The New Yorker, The Village Voice, and many academic journals. He lives in Champaign, Illinois, with his wife, Janet Lyon, and their two sons, Nick and James.