A real person: life on the outside Author: Gunilla Gerland ISBN: 978 0 28563 662 0 Code: NAS 472 £12.99 excl. vat £12.99 incl. vat

This is the moving story of a woman struggling to grow up in a world she has difficulty making sense of. Her inability to cope with the stress created from a dysfunctional family and personal life eventually led her into drug addiction. Remarkably, Gunilla fought back and eventually in her mid-20s she was diagnosed as having high functioning autism, a label that at first distressed her but later helped her cope.

Published by Souvenir Press, 1997, pbk 2003, 254pp

Review

Review by Carol Guy

"A Real Person" is a sensitive and moving portrayal of a young girl's struggle to grow up in a world she has difficulty making sense of. Within a home, dominated by domestic violence and alcoholism, she fights to cope with fears and compulsions she has no control over. Her only bright spot, her sister Kerstin, who seemed to have an instinctive understanding that Gunilla Gerland was not like other children.

Eventually, unable to cope with the stress that daily life brought her, she slid into drug addiction. This could have been the end of her story but Gunilla was a survivor. She fought back, her one desire; to be a real person.

She tried psychotherapy, but recognised instinctively that her problems did not stem from her abusive background. Eventually in her mid-twenties she was diagnosed as having High Functioning Autism, a label that at first distressed her but eventually helped her feel 'less wretched'.

Parents are told, all too often, that it is damaging to label their child, but which is more harmful? Gunilla was still labelled, but with words such as stupid, lazy and disobedient. After a while she came to believe this about herself and felt a failure. An early diagnosis could have saved so much heartache.

This book has a great deal to offer both parents and professionals alike. Gunilla Gerland has the ability to describe with remarkable clarity life from her perspective. She makes us ask ourselves who is the most inflexible; the autistic child, or the adult who cannot comprehend another viewpoint. It is a must for any bookshelf.