"The Reason I Jump"

Post Reply New Topic

"The Reason I Jump", By Naoki Higashida.
"David Mitchell, award-winning author of Cloud Atlas, translates and introduces this extraordinary book by a Japanese teenager with severe autism."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b036b8c2
BBC Radio 4 [ http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4 ] Book of the Week [ http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qftk/episodes/guide ]

(As the programme mentions, David Mitchell has an autistic son, and the original reason he and his wife translated this book into English was so that they could try to better understand their son's autism.)

I only heard of it because of Woman's Hour reporting last week myself, but indeed, I'm thankful Radio 4 decided to air this. Fascinating listening

"David Mitchell: learning to live with my son's autism."
"Novelist David Mitchell looks back on the heartbreak – and joy – of learning that his son had autism. Plus, below, an extract from the book by a young Japanese boy that helped him."
The Guardian, Saturday, 29 June 2013.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2013/ ... ons-autism

just finished listening. It's beautifully done, and a lovely piece of work in itself. I liked all of it, especially what he says about loneliness and empathy. Also, I like what David Mitchell said about sentience. [u]Thanks[/u] for posting. (I listened on youtube)