Carly's Voice: Breaking Through Autism

I have never known or be around anyone with autism or similar. Saw her on The Dr's. I was curious how she had accomplished what she had done. Very interesting on how hard and long it took her to get where she is today. It is amazing how she has pushed herself and how lucky she is for parents who never gave up and were willing and able to do whatever it took to help get her to this point. Maybe one day she will be able to voice it for real. A must read to learn what the person with autism is feeling and what all they really can understand.

I have a 7 year old granddaughter also named Carli, this helps me to understand a lot about her. She has
never been diagnosed by the doctors as having Autism. This is sure her. I am very grateful a friend told me
about this book. I only wish her parents would be as agressive w/her therapy so she can become like this
Carly and able to communicate with us. We love her so very much and as grandparents we want the best
for her and be able to tell us her feelings.

Carly's Voice was very informative as well as special. Being able to break through the chaos of autism is no easy feat. I think this book represents what is possible when someone truly wants to break through and communicate. Very well written.

I work with children with autism everyday, and this book gave me insight and knowledge that only comes from a parent's love and perspectives. I enjoyed every page and was amazed at the strength of Carly and her family. A great read!

Would highly recommend to parents of children on both ends of the Autism Spectrum.
I have learned a lot that I believe gives me some insight and clues as to what my 10 yr. old Aspie may deal with.
Carly is truly an amazing and inspiring young lady!

I recommend this book to anyone who regularly has contact with anyone who has autism. This is a moving story of a family's struggle, but it is also an informative look at the world of a person with autism. Amazing read.

I first heard of Carly on YouTube. Her videos from 2020 and other interviews actually were what gave me the courage to bring my 47-year-old daughter home after 40 years!

I finished this book in a very short time - the first chapters on living with an autistic child reminded me of what life was like until my daughter reached age 7; the awful frustration, depression, and hopelessness of trying to find "a pill that would fix her" and finally having the "experts" tell you that this wonderful, beautiful little girl will never develop mentally past the age of 3. We were unable to care for her and keep her safe so we institutionalized her when she was 7.

Carly is able to tell the story from what the autistic child hears, sees, and learns - - its an amazing revelation that hasn't been believed until now! It will give you a whole new way of working with autistic children & adults. I think this is one of the most important books to be written this year!

We have a grandson who is autistic and non-verbal so this wonderful story was an encouragement. The author had more resources than most to meet the heavy demands of a special needs child, but the results of consistent love and innovative therapy were outstanding.

Wanting to work with children with autism this story has given me so much inspiration to follow my passion. I have so much to learn still in this area but this book was a great start for me to really get an understanding of what it is like to have ASD. Thank you carly for being so amazing and inspiring in so many ways. This is a must read for anyone.

Every teacher should read this, especially if you expect to have a child with autism in your class. And of course anyone else who has the privilege of interacting with people with autism. This book will remind you to never underestimate the possibilities!

I have an autistic grandchild and this book gave me an insight to what it is like for these children. I hope that more testing will be done to find out what causes autism. This is a must read for all persons. Awareness is the key to understanding! Great book!

I am a substitute teacher who works mostly with autistic children. After reading this book, I will never look at a non-verbal child the same again! I have often wondered what was locked inside those student's minds and what they would tell us if they could. Now, I know, and I can understand their erratic behaviors better and know what they need from me. Thanks for helping me to help them, Carly. Your story is amazing and this is the best book I have read in a long time. Lori

This is an incredibly eye-opening and captivating book! I couldn't put it down. Carly is truly an inspiration (as are her family members and all the teachers, aides and doctors who have worked with her over the years). I definitely understand so much more about autism now having heard it "from the horse's mouth" (as Carly with her delightful sense of humor would say)! Thank you to Carly and her Dad for writing this amazing book!

Page turner from beginning to end. I laughed, I cried, I COULD NOT put my Kindle down. Carly, I fell asleep at 1 am enthralled in your words, when my normal is 10 pm. Carly stop keeping people awake!! I was exhausted at work today. jk. Actually I was ;) Thank you Carly for sharing your voice with the world. My next step is to follow your facebook and twitter to help spread your message. You are an amazing young woman. Stay strong. Reach for the stars and never give up.

This book exceeded my expectations. Would highly recommend it. It is well written and itvis hard to put down. Was sad when I finished it....and have been recommending to friends.
I do not agree with the negative reviews some readers wrote.

Just received this and haven't listened yet, but I wanted to make an important note about the format of this. The audiobook version is NOT "audio CD". It is a CD with audio (MP3 files) on it, which will probably not work in your standard audio CD player. Handy if you want to put this on your iPod, but if you want to listen in the car, for example, ensure that your CD player will play MP3 audio files on the disc. It's not the same thing as audio CD.

A very honest and touching story that gave me terrific insight into autism and the difficulties involved with living with it for both the parents and child. The successes and growth that Carly had as a result of her parent's dedication and fortunate resources was inspiring..

Wow! What an amazing young lady who worked very hard at finding and expressing her voice! She is witty, intelligent, and offers a look into a world that many do not understand. As a teacher who has worked with students that have Autism, Carly has reinforced my belief that ALL CHILDREN CAN LEARN. It may take some work and some time but the results will definately be worth it. Good luck to you Miss Carly! May ALL oF your dreams come true!

I bought the book thinking I would be reading about the thoughts of a autistic girl named Carly. I found out that it was in her Dad's voice and what he and the family went through with a small portion of the book about Carly's thoughts.

Well written and thoughtfully executed. With this book, father Arthur and daughter Carly Fleischmann have done a great service for anyone trying to get a better understanding of the autistic mind. And for those without autism in their lives, this work provides a window. As the father of a son with autism, I have read extensively in the area of treatment, but of the books that I have read with regard to the day-to-day firsthand account, what the authors provide here is one of the very few which offers substantive material on a single case. This book is unique because it provides thoughts from a coming-of-age autistic girl, but the picture is made complete by a sharing of the joys and sorrows of a father who continually seeks to help one daughter while balancing the needs of siblings, as well as a striving to obtain the best care and education in the midst of societal systems that still do not understand modern day autism. In reading this book, I folded over quite a few dog ears, and what follows is the sharing of some quotes to encourage the potential reader to pick up a copy, especially in light of it going paperback in the near future.

In the closing pages of Chapter 1 ("In the Eye of the Storm"), at a stage before Carly received a diagnosis of autism, Arthur comments: "Despite what doctors described in her medical records as 'valiant efforts by her caring and deeply committed parents,' we would never receive an a-ha moment, much as we craved one. One dead-end street led to another. Somehow, life had to move on. Our other kids were growing and developing. We were running out of referrals and recommendations. And while our medical system is public in Canada, many of our therapies and consults were beyond coverage and had pushed our credit line to the brink. 'I feel like there's a button in her brain we just need to switch on,' Tammy said. But that button would remain out of sight, out of reach. In our hearts, we had hoped to find a magic pill that would turn Carly into something else; someone who could speak, play, and be with us. But that folly had come to an end. It's not that we would give up on our daughter, but it was time to stop asking why, and start asking now what?"

In Chapter 3 ("Climbing the Well-Greased Ladder") Arthur writes: "Carly's ever-expanding team resembled a Rube Goldberg device - a series of interconnected parts, each serving individual functions, tenuously connected to one another." And later, in Chapter 6 ("It Takes a Village"): "While I was just the line worker, Tammy processed the paperwork for the government so we could be reimbursed for some of the costs of running the full-scale production that was Carly's life. Tammy also managed the HR component of hiring, shift scheduling, and procurement. We called this business of running Carly's life Carly Inc. 'The pay is lousy, but the benefits suck,' Tammy would say ironically. Over her desk in the basement office, which she called 'the dungeon', hung a bumper sticker emblazoned with the quote 'Well-behaved women seldom make history,' by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich (who herself looks remarkably well behaved). This humble office space, no more than a desk with a few basket-style filing drawers, was Carly Inc.'s official headquarters. An African proverb claims that 'it takes a village to raise a child.' But we've found that it takes something far more entrepreneurial."

Arthur shares his quest for normality in Chapter 8 ("Uncommon"): "Experts tell us that those afflicted with autism live in their own spheres. Their universe looks odd to us, and ours is overwhelming for them. But the families with autism also live in a netherworld. We are not part of the autistic child's domain, nor are we fully a part of society. I noted that friends could pack up the kids and take off, coming home relaxed and recharged. That would never be us. We lived life as one giant special provision, and it felt like a force field was holding us back from joining in. I just wanted to be normal. Nonexceptional. Not requiring a précis, an introduction, or an explanation. It felt like we always needed an excuse for why we preferred the secluded booth at the back of the restaurant where Carly's noises would go unnoticed. Or an apology for why I was cranky or sleepy in the middle of the day. Or a reason why we couldn't attend an event at someone's house for fear of Carly blowing through the house like Hurricane Rita. Our friends were always welcoming us, but they needn't have worried about our accepting an invitation with Carly. There was nothing restful about a dinner party where Tammy or I were on duty to keep Carly corralled - away from anything that could be stained, broken, or mangled."

In Chapter 13 ("Growing, Apart"), after she begins communicating via computer, Carly responds to an inquiry as to why children with autism do not look people in the eye and whether they should be encouraged to do so: "No. We see different than everyone else. We take pictures in our heads like a camera. It's like filling a camera with too many pictures. It gets overwhelming." In discussing another autistic child, Carly is told that a bright five-year-old with autism frequently made noises and repeated phrases or words over and over that he had picked up from watching cartoons, and she is asked whether she has any ideas how to stop this stimming. "That's not stimming. People mix that up with stims but it's not. Stims are when we focus on sensory output to block out sensory input. Knowing myself - and again remember I don't talk, you can't just talk as a stim. It has to be more engaging." After further questioning, Carly notes: "He is audio filtering. We take in over a hundred sounds a minute. We have a hard time processing all the sounds at once so it comes out later as a broken record. Something is setting it off. Smells. Hairstyle. Clothes or sounds can be a trigger. It could be something you are saying or making him do that acts as a trigger. It's the method that reverberates the sentence or words in his head and to filter the meaning he repeats it over and over."

Later, Carly writes in Chapter 18 ("Discovery") while fielding questions from a reporter: "It might not seem like I am at times, but I try very hard to act appropriately. It is so tough to do and people think it is easy because they don't know what is going on in my body. They only know how easy it is for them. Even the doctors have told me that I am being silly but they don't get it. If I could stop it, I would. But it is not like turning a switch off. It does not work that way. I know what is right and wrong but it's like I have a fight with my brain over it. Autism feels hard. It's like being in a room with the stereo on full blast. It feels like my legs are on fire and over a million ants are climbing up my arms. It's hard to be autistic because no one understands me. People just look at me and assume that I am dumb because I can't talk or because I act differently than them. I think people get scared with things that look or seem different than them. It feels hard."

Prior to his closing comments in the epilogue, Arthur reflects on the past in Chapter 25 ("I am Carly"): "It's been fourteen years since Carly was diagnosed with autism and cognitive impairment. We were warned that she might never develop abilities beyond those of a child and would likely spend her life in a group home. Carly has defied most predictions and lived a life out loud, to paraphrase Émile Zola. These days, I think more about what's still to come than what might have been. I tiptoe into Carly's room and whisper in her ear as she sleeps, 'Everything will work out. Everything will be fine.' Then closing her door gently, I slip into bed next to Tammy and pray that I'm right."

This book really helps you understand what a autistic person goes through and gives you hope that someday we will have a great tool to communicate with them. I first heard of the book on a Dr. show on television and was so impressed with what I saw and heard I just had to buy the book. Great read!

A book about living life with autism. The writing is as beautiful as it is raw. I am an OT who has been practicing for 4+ years and have learned so much from this book. The perspective of the parents is an invaluable resource. And one cannot say enough about the perspective of Carly. She taught me so much! Don't underestimate anyone's capabilities! Thank you to their family for allowing us a glimpse inside their life!

I am a college student studying communication disorders. This book opened my eyes about a population I will be spending much of my time working with as a future speech pathologist. Carly gave a human perspective on what I had only learned about in classes. The book was heartfelt and engaging. It took me less than three days to finish. I recommend this book to anyone who wants a better understanding of life with autism.