Saturday, 20 November 2021 09:17 pm
Book Review: The Rosie Result
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deckardcanineMy mom made it sound like this entry in Graeme Simsion's Don Tillman trilogy wasn't as much fun as The Rosie Project or The Rosie Effect. Nevertheless, some series induce me to stay for the whole thing no matter what anyone thinks of the ending.
Eleven years after the events of TRE (which makes me wonder when exactly each volume is set), Hudson, fifth-grade son of Don and Rosie, is so much like his father that I'd call it ridiculous if I weren't so much like my father. Alas, school staff find him difficult to work with and suggest that he may be far enough along the autistic spectrum to go to a special school next year. Don is as resistant to Hudson getting the diagnosis as he is to himself getting it, partly because he has little respect for the soft sciences. He launches "the Hudson Project" to bring Hudson closer to normal, but he is aware that Hudson may take it less as a big help and more as a sign that Don doesn't love him yet.
What ensues is quite a stroll down Memory Lane for Don. He'd hate for Hudson to go through the same hardships in youth. Sometimes Don follows his own father's example, but more often, he dreads becoming much like the old man. Note that the old man is now dying of cancer, so Don would revisit such memories anyway and will hopefully develop a more positive opinion.
There are, in fact, a whole lot of serious problems going on with numerous people within Don's social circles (e.g., Dave badly needs to lose weight and gain income). He tries to solve pretty much all of them, sometimes more than one at a time. Lest you think this sheer hubris on his part, he does delegate a lot of tasks to the most suitable candidates he knows. The success rate is high, if short of 100%.
One misfortune Don's in no hurry to address is that he's long been incommunicado with former best friend Gene, after realizing how Gene took advantage of his gullibility. Don's slow to anger but also apparently slow to reconciliation. It's saying something when Rosie of all people wishes he would consider the option.
I should say a bit more about Hudson. He's big on nonfiction and science fiction while rejecting fantasy, yet he's not sure he wants to follow Don's footsteps. He's already interested in jobs, which unnerves his parents to some extent. He can be rude and run hot and cold, but that's not uncommon for his age. At various points, Don mentally notes moments when Hudson does something decidedly uncharacteristic of autism.
Don does not shy away from the term "Asperger's," which, tho out of favor in DSM-5, still sees a lot of informal use at this time. That said, I've stopped using the term after learning of allegations that Dr. Asperger was a Nazi collaborator, which does not come up in this book.
The book does touch on more modern world controversies than its predecessors. I'm relieved to say that Simsion does not show an obvious preference for one side in most of them; everyone has a point. Whichever your view, you shouldn't be offended.
I'm hardly surprised that TRR is not the funniest entry, seeing as Don is only about half as awkward as he used to be, and it's tough to laugh at Hudson under the circumstances. But what it lacks in comedy, it makes up for in well-thought-out drama. I find this the most believable entry, with almost every character clearly having their own story to contend with. And it's deeply emotional in the best way, especially to anyone well acquainted with someone on or suspected to be on the spectrum. I might just call it my favorite in the series.
Now I've started Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse. Never read an American Indian fantasy before.
Eleven years after the events of TRE (which makes me wonder when exactly each volume is set), Hudson, fifth-grade son of Don and Rosie, is so much like his father that I'd call it ridiculous if I weren't so much like my father. Alas, school staff find him difficult to work with and suggest that he may be far enough along the autistic spectrum to go to a special school next year. Don is as resistant to Hudson getting the diagnosis as he is to himself getting it, partly because he has little respect for the soft sciences. He launches "the Hudson Project" to bring Hudson closer to normal, but he is aware that Hudson may take it less as a big help and more as a sign that Don doesn't love him yet.
What ensues is quite a stroll down Memory Lane for Don. He'd hate for Hudson to go through the same hardships in youth. Sometimes Don follows his own father's example, but more often, he dreads becoming much like the old man. Note that the old man is now dying of cancer, so Don would revisit such memories anyway and will hopefully develop a more positive opinion.
There are, in fact, a whole lot of serious problems going on with numerous people within Don's social circles (e.g., Dave badly needs to lose weight and gain income). He tries to solve pretty much all of them, sometimes more than one at a time. Lest you think this sheer hubris on his part, he does delegate a lot of tasks to the most suitable candidates he knows. The success rate is high, if short of 100%.
One misfortune Don's in no hurry to address is that he's long been incommunicado with former best friend Gene, after realizing how Gene took advantage of his gullibility. Don's slow to anger but also apparently slow to reconciliation. It's saying something when Rosie of all people wishes he would consider the option.
I should say a bit more about Hudson. He's big on nonfiction and science fiction while rejecting fantasy, yet he's not sure he wants to follow Don's footsteps. He's already interested in jobs, which unnerves his parents to some extent. He can be rude and run hot and cold, but that's not uncommon for his age. At various points, Don mentally notes moments when Hudson does something decidedly uncharacteristic of autism.
Don does not shy away from the term "Asperger's," which, tho out of favor in DSM-5, still sees a lot of informal use at this time. That said, I've stopped using the term after learning of allegations that Dr. Asperger was a Nazi collaborator, which does not come up in this book.
The book does touch on more modern world controversies than its predecessors. I'm relieved to say that Simsion does not show an obvious preference for one side in most of them; everyone has a point. Whichever your view, you shouldn't be offended.
I'm hardly surprised that TRR is not the funniest entry, seeing as Don is only about half as awkward as he used to be, and it's tough to laugh at Hudson under the circumstances. But what it lacks in comedy, it makes up for in well-thought-out drama. I find this the most believable entry, with almost every character clearly having their own story to contend with. And it's deeply emotional in the best way, especially to anyone well acquainted with someone on or suspected to be on the spectrum. I might just call it my favorite in the series.
Now I've started Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse. Never read an American Indian fantasy before.