Reviews ~
What they are saying:
“CHADD Educator of the Year for 2010, Dr. Katherine Nell Mcneil, highly recommends One Boy’s Struggle: A Memoir be read by teachers and parents of children with ADD / ADHD”
“Bryan Hutchinson doesn’t have to imagine what it’s like having ADD. He’s got it, big-time. His mind races like a formula 1 driver every day. His journey is full of teachable moments.”
~ADDitude Magazine
“Want to find out what it’s like to grow up with ADHD? Read One Boy’s Struggle! Hutchinson’s exploration of his always-in-trouble-for-something childhood brings to life some of the huge hurdles kids growing up with ADHD face. He writes of hope and despair, and the all-too-common conflict between desperately wanting to achieve and please, yet suspecting that you’ll fail again… and soon. Best of all, he tells his story of triumph as he gets help and follows his own unique path to success!
One Boy’s Struggle is a real eye-opener. It should be read by all parents struggling to understand how best to support their ADHD children. Adults with ADHD will likely find validation and new hope from reading Bryan’s story.”
~Dr. Edward Hallowell
Director of the Hallowell Centers in Sudbury, MA and New York City
Co-author of Driven to Distraction and author of 17 other books on mental health
The heart-wrenching description of Hutchinson’s traumatic childhood is great reading for adults trying to understand more completely how undiagnosed ADHD can distort a person’s life and the actions of those around him or her. It provides a tutorial in how and why people with ADHD develop coping strategies that don’t always seem to be in their best interests and is worth the read just for that. However, the critical message for adults is what comes next – Hutchinson’s journey to understand himself, his acceptance of his ADHD, his accomplishments and, finally, his happiness. He talks openly about the resentment and shame his childhood induced and shares the ways he has overcome his past and his ADHD. His journey of learning and redirection will inspire many. One Boy’s Struggle is a quick read – take it to the beach or on your commute and let it inspire you to take on the challenges you face.
~Melissa Orlov author of The ADHD Effect on Marriage adhdmarriage.com
“I found One Boy’s Struggle: A Memoir: Surviving Life with Undiagnosed ADD a gripping account of both the struggles and positive polarities of ADD written beautifully in a honest, open and courageous manner that will resonate with readers who haven’t already read this engaging book. I wish a book like this would have been available many years ago when I was going through many of the same struggles but in those days you were simply considered onery or lazy. Even now I find Bryan’s account so validating of so many things I felt along the way before my own diagnosis was made at age 60. I highly recommend this highly readable book. Warning: once you start it will be very hard to put it down.”
~David A. Crenshaw, Ph.D., ABPP – Director of Rhinebeck Child and Family Center, LLC. childtherapytechniques.com. Faculty Associate, Johns Hopkins University
“A Story that had to be told! As both an ADHD Coach and an Adult with ADHD, I highly recommend One Boy’s Struggle: A memoir: Surviving Life with Undiagnosed ADD”
~Tara McGillicuddy myaddblog.com
“Insightful, positive, motivational – most of all: inspiring and helpful.”
~Nancy Ratey ED.M, Harvard University – Diplomate, ABDA – Author of: The Disorganized Mind – nancyratey.com
“Bryan Hutchinson’s life is inspiring and his message is one of hope, forgiveness, and of moving forward.”
~ Keath Low add.about.com guide, Clinical Scientist
As a therapist who treats many ADHD patients, I can tell you what a real find this book is. Bryan’s books gives such hope for millions who have felt pain, humiliation, or just lost; it assures them they, too, can find a path for healing and joy in the celebration of living. Every therapist will want to have in their library to refer to patients. Thank you, Bryan!
~Dr. Nancy B. Irwin, Los Angeles, CA, Author of YOU TURN, drnancyirwin.com
Bryan’s book is written from the heart. What he’s done to overcome his challenges is inspirational. Anyone with ADD or with friends, loved ones or colleagues with ADD will be informed and touched by Bryan’s book.
~Bryan Robinson Ph.D. Author of: The Art of Confident Living – bryanrobinsononline.com
“Bryan’s memoir is riveting, engrossing – a crowd pleasing read. Heartbreaking at times, heartwarming at others, if you are looking for a guide through your own or your child’s ADHD, you’ll find it here. A delightful gem – not to be missed!”
~Dr. Lara Honos-Webb, author of: The Gift of ADHD and Listening to Depression
A highly compelling memoir! The reader will be moved by Bryan’s experiences, fascinated by the twists and turns of his life, and impressed with his incredible resilience and his admirable determination to help others with this disorder. I have nothing but great admiration for Bryan and the assistance that he has selflessly provided to AD/HD adults around the world.
~Catherine Avery, Ph.D. Author of: Life at Full Throttle, AD/HD in Adults
“Bryan’s work helps readers understand the everyday medical and practical limitations of the AD/HD label, and personalizes the interesting nuances of the recovery process.”
-Dr. Charles Parker, Writer, Speaker, Neuroscience Consultant and author of Corepsychblog.com
I could not put it down! The book is an easy read, and is more of a auto-biographical accounting of how the author has overcome some traumatic events in his life as a child, some genetic pre-dispositions, as well as some failed recognition by the public school system (of his condition). The book also provides a healthy dose of excellent, practical tips that people can relate to — because they are all couched in real-life stories, i.e. accounts from the author’s life. The book is not scientific in nature, one learns from it by ‘experiencing’ how a young man overcame some tremendous obstacles to eventually reach a relatively healthy, well-balanced life.
In summary, I highly recommend this book to people personally struggling with ADD, as well as professionals who must treat them.
~Joel Goodsen, Ph.D.
“It’s so comforting to know we are not alone with the heartbreaking inconsistency of our mystifying ADD symptoms. You truly help people gain not only an understanding of ADD but of themselves”.
-Ariane Benefit, M.S.Ed., Organizing and ADHD Coach – Author of: Neat & Simple Guide to Organizing your Office arianebenefit.com
“Bryan Hutchinson’s book, is an extremely touching, thought provoking and informative book that’s not only easy to read, but easy to relate to. Nearly everyone has been touched by someone with ADD / ADHD some time in their lives and this book helps not only the person that struggles with the symptoms of ADD / ADHD, but also family, friends, co-workers, etc. of someone with ADD / ADHD (my youngest son was diagnosed with ADHD at 5). The book made me laugh one minute and cry the next. As a copyeditor and proofreader, I have the opportunity to read many books but this one really touched me deep inside.”
~Nita Ammon, ADHD Mother, Proof Reader, Editor.
This is the story of a real mensch, a hero, a very special person with an incredible strength. The tenacity, the bravery, the courage, and the perseverance are absolutely stunning. I was moved to tears by his story. I come from family where there was abuse, I grew up undiagnosed myself. I strongly recommend anyone, who has any kind of challenge to read this book, whether you have ADHD, some other disorder, physical disability or a combination there of.
~Sarah Gogstetter
“As a person with AD/HD who always felt „not of this world‟, to me, reading Bryan‟s work is like seeing for the first time a reflection appear on the other side of a mirror which had appeared empty for so long.”
-Anya, ADDer World reader anyatraille.com
“I find comfort, solace, understanding and belonging in all of Bryan’s work. He has chosen to make his voice the voice of all of us who are finding our way out of the fog, and discovering the beauty of ADHD, and I’m so thankful for his wisdom, guidance and above all, love for all of us!”
-Jen K, aka NerdyMommy.com
“If I were president for a day I’d make it mandatory reading for all elementary teachers and parents of boys with or without ADD. The author clearly has extensive knowledge of ADD as well as first person experience — a powerful combination that really helps the reader understand some of the many nuances of ADD. This book opened up very enlightening dialogue between my spouse and I and then my immediate family. We were able to confirm what we have long suspected; that in my family most of us have varying degrees of ADD but as adults have learned to compensate in interesting ways. We are productive and happy adults, but felt validated at the similarities we found with the author. Thank you so much for being so generous with your life experiences!”
~Reading Mom, online reviewer
“I vowed never to read another book on ADD/ADHD. I understood why the near genuis IQ, why I performed so poorly in school, told I was lazy and why I had trouble focusing. I read all about the different skills I needed to acquire to overcome this debilitating learning disorder. These books were all informative, providing valuable information for those with ADD/ADHD, their families and teachers. Yet not one book served to provide an answer to what has always been disturbing me – that is until I read Mr. Hutchinson’s book, “One Boy’s Struggle. This is why I cherish this book and highly recommend it.”
~Laurie Siegel
“I recommend this to parents and teachers dealing with children with ADD/ADHD. No one can ever truly understand what it is like to go through life having ADD/ADHD unless they have it themselves. This book shows you the truth dead on, and most likely will be the closest you will ever get to really understand what your kids are dealing with on a daily basis, in both their minds, as well in the world around them.”
~ Steve FitzPatrick
“Best one I’ve read since reading ‘Driven to Distraction’! Being diagnosed around 15 years ago I have read many great books on ADD. I have to say this one is different. Bryan tells a easy to follow story, of what it was like to live with ADD and not know why he couldn’t make himself a “normal” kid and later adult. Many books talk about the symptoms, and the things we fail at, Bryan talks about how those symptoms are played out and the feelings that are left behind in your soul. I had to wipe my eyes many times while reading this book, yet he never fails to bring hope to the reader, of a brighter future, no matter how deep the failures. His positive attitude, toward a so called disorder, which is normally thought of as a negative, is inspiring and leads the reader to think about how much more, they too, can be and accomplish. This should be required reading for any parent with a ADD/ADHD child, I feel it would help so much to assisting in understanding them.”
~ Lisa – online reviewer
“I started reading Bryan’s book on a road trip with some friends (no, I was not the one driving) and I was amazed. I kept laughing, crying, saying ‘that is what I did’. My friends thought I was crazy. I told them I was not crazy and that I felt like someone wrote a book about me.”
~Mindy Schwartz fullcircle-adminservices.blogspot.com
“Bryan’s book is not bogged down with research or statistics. His story reads like a conversation with a friend. After reading the book I feel like I know Bryan although we have never met. If you are feeling isolated and misunderstood regarding ADD, you will likely find solace in Bryan’s book.”
~Dr. Ragan psychologyofclutter.com
What makes Bryan’s Memoir special? On a personal level, my Mom and I BONDED over it. While reading it, my mother found me crying and asked what was wrong. I told her what this memoir was about, and let her read it. Once she finished, we cried together. We also laughed because it helped make sense of my own experiences with AD/HD, which went undiagnosed until I was 35. Though Mom had read a few of the “popular”, recommended AD/HD books, she had never before understood my behaviors or my feelings.
This is a must-read for anyone who has ADD, or thinks they may, as well as for parents, friends, spouses, and teachers. Though many excellent books describing AD/HD exist, most are written from a medical or purely self-help perspective, perspectives that create distance from the phenomenon of having AD/HD. Bryan’s memoir provides an invaluable contribution to the field of AD/HD literature because it is written from the perspective of an insider, someone who has ADD. Undiagnosed until the age of 37, the author recalls excruciatingly painful memories from early childhood through the more positive experiences of his present life. His tell-all life story recounts, with an amazing vulnerability, what it was like for him to grow up in his family, his school years, his friendships, his career, and his romantic life.
Perhaps most importantly, he openly describes how his behavior before his diagnosis, and others’ reactions to it, took an extreme toll on his self-esteem. This affected every area of his life, alienated him, and led to the deep-seated belief that he was inherently “bad”. The book also explains how he coped with the overwhelming shame he experienced and how he went about developing the more positive thinking patterns that have led to an extremely successful life.
Bryan provides insight into not only what having AD/HD feels like, but also explains that it is a neurological condition, thereby shattering myths still commonly held about it in our culture. He describes how AD/HDers’ minds work differently than those of non-AD/HDers’, something I wish I’d known before my own late diagnosis, and like Bryan, felt defective as a human being.
As refreshing as it is significant, Bryan focuses on many positive traits, such as the creativity many AD/HDers display, that can be cultivated. His own successes show that while there may be many negatives associated with having AD/HD, that realizing and developing the positive traits can actually be a gift, a resource for achievement.
Bryan shares his innermost thoughts through this raw recollection of his own life experiences, even in a world where having AD/HD remains stigmatized. He urges those who believe they may have AD/HD be evaluated in order to determine whether they have the disorder, maintaining that knowledge of AD/HD is key to overcoming its unique challenges and to creating a successful life and a bright future. For those of us who know we have AD/HD, he stresses the responsibility we must take for improving our lives.
Finally, the book is highly readable (especially for someone who has AD/HD!) due to its short chapters, its vivid descriptions, and the fast-moving story that moves from pain to triumph. I couldn’t put the book down. This book has changed my mindset from one of alienation to one of hope.
~Cixous39 online reviewer
This book was incredible. Bryan’s story was almost identical to mine and he answered questions I’ve had about myself and my life that I’ve struggled with for years. He explained the why’s of what somone with ADD does what they do and how they see, compensate and navigate through the world. This book was an extremely emotional read for me but left me with a very positive outlook and ideas on what steps to take to improve my life. A must read for anyone with or related to someone with ADD.
~TMF online reviewer
I am humbled and grateful.
Thank you!
Bryan
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