Beth Cato's Reviews > The Horse Boy: A Father's Quest to Heal His Son

I approached this book with equal measures of curiosity and trepidation. My eight-year-old son is autistic. The subject of autism is personal for me. I was concerned that this book would be New Agey and wishy-washy and that they were trying to cure their child. There is a world of difference between "healing" and "curing," and I was relieved right away when Isaacson made that distinction. They didn't want to take away their son's autism and make him a stranger, but they did want Rowan to cope with and exist in the world. They wanted a child who wouldn't tantrum in frightening ways or defecate all over himself.

I get that. My son's autism isn't as severe as their Rowan's condition, but I spent two years going through that potty training hell. I get that desperation.

Therefore, I understood that when their son connected in a profound way with their neighbor's horse, that they were willing to explore that in a spiritual way and do something beyond the standard therapy. Their journey leads them to Mongolia and out into Siberia. Some of the things done by the shamans made me wince, as they seemed abusive--the whole family gets flogged by one shaman, though their son gets the gentlest measure--but the journey is utterly fascinating. That's really one of the amazing things about the book. It's not merely about a family's struggle with autism. It's a journey into one of the most remote areas of the world, where Soviet concrete crumbles and Reindeer People wander the taiga. It's about how shamanism hid away during the communist years but didn't die completely. Sure, some of their traditions aren't quite so appealing (like medicine made of every part of the reindeer, including poop) but it's still just plain fascinating.

The take away at the end is very rational, too. The journey completely changed their son. Rowan emerged as a boy who could make friends with other children, who could ride his own horse, and could handle his own bowel movements. Isaacson doesn't make any grand claims that the shamanism or magic did it; it may have been the journey itself was the turning point, and what an incredible journey it was.

Now I want to watch the documentary about their experience to see how well it matches what's in my mind.