Rhoda G. Penny
An Extra Ordinary Life depicts the joys struggles and triumphs experienced by Matthew and his family throughout his life.
Beth on Amazon wrote:In this fictionalized novel, Rhoda G. Perry paints a picture of the lives a rural family whose youngest child was born with Down syndrome. Throughout the story, Rhoda describes the love and support offered to his family by the community and the process involved in his education. Despite a few bumps in the road along the way, from a couple of area educators and a couple of prejudiced area women, he remains with his family and eventually receives his “diploma” with the rest of his class.
Rhoda has drawn on her own personal experience as she has a brother with Down syndrome. This was not meant to be an account of her brother’s life. Instead it is a work of fiction based on true facts. In this author’s opinion, Rhoda has aptly shown that Down syndrome children thrive on love and support.
Although the story is fiction, there is so much truth in this beautiful story. It's vivid and descriptive with all the details to make you feel like you're a part of the story. As the mother of a son with Down syndrome, I can easily relate to this beautiful book. The young man in the story was raised in a time before system supports were in place and inclusion was practiced and yet this young man had a profound effect on everyone around him. The story is set in the rural Midwest and, once again, I can strongly relate to the setting of this novel. This is a book of family love, acceptance...and the profound impact of the youngest member of the family being born with Down syndrome.
Leave a Reply