From Amazon
Corporate life in early 21st-century America is even more ruthless than it was at the turn of the millennium. Lou Arrendale, well compensated for his remarkable pattern-recognition skills, enjoys his job and expects never to lose it. But he has a new boss, a man who thinks Lou and the others in his building are a liability. Lou and his coworkers are autistic. And the new boss is going to fire Lou and all his coworkers--unless they agree to undergo an experimental new procedure to "cure" them.
In The Speed of Dark, Elizabeth Moon has created a powerful, complex, and believable portrayal of a man who varies radically from what is defined as "normal." The author insightfully explores the nature of "normality," identity, choice, responsibility, free will, illness and health, and good and evil. The Speed of Dark is a powerful, moving, illuminating novel in the tradition of Flowers for Algernon, Forrest Gump, and Rain Man . --Cynthia Ward
From Publishers Weekly
"If I had not been what I am, what would I have been?" wonders Lou Arrendale, the autistic hero of Moon's compelling exploration of the concept of "normalcy" and what might happen when medical science attains the knowledge to "cure" adult autism. Arrendale narrates most of this book in a poignant earnestness that verges on the philosophical and showcases Moon's gift for characterization. The occasional third-person interjections from supporting characters are almost intrusive, although they supply needed data regarding subplots. At 35, Arrendale is a bioinformatics specialist who has a gift for pattern analysis and an ability to function well in both "normal" and "autistic" worlds. When the pharmaceutical company he works for recommends that all the autistic employees on staff undergo an experimental procedure that will basically alter their brains, his neatly ordered world shatters. All his life he has been taught "act normal, and you will be normal enough"-something that has enabled him to survive, but as he struggles to decide what to do, the violent behavior of a "normal friend" puts him in danger and rocks his faith in the normal world. He struggles to decide whether the treatment will help or destroy his sense of self. Is autism a disease or just another way of being? He is haunted by the "speed of dark" as he proceeds with his mesmerizing quest for self-"Not knowing arrives before knowing; the future arrives before the present. From this moment, past and future are the same in different directions, but I am going that way and not this way.... When I get there, the speed of light and the speed of dark will be the same." His decision will touch even the most jaded "normal."
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
In the tradition of Flowers for Algernon, Moon's thought-provoking novel asks whether we treat impairments of the brain at too great a cost. Lou Arrendale is a young autistic living in a future time, when most of the symptoms of autism can be controlled through medication. Lou lives on his own, works full time at a job where his abilities to recognize patterns are valued, and socializes with nonautistics during his weekly fencing class. Although baffled by the complex social signals and subtle facial cues of nonautistics, Lou is content with himself as he is--until he falls in love with Marjory. When his supervisor pressures him to try an experimental treatment that will eradicate his autism, Lou must decide whether the benefits of life as a "normal" will outweigh the possible loss of the unique qualities that make him who he is. Moon is effective at putting the reader inside Lou's mind, and it is both fascinating and painful to see the behavior and qualities of so-called normals through his eyes. Meredith Parets
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Review
“The Speed of Dark gives a stunning, insightful and openhearted look at the world through the eyes of a man with autism. After reading this book, you will think deeply on the question: What does ‘normal’ mean? Elizabeth Moon has written an outstanding testament to the unique gift every one of us has to share, exactly as we are, while also cheering us on to be all that we can be. Kudos to Ms. Moon for helping us to see with new clarity not only the mystery of autism, but also the wonder of it.”
–BARRY NEIL KAUFMAN
Author of Son-Rise and Happiness Is A Choice
Director of The Option Institute and
the Autism Treatment Center of America™
“[A] fine novel . . . I marvel at Elizabeth Moon’s achievement. With no shadow of sentimentality or easy romanticism, she shows us the core of autism . . . making us experience the anxiety and tension continually accompanying its autistic hero as he struggles to make sense of the world we so readily call normal.”
–CLARA PARK
Author of Exiting Nirvana: A Daughter’s Life with Autism
“Absolutely compelling . . . A fine novel! Elizabeth Moon takes us to a part of the human neighborhood that is at once enchanting and heartbreaking.”
–GREG BEAR
Author of Darwin’s Radio
–BARRY NEIL KAUFMAN
Author of Son-Rise and Happiness Is A Choice
Director of The Option Institute and
the Autism Treatment Center of America™
“[A] fine novel . . . I marvel at Elizabeth Moon’s achievement. With no shadow of sentimentality or easy romanticism, she shows us the core of autism . . . making us experience the anxiety and tension continually accompanying its autistic hero as he struggles to make sense of the world we so readily call normal.”
–CLARA PARK
Author of Exiting Nirvana: A Daughter’s Life with Autism
“Absolutely compelling . . . A fine novel! Elizabeth Moon takes us to a part of the human neighborhood that is at once enchanting and heartbreaking.”
–GREG BEAR
Author of Darwin’s Radio
Book Description
In the near future, disease will be a condition of the past. Most genetic defects will be removed at birth; the remaining during infancy. Unfortunately, there will be a generation left behind. For members of that missed generation, small advances will be made. Through various programs, they will be taught to get along in the world despite their differences. They will be made active and contributing members of society. But they will never be normal.
Lou Arrendale is a member of that lost generation, born at the wrong time to reap the awards of medical science. Part of a small group of high-functioning autistic adults, he has a steady job with a pharmaceutical company, a car, friends, and a passion for fencing. Aside from his annual visits to his counselor, he lives a low-key, independent life. He has learned to shake hands and make eye contact. He has taught himself to use “please” and “thank you” and other conventions of conversation because he knows it makes others comfortable. He does his best to be as normal as possible and not to draw attention to himself.
But then his quiet life comes under attack. It starts with an experimental treatment that will reverse the effects of autism in adults. With this treatment Lou would think and act and be just like everyone else. But if he was suddenly free of autism, would he still be himself? Would he still love the same classical music–with its complications and resolutions? Would he still see the same colors and patterns in the world–shades and hues that others cannot see? Most importantly, would he still love Marjory, a woman who may never be able to reciprocate his feelings? Would it be easier for her to return the love of a “normal”?
There are intense pressures coming from the world around him–including an angry supervisor who wants to cut costs by sacrificing the supports necessary to employ autistic workers. Perhaps even more disturbing are the barrage of questions within himself. For Lou must decide if he should submit to a surgery that might completely change the way he views the world . . . and the very essence of who he is.
Thoughtful, provocative, poignant, unforgettable, The Speed of Dark is a gripping exploration into the mind of an autistic person as he struggles with profound questions of humanity and matters of the heart.
Lou Arrendale is a member of that lost generation, born at the wrong time to reap the awards of medical science. Part of a small group of high-functioning autistic adults, he has a steady job with a pharmaceutical company, a car, friends, and a passion for fencing. Aside from his annual visits to his counselor, he lives a low-key, independent life. He has learned to shake hands and make eye contact. He has taught himself to use “please” and “thank you” and other conventions of conversation because he knows it makes others comfortable. He does his best to be as normal as possible and not to draw attention to himself.
But then his quiet life comes under attack. It starts with an experimental treatment that will reverse the effects of autism in adults. With this treatment Lou would think and act and be just like everyone else. But if he was suddenly free of autism, would he still be himself? Would he still love the same classical music–with its complications and resolutions? Would he still see the same colors and patterns in the world–shades and hues that others cannot see? Most importantly, would he still love Marjory, a woman who may never be able to reciprocate his feelings? Would it be easier for her to return the love of a “normal”?
There are intense pressures coming from the world around him–including an angry supervisor who wants to cut costs by sacrificing the supports necessary to employ autistic workers. Perhaps even more disturbing are the barrage of questions within himself. For Lou must decide if he should submit to a surgery that might completely change the way he views the world . . . and the very essence of who he is.
Thoughtful, provocative, poignant, unforgettable, The Speed of Dark is a gripping exploration into the mind of an autistic person as he struggles with profound questions of humanity and matters of the heart.
From the Back Cover
“The Speed of Dark gives a stunning, insightful and openhearted look at the world through the eyes of a man with autism. After reading this book, you will think deeply on the question: What does ‘normal’ mean? Elizabeth Moon has written an outstanding testament to the unique gift every one of us has to share, exactly as we are, while also cheering us on to be all that we can be. Kudos to Ms. Moon for helping us to see with new clarity not only the mystery of autism, but also the wonder of it.”
–BARRY NEIL KAUFMAN
Author of Son-Rise and Happiness Is A Choice
Director of The Option Institute and
the Autism Treatment Center of America™
“[A] fine novel . . . I marvel at Elizabeth Moon’s achievement. With no shadow of sentimentality or easy romanticism, she shows us the core of autism . . . making us experience the anxiety and tension continually accompanying its autistic hero as he struggles to make sense of the world we so readily call normal.”
–CLARA PARK
Author of Exiting Nirvana: A Daughter’s Life with Autism
“Absolutely compelling . . . A fine novel! Elizabeth Moon takes us to a part of the human neighborhood that is at once enchanting and heartbreaking.”
–GREG BEAR
Author of Darwin’s Radio
–BARRY NEIL KAUFMAN
Author of Son-Rise and Happiness Is A Choice
Director of The Option Institute and
the Autism Treatment Center of America™
“[A] fine novel . . . I marvel at Elizabeth Moon’s achievement. With no shadow of sentimentality or easy romanticism, she shows us the core of autism . . . making us experience the anxiety and tension continually accompanying its autistic hero as he struggles to make sense of the world we so readily call normal.”
–CLARA PARK
Author of Exiting Nirvana: A Daughter’s Life with Autism
“Absolutely compelling . . . A fine novel! Elizabeth Moon takes us to a part of the human neighborhood that is at once enchanting and heartbreaking.”
–GREG BEAR
Author of Darwin’s Radio
About the Author
Elizabeth Moon is a native Texan who grew up two hundred and fifty miles south of San Antonio. After earning a degree in history from Rice University, she spent three years in the Marine Corps, then earned a degree in Biology from the University of Texas, Austin. She is intimately acquainted with autism, through the raising of an autistic son, now a teenager. She lives in Florence, Texas.
