“The Horse Boy ” by Rupert Isaacson
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“The Horse Boy ” by Rupert Isaacson
This book is a true story of a family who embark on an epic journey across Mongolia. The author, Rupert Isaacson and his wife Kristin had one child who was diagnosed with autism at the age of two. As their son, Rowan, grew older, the couple struggled to deal with and manage his severe tantrums and meltdowns, and in the book, they describe their feelings of anxiety, depression and exhaustion dealing with Rowan’s challenging behaviour but also their overwhelming love for their son. They consulted many doctors, trying to get therapies and strategies to help Rowan progress but were unsuccessful in finding any that had a lasting effect.
Rupert noticed that his son had a strong connection with horses and that horses had a calming effect on him. Rupert decided to find an alternative source of healing for Rowan and after extensive research, found that in Mongolia, the Shamans, who practice interacting with the spiritual world through trances for the purpose of healing, had a reputation for healing children with neurological symptoms.
Rupert is a journalist and arranged for a film crew to accompany the family on their travels across the country and to document their meetings with the Shamans and the healing ceremonies they participated in. This documentary financed this epic journey, and Isaacson records it all for this book.
Our book group agreed that the author had impressive literacy skills and wrote in detail; one member really enjoyed the descriptions of Mongolian history, the cities and the vast, beautiful countryside that the family covered in their quest to meet the healers. Concern was raised in the group about the rituals that Rowan and his parents all endured as part of the healing process, and we had a long discussion regarding whether this had a positive or negative effect on the family and Rowan’s symptoms. Many of the group said that although the author described the journey in great detail, this led to chunks of repetitive dialogue and the book became a challenge to read. This was another book that split the group in their feelings towards it. If you have an interest in alternative healing therapies and in particular the autism spectrum or want to know more about Mongolia and the Shamans, this may be a book for you to read.