The Warner Boys: Our Family's Story of Autism and Hope

Description

An emotional, revealing memoir of one family's life in seclusion-and the love, strength, and faith it took to save it. Seahawks star running back Curt Warner and his wife, Ana, were prominent figures in Seattle in the early 1990s. When they dropped from the public eye after Curt's retirement, everyone assumed it was for a simpler life. But the reality behind their seclusion was a secret they hid from even their closest friends: their twins, Austin and Christian, had been diagnosed with severe autism. What followed was a painful struggle to hold their family and their marriage together in a home filled with chaos, emotional exhaustion, and constant fear for the safety of their unpredictable but beloved boys. Now, after years of silence, the Warners share their inspiring journey from stardom and success to heartbreaking self-imposed isolation. Above all, it's a story of the life-changing truth that love for family and each other-no matter how challenged-is the path to healing and peace. The Warner Boys is the true story of a family who fought for their children and how they grew stronger against all odds.

Curt Warner is an honors graduate in communication, a two-time All-American at Penn State, a 2009 College Football Hall of Fame inductee, and a former All-Pro running back for the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams. A three-time Pro Bowler, Warner was inducted into the Seattle Seahawks Ring of Honor in 1994. Ana Warner has dedicated her life to the care of her family and the study and treatment of autism spectrum disorder. Both she and her husband have served as keynote speakers at the National Autism Conference at Penn State and the Texas Autism Conference in San Antonio. The Warner Boys is their first book. Dave Boling is an award-winning sports columnist and former reporter for the Tacoma News Tribune. He is the author of two novels, Guernica and The Lost History of Stars.

"Healing and transformative, this memoir of love and faith shows no situation is beyond hope." -Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Ana and Curt Warner have written a memoir that could reach readers on many levels...Rather than supporting one side or argument over another, the authors depict how they achieved what all parents want: the best possible lives for their children." -Booklist (starred review) "The shared recollections of these two courageous parents are all the more admirable because, with the twins, there was no sudden miracle cure, no leaping of developmental milestones owing to some new treatment." -Bookreporter "...worthy of an Autism Pulitzer, if there were such a thing." -Jill Escher, National Council on Severe Autism "A frank, unflinching account of a family with autism-because autism affects everyone in a family-The Warner Boys is at once touching, devastating, inspiring, and powerful. While revealing the intimate details of their own struggles and small victories, Ana and Curt Warner also point to a much larger problem our world faces: how we, as a society, deal with the massive increase of severe ASD, and the need for empathy, understanding, funding, and, most of all, an honest and transparent accounting of how we got here. This book does not portray the high-functioning, 'quirky genius' variant of ASD that is so much more readily reflected in today's media, but rather, the shattering side of autism that has increased exponentially in recent decades. This is not a book about 'other people's problems'; it is a book that everybody needs to read." -Garth Stein, author of the New York Times bestselling novel The Art of Racing in the Rain "The Warner Boys is a beautiful heartfelt book written by Curt and Ana Warner, who share with the reader the reality of parenting two beautiful twin boys with an autism diagnosis. Curt and Ana have written a book which presents their journey in raising Austin and Christian and their amazing advocacy to assure they have the highest quality of life possible. This book is now high on my list of must-reads for any individual, parent, or other family member impacted by autism, as well as anyone wanting to understand autism." -Scott Badesch, president/chief executive officer, Autism Society of America