Road Map to Holland: How I Found My Way Through My Son's First Two Years With Down Syndrome

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It is almost impossible to give fitting praise for this superb book by Jennifer Graf Groneberg. I don't know where to start. Groneberg has been blessed with the rarest of gifts as a writer: She is a brilliant wordsmith, an accomplishment in and of itself; yet she is also so beautifully human in her story telling. She is strong, vulnerable, scared, hopeful, flawed, honest, loving, doubtful, humble, and confident. She is all of us. We are with her in the NICU, as she receives the news that her middle son has been diagnosed with Down syndrome, at home with her as she adjusts to her new future, in the lake with her as she imagines that "nothing good" will come her way again (she of course proves herself gloriously wrong), at Avery's physical therapy appointments where her heart breaks and rejoices at the same time as she observes how extra hard her toddler son must work for the smallest of victories. She is not above sharing with us that among some of the unwelcome comments and feelings offered by strangers about her son are also some of her own. She exposes herself so honestly; the lows as eloquently described as the highs. Her style is spare but not simple, without an ounce of pretension or preachiness. You will finish the story with joy and hope in your heart, and a deep sense of admiration and love for this family who, at the end of the day, isn't so different from yours or mine.

Don't pass up this ticket. Groneberg has invited us along for this extraordinary part of her journey, and I can only hope that there will be many more stops in the future where we can climb aboard and join her.

If you are an expectant mother of a child diagnosed with Down syndrome, or the new mother of a newly diagnosed child, or a friend or a family member, get your hands on a copy of this book. You will find no better guide to your journey than Groneberg, who is a gifted writer: honest, loving, self-aware and simply the finest company a reader could ask for.

This book was just stunning! Jennifer has a way of infusing the reader into her life. I felt like I was there, experiencing it with her. She lays it all bare, herself, her perceived faults and how she dealt with the premature birth of her twins and Down syndrome diagnosis of Avery. What comes across is a very spiritually put together person, a woman who truly knows what matters most at the end of the day.

This book is a gift to the world.

In ROAD MAP TO HOLLAND Jennifer Graf Groneberg reveals a lifetime of lessons learned in a very short time-span. Her message of hope resonates with the joy of her ultimate discovery that one of the greatest gifts she can give her children is to simply teach them how to love. Read this book, read Jennifer's blog, and join in a celebration of a unique family with a mom-writer at the helm who's gracious and generous enough to invite us all along on her ongoing journey of discovery.

I couldn't put this book down.

The author writes about her experience with premature delivery of twins, one of whom is diagnosed with Down syndrome, and the first two years of their life.

This isn't just a story of a mom having to come to terms with that trip to Holland, but an honest mom's story--of balancing the arrival of twins with her preschooler, the affect that her situation had on friendships--both good and bad, her marriage, and her perception of herself as a woman.

This is an excellent book--honest without being morose, uplifting without coming across as saccharine-sweet. A must read for all moms.

The book arrived and I read it in less than twenty-four hours and that was on a busy weekend of attending Paralympic events. I have been trying to decide what to write...other than "read this now if you are a mom". Sure, it is a book written by a mom of a special needs child, but her words resonate with all moms. Words of reality...words of frustration...words of love...read them.

I keep thinking perhaps it is because of time spent in NICU with our oldest son...or the special needs diagnoses times three of our younger sons which my husband and I have faced that drew me into this book. No. It is Jennifer's honest words about the moments of fear and uncertainty of motherhood.

If you are a mom, read "Road Map To Holland". If you are a mom of a special needs child...or perhaps like me, of several special needs children...read "Road Map To Holland". If there exists a writer able to more fluidly weave words...I've never read her work.

Thank you, Jennifer, for sympathizing with and understanding me. You have indeed shared your spirit, and that is a beautiful gift.

Note...For parents of children with Down Syndrome, the book's appendix offers a plethora of resources, additional reading titles and a glossary of terminology.

I received this book yesterday afternoon and finished it today. What can I say--I was completely and utterly entranced by the honesty and realness of what I read. Having a child with DS too, I could feel her pain, feel her raw emotion, feel her fear. But as I turned each page, I felt myself being forgiven along with her, and it's been a long time since I've felt so much relief and joy. Thank you Jennifer for sharing your story and your experiences with Avery. May you someday know how much grace and dignity you've brought to my own outlook on my future with my son. God bless you and your wonderful family.

This book is a must read for new parents of a child with Down syndrome. Oh, how I wish I had a book like this after I found out my third daughter had Down syndrome. And now it is here, and it is fabulous!

The writting is stunning and yet so personal that by the end of the book you'll want to stop by the author's house for coffee.

This book is honest and true. Please read it and share it with anyone who has ever been touched by the world of special needs.

This is the book that all new parents (or those with a prenatal diagnosis) should be given. So many texts are full of scary facts and overwhelming information. Road Map to Holland is an honest and heartwarming look at the roller coaster of emotions that come with being a new parent to a child with Down Syndrome. It's a wonderful story of falling in love with your child and seeing past a diagnosis.

This book is wonderful! As a new mom with a son with DS, I cannot express how accurate this book depicts the wide range of emotions, confusion, feelings of being lost and guilt, and most of all love we all feel for our children. This book should be handed out in the hospital before you leave with your child. It would help to ease so much fear and help you understand, YOU ARE NOT ALONE! I was in tears so many times through out this book and remember thinking, "YES, that is exactly how I feel/felt!"....HIGHLY recommend to anyone and everyone! If you don't understand DS, read this and educate yourself!! Great book!

Road Map to Holland is a compelling story. I read it in one day. It is heart-wrenching, honest and hopeful. I would like to particularily recommend it to anyone who has loved a child. It is not just for parents of special needs kids, but for all of us.

Jennifer takes the hand of her readers and leads them through the early years with her son Avery. From the frightening and sobering days in the NICU with Avery and his twin, to Avery's diagnosis with down syndrome, to sharing the news with family and friends, Jennifer brings the story home in a way that can't help but touch hearts.

If you are the parent, family member, friend, caregiver or teacher of a child with special needs, this book is a must read. Honest and generous with her words, Jennifer takes on the myths and the stereotypes. This book will change your heart and leave you the better for it. I highly recommend this wonderful book.

Fabulous! This is an excellent resource for families dealing with the implications of receiving diagnosis of Down syndrome. However, the amazing and sometimes painful honesty of the retelling leads you to feel as if you lived through this time, as Jennifer's close friend. Enjoy. You won't be disappointed.

Parenting a child with Down syndrome is a special and unique experience, which Jennifer captures in a moving, honest way. My husband & I both read this book and were touched by how deeply emotional Jennifer's story is, and how much we could relate to it.

Not only would I recommend this book for someone who loves a person with Down syndrome (or is expecting a child with DS), but any parent could relate to the love Jennifer has for her boys.

I could not put down this book. It is amazing. Road Map to Holland is the story of Jennifer Graf Groneberg's journey through the first two years of her son Avery's life. It is an unflinchingly honest look of what it was like to receive his diagnosis of Down syndrome, and how it affected her. The book is a wonderful testament in that what you think could be one of the worst things you'd ever go through could, in reality, be something absolutely wonderful. One of my favorite lines from the book is, "He's the child that I wanted, that I did not know I wanted."

I wish every woman would read this book. So many times, abnormal results from prenatal tests are presented in the bleakest terms possible. And yet, I think there are many instances in which an unwelcome diagnosis is not at all representative of the actual child who is born.

Road Map to Holland might be a scary book to read when you're pregnant, because it makes you think about things that are difficult to contemplate. Yet it offers so much hope and inspiration. I did not know 92% of women who receive a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome will abort. That statistic deeply troubles me. I think, and the book makes an excellent case, that if more people were offered an honest picture of Down syndrome, the statistic would not be so high. Road Map to Holland makes you search your soul about what makes a life worth living and what is truly important. I know I will keep it close by, and in the event anyone close to me ever receives a troubling prenatal test result, I will encourage her to read it for the comfort and education it offers. I encourage you to read it too. It really is an inspiration.

This book took my breath away with its factual, emotional, and honest capturing of the journey through the birth, diagnosis, and early growth of a child with Down syndrome. Groneberg clearly displays the confusion, guilt, exhaustion, fear, and (later) unparalleled joy that the news, 'Your baby has Down syndrome' brings. I hope that all new parents of babies with DS will read this book and find validation, encouragement, and most of all hope as they walk through the initial maze of doctors' offices, therapy appointments and stacks of insurance papers. Groneberg rightly emphasizes that the delights and treasures brought to their family by their son with DS makes it all worth it.

I think this book should be the first thing a parent receives from the hospital, along with the diagnosis of Down syndrome. If it were, so many new parents would be spared some of the misconceptions, confusion, and fear that often accompanies the initial diagnosis. If you are a doctor, family member, or therapist in contact with new parents of babies with DS, please consider giving them this book. It will do them a world of good.

Nobody in my family has Down syndrome, but I still found this book to be well written. It is not a how to book, it is simply the experiences of a mother who was surprised at birth with premies, including one premie with Down Syndrome. It is not a happy happy uplifting I'm so grateful for all my blessings book but it is an honest story of the work, the shock, the complicated set of feelings, the processing of said feeling, and the reactions of friends and family. I was left with a determination to keep up with this family and especially darling Avery.

How I wish that the young people I work with could read this book and realize that a child is not a cute toy to dress up, but a human being that may have profound needs, or at any rate special needs, and that they need to build a firmer support system and gain maturity before throwing that B/C away.

PS If you're reading this, former neighbor who shunned the family as if Down is as easy to catch as chicken pox, your cruelty shocks me.