Matt McAvoy Book Review

Don’t expect a book by experts in the subject of living with the condition of dyslexia – at least, that is, professional or academic experts; this authority comes from a place of experience.  Karl is himself a sufferer, although I am sure he would not approve of being called a “sufferer”, as it is more accurate to say that this book is in fact a celebration of the “gift” of dyslexia.  It does, after all, outline all the ways in which the condition is of real benefit to the life of those with it – and, by way of reinforcement, he cites the achievements of such famous sufferers as Albert Einstein, Nikolai Tesla and Richard Branson, among many others.

This is not stuffy academia, nor is it the DSM, or some in-depth factual reference book by high profile psychiatric and medical experts – in many ways it is more useful than that.  It is rather a holistic explanation of dyslexia by someone who, following his own diagnosis – and, more profoundly, that of his daughter – went out of his way to find out as much information about it as he possibly could, then applied these many different approaches to his own experience of it, in order to share the findings with others; some have been useful to him, some not so.  It helps, of course, that Karl is also a very good author.  The holistic, overall approach comprises explanations including cognitive, psychological and biological, as well as even spiritual.  If I’m honest, I did feel it to be a little disorganized, its narrative not quite as linear and clear as it might have been, and that made it a touch difficult to stay focused.  But, it is structured, for the most part, and all the information Karl wants to impart is there, in a short, concise word count; at the end, taken as a sum of all of its parts, the objective is clear, and it is well achieved.

If you’re expecting flawless factual reference, this isn’t the book.  If, however, you are happy to read a very hard worked, well researched and adequately sourced information guide by a fellow dyslexic, then I highly recommend it.  A good, well intended achievement by a decent professional author, who has surely defied expectation.