A Conscientious Life (Sailing Against the Wind)

In his first book Jeffrey helped hundreds of families dealing with the autism diagnosis and provided his own personal strategies for coping, giving personal examples and doing extensive research on possible cures. In his new book A Conscientious Life Jeffrey submits a semi-autobiographical account of a young man(Jonathan Stark) and his life struggles including his struggles with having an autistic child(Steven). The author also explores the subjects of religion, politics, love and loss.Here are some reviews of the new book:The book weaves a compelling story line that certainly engaged me. I think the author's imagery is colorful, and capturing. Dr. Darold Treffert, Author and Autism Expert, Fond du Lac, WisconsinI think the dramatic arc has to do with the main character's honesty, genuine heart and naivety confronting a cruel and unfeeling world and the challenge to incorporate that new sense of realism into his world while still retaining and even deepening the main character's humane way of being in the world and with others around him. The razor's edge of that confrontation would seem to be the foreshadowed and unexpected burden of living with autistic child. Fred Hersom, longtime friend and musician, Concord, CaliforniaOverall, the book is an excellent read. Since it covers many parts of life, it has a very wide appeal. Those who would enjoy this book would be: those who are very politically active or spend their time keeping informed, those who have had trouble relating to their parents, those who have felt any uncertainty in their lives, those who have had to deal with the grief of their parent's deaths, and finally, those who are the parent of a child with autism. James Williams, autism writer and nationally-known speaker, Chicago, Illinois It has such a powerful voice...most people would love to be able to write a book with your talents. Maeve Quinn, former Sheboygan School Board member and community leaderThe author shows a tremendous ability to capture the human condition. His work takes us from early stages in life through college years and the loss of a close family member, and beyond. We can all relate tothis. His search for the central characters' identity reminds us of our own adolescent phase in life, and how we work through it. In sum, this book does an excellent job of capturing that which we all know. The title does the book justice: It truly is 'A Conscientious Life.''Michael J. TollifsonSinger/Songwriter, Sheperdstown, West Virginia