Book Review: "Upward Bound" by Woody Brown

This book gave me lots of feels! But on top of the wide range of emotions it took me through, I found it really eye-opening. It definitely made me think about how we view adults with disabilities.

“No utopia has presented itself. Adult day care is adult day care.”

Upward Bound is an adult daycare facility for adults with disabilities. While the name sounds cheerful, for many of the clients, it’s a depressing, boring haven—but at least they’re not in an institution. Many of the clients are nonverbal, but some try to communicate the best they can.

We meet Jorge, the nonverbal gentle giant who likes to escape and go across the street to hide. Jorge is primarily cared for by Carlos, once a young man on a downward trajectory until his sister got him a job at the facility. Tom is a handsome man with cerebral palsy, who can’t talk or move much, but he has a rich inner life. Emma is autistic and nonverbal, but Beatles music brings her piece. And then there’s Dave, the director, who is very particular—especially about Upward Bound’s annual fundraiser and Christmas show.

We learn about each of these folks in their own chapters, and in some cases, they even narrate for themselves. But our guide for most of the book is Walter, a highly intelligent man with autism, who can communicate through an aide, and he aspires to be a writer. Through his eyes we see what the clients are really thinking, even if they can’t speak.

I found this to be funny, heartwarming, heartbreaking, and thought-provoking, sometimes simultaneously. Walter is a wry narrator who definitely has a grasp on the world around him. Impressively, the book’s author has minimal speech and types to communicate, but he is a summa cum laude graduate of UCLA and received an MFA from Columbia.