Like No Other Boy by Larry Center

Release: June 9th 2020
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Splitrail Publishing
Source: RABT Book Tours
Find it at: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, B&N

Publishers Weekly says Like No Other Boy “finds true beauty in the moving love of fathers for sons” in this emotional tale of a single father fighting for the happiness of his autistic child.

Chris Crutcher has lost nearly everything. His divorce–the “uncivil war” as he calls it–started the downward spiral two years ago. Although he has remained strong, life threatens to take the only thing that truly matters to him. As his job opportunities dwindle, his ex-wife leaves him with nothing but a stack of child support bills and a lawsuit for full custody.

If Chris wins the battle, he gets to keep the only person in the world who matters to him: his 8-year old autistic son, Tommy. And Tommy finds happiness only in his love for the chimps at a local primatology research center in sunny San Diego. If Chris loses the battle, his ex-wife will tear their son away and transplant him in Houston, far from his father and the chimpanzees he has learned to love.

With beautifully insightful interior narration, Like No Other Boy is equal parts tortured and heartwarming. It shows the full spectrum of the fatherhood experience: successes, failures, dreams, and fears. Larry Center weaves in scientific concepts about communication barriers, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and humans’ connections to animals. And he has created an optimistic fictional story perfect for adult audiences. These include simply either compassionate individuals with curious minds or the parents of children with developmental delays. However, readers are sure to feel the joys and pains of both Chris Crutcher and his one-of-a-kind son.

About the Author :

Larry Center has always been fascinated by the relationships between humans and animals. Also, he is intrigued by the idea of language development in children and the power of animal communication. He believes the possibility that perhaps there is a layer where they both meet. Perhaps there’s more to communication than meets the ear.

Besides, he has a degree in philosophy . And he tends to look at the world through a lens that questions reality, its limits, and boundaries.

Larry lives in Nashville TN, and writes his novels listening to the music of Don Henley in the background. He is hard at work on other novels..

Website | LinkedIn | Instagram | Goodreads

Like No Other Boy Review:

“Like No Other Boy” is a beautiful, heart-warming story that showcases a parent’s love for their child, and I loved reading it.

This book will have you in joy and tears. The author spins the tale in a beautiful manner where you immediately feel the love between Chris and Tommy. Chris is just an average man, but you can see how protective he is towards Tommy and will do everything in his power to ensure that Tommy survives and gets better. The author wrote him so realistically, where he also feels down and useless and gets angry at what he did to deserve these challenges. Yet, he does his best to ensure that his son gets better. I also enjoyed Chris’s connection with Rachel and felt the author incorporated her character nicely.

The author also wrote Tommy wonderfully. I have not personally spent an extended period with someone with autism, but I think the author accurately portrayed Tommy’s symptoms. Also, the author takes the tale in a unique direction where you see the special connection that Tommy shares with the chimpanzees. The book makes you wonder how intelligent people are, even if we consider them to be disabled in some way.

Similarly, Cheryl despised me in certain scenes, particularly when she pushes Chris into the hospital and threatens to take Tommy to Houston. The author wrote the characters so dynamically that you feel strongly towards them all. Moreover, there are moments like the court case surrounding Tommy’s custody, where you cannot put the book down.

Overall, you must read “Like No Other Boy” if you are in the mood for a solid emotional date between a father and his son.