A boy beyond reach

As a scientist and therapist, Dr Cheri Florance had the skills and training to help her patients to overcome speech and hearing difficulties. But nothing could prepare her for her toughest challenge -- her own son Whitney. From birth, he appeared unable to hear, seemed incapable of making any sounds, and was indifferent to those around him. Although the diagnosis of autism seemed to fit, Cheri could not accept the life that such a condition predicted for Whitney. The authorities begged her to institutionalize him and in defying them she jeopardized relationships and her professional reputation. But she saw something in Whitney that no one else did -- a boy who was trapped by his inability to communicate. In Cheri Florance's intense search for answers, she not only found her son but discovered something profound about the way the brain works and how we learn. This is a story that will resonate with any parent who has struggled to help a child.