Rating: 
Summary: I Can Relate
Review: My mother mentioned this book to me after hearing the author interviewed on NPR. I thought she'd read it. She's usually read everything. I found it at the library, took it home, and read it in one sitting. I am the oldest of three sisters. The second oldest is MMR and wasn't actually diagnosed until the age of 18. I was four when Mom brought her home from the hospital and I remember wondering if we could send her back.
Working in the transportation industry along with having a sister who is developmentally disabled, I was bound to like this book. My favorite part was Rachel's realization of what self-determination actually means. My family and I struggle with this in regards to my sister and her choices.
I plan to buy this book for my boss as my one year anniversary present to myself. Every bus driver who drives the public and/or the disabled should be required to read it.
This book showed me that as a sibling of a woman with developmental disabilities I am not alone. Thanks Rachel!
Rating:
Summary: One of the most generous authors you'll ever find
Review: Not only is this a remarkable book, but this author, on her web site, shares gobs and gobs and gobs of writing advice. This is advice that you'd pay your good money for usually, but Ms. Simon gives it to us free, a gift. Thank you.
Rating: 
Summary: Of a Boy
Review: Of a Boy by Sonya Hartnett (A Penguin Book; $24.95)
ISBN 0-14-014622-9
Set in 1997 Australia after the disappearance of the Metford children (based on the true story of the Beaumont children). Adrian a boy of nine, lives with his Grandmother and depressed uncle Rory. Adrian feels lonely and disconnected, this feeling is increased as adults fail him. Adrian's life is full of fear he is scared of self-combustion, quicksand and shopping centers. His greatest fear is to become an outcast like the crazy children from the shelter at his school. Adrian is intrigued by the Metford's disappearance and imagines what may have happened to them. Adrian just longs for love and acceptance, he thinks by finding the Metford children he will achieve the attention he desires. Adrian along with his mixed matched out of control, friend, Nicole, pursue the Metford's case to receive acknowledgment. The gentleness and twisted perceptions of childhood are partly responsible for the rash decisions made.The novel is written in a clear lucid style. It is not a light or humorous read, but a compelling one. Themes throughout the novel are dark, sad and heavy. This style in third person is suited to its purpose, expressing the thoughts inside a sad young boy's head. Towards the end of the novel the style becomes mysterious and suggestive as the disappearance of the Metford children unfolds. However, the dark themes within the mystery are still continued. The reader of this novel was forced to like the sad, lost and confused boy Adrian. Adrian is so mixed up that the reader cannot help feeling sympathetic towards him. Nicole is portrayed as un-likable, she is misunderstood and totally out of control; her tone is rude and sharp. However, at the end of the novel the reader feels more sympathetic through the extremes she went to, to have people pay attention. Adrian's Grandmother was also portrayed as an un-likable character; the reader believes that she could have made more of an effort with Adrian. Through her thoughts you can see her reomorse and the self-confliction she expiriences. Uncle Rory tries to give help to Adrian but cannot give advice with the sate he is in himself. The novel is slow going and the ending was disappointingly predictable, the reader just does not know how this ending would eventuate. The emotion in the novel was conveyed through to the reader successfully. Being from a childs' point of view powerlessness and loss loom larger from their perspective. The characters were all very individual allowing the reader to visualise them. The themes throughout the novel were contemporary and the issues explored relevant. This novel is suitable for young adults.
Rating: 
Summary: Zzzzz...
Review: OK, first off I would like to say that this IS an enlightening book about how mentally disadvantaged people are treated in everyday life. For the first chapter. It should have stopped then. I'm sorry but the only thing I can find useful about this book besides that is that it is an AWESOME sleep aide.
Rating:
Summary: Profound
Review: Profound This is a hugely profound look at the life of children that live within a dysfunctional family. It is easy to read and matter of fact. The storyline and time line excellently done.
Other memoirs to look for: Nightmares Echo and Running With Scissors
Rating:
Summary: A Tale of Two Sisters
Review: Rachel Simon has captured the raw emotions of living with the love, guilt and irritation of having a sister who is mentally retarded. But she also captures that same mentally retarded sister's love, guilt and irritation at having a sister who is "normal." Rachel tells the true story of how she one day agrees to spend a year with her high-functioning mentally retarded sister, riding the city buses (her sister Beth's all-day, every-day pastime). This wonderful memoir reads like a fiction novel, as we ride along with the two forty-something women and watch their love and respect grow for one another. Simon also weaves snippets of their troublesome childhood into the tale, showing us parents often too caught up in their own problems to recognize what's happening with their children. The bus drivers are vividly drawn, some being hostile, others kind and sympathetic. On the bus rides--with the help of the drivers--Beth manages to teach Rachel something about romance, as well as how to cope with a world full of expectations. The rocky road to mutual understanding is a long and winding one. But it's worth the ride. And you'll never look at another city bus the same way again.
Rating:
Summary: An unforgettable journey
Review: Rachel Simon has written a clear-eyed and inspirational memoir about life with her sister, a stubborn and resourceful woman who has mental retardation. Beth lives by herself in an unnamed Pennsylvania city where she fills her days with riding bus route after bus route, chatting with the drivers and a few of the passengers. When Beth challenges Simon, a professor and writer, to ride the buses with her for a year, Simon accepts. Of course, Simon has a job and a life in another city, so her visits to Beth are necessarily brief and divided by days, maybe weeks. Simon isn't sure what to expect of this new time spent with her sister except for early rising (Beth rushes out of the house every morning at 5:30 am, rain or shine) and frantic sprints to public restrooms. On a superficial level, Simon understands what her sister does all day. What Simon doesn't expect is to find a richness in Beth's life that she herself lacks. This insight, gained not only through living with her sister but also through conversations with the bus drivers who have befriended Beth, leads Simon to re-evaluate her own priorities and choices. This book is a journey of two sisters, who cover distances both geographical and emotional. Simon writes with heartfelt, no-nonsense prose that carries this story with remarkable aplomb. Her portraits of the individual drivers are filled with detail and sharp-eyed perception. Her honesty about her own misgivings and failings is refreshing, and the lack of sentimentality is a relief. What most distinguishes this book, however, is Simon's palpable affection for her sister. Both Beth and Simon are remarkable women, and I heartily thank Simon for allowing me a glimpse into their lives.
Rating: 
Summary: Finding Myself
Review: Rachel Simon is a woman in her late 30's to early 40's, living alone. She is unhappy with herself and lifestyle, which consists of writing and teaching all day long in Philadelphia. Beth, her sister with mental retardation, invites Rachel to attend her "Plan of Care" meeting, just after Rachel writes an article about riding the bus with sister, Beth. Just after this scheduled meeting, Beth challenges Rachel to ride the bus with her for a year, but they agree to two times a week for a year. This also meant sleeping over at Beth's apartment on sofa cushions that were set up on the floor. On these bus rides, Rachel learns little "facts of life" lessons from each of the bus drivers that Beth shares her rides with. Rachel is soon to realize and accepts just who her sister and herself truly is. She understands and learns to be content, to work at her faults to make them better, and not to be afraid of what leads her to happiness.
A few things I didn't like about this book was that it was slow at times. The book's progress in dialog could have been hindered by my lack of understanding at the beginning of the book and because it was confusing. Another possibility could be because I was confused by one of the extra books changing of tense from present to past childhood memories. I didn't like the fact that Rachel was shallow at times. Rachel also had a hard time accepting her sister for who she was and was too afraid of everyone else's thoughts.
There are much more positives, than I had dislikes about. This book ends with a happy note and Rachel changes. Rachel learns how to be happy, and camas's to find out that she wasn't the only one with siblings that have mental disabilities. Beth Also changes, she learns that she words can hurt more than she thinks they will. Beth sees how being difficult and stubborn pushes her family away. In conclusion, I liked this book a lot and would recommend it to family with a disabled person.
Rating:
Summary: Very Warming
Review: Riding the Bus With my sister is a long book. I believed that things could be cut due to the fact that there were some minor unnecessary details. Overall, I believed that the book was wonderfull. I was flabbergasted throughout the book that the story I am reading here is a true life story. Just as Rachel learned some life lessons, it makes the reader look at how he/she looks at other people. It makes us examine ourselves as well.
Rating:
Summary: Precious, precious!!
Review: This book is one you do not want to miss reading. It is a window into the heart of Rachel, who is a kindred spirit with many of us. This is one that belongs on the bookshelf.
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