Client Called Noah

by Josh Greenfeld

Noah's family must cope with his transition to adulthood and the fact that he will mature in body only. Noah's inability to communicate and his tantrums and physical attacks persist day and night, while his parents also face the demands of careers, their own health problems, and the difficult adolescence of their other son. The stresses on the family mount, and the painful decision to institutionalize Noah becomes unavoidable. Greenfeld feels that "Noah has no future and neither has my love for him" but expresses that love by continuing to enjoy what he can and to fulfill his difficult responsibilities. This moving book about familial relations and special children will interest a general audience.

Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1987

Reviews

[Stephen Gallup · Rating 2 out of 5]

This conclusion of a grueling trilogy in journal format, by a Hollywood
screenwriter, is a father’s bitter outcry against fate and bureaucracy. All three books in the set are extremely depressing and include meditations on suicide.

As the parent of a boy with problems roughly equal to Noah's in severity, I want to be supportive of other parents' efforts to describe the experience. However, I felt at the time that these books were more of a therapeutic outlet for the father than an effort to define the problem. As I recall, Greenfeld also wrote the screenplay for Oh God Part II, and I recognized some of his philosophy when watching that film. Still, what he leaves us with is not terribly coherent or useful. This was one of the parent memoirs that prompted me to write my own.

I should mention that Noah's brother later also wrote a memoir, about growing up with an autistic sibling, but I've only read excerpts of that.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very moving. It is the true story of a man who has a severely mentally disabled son. It is actually the third part of a trilogy, but I haven't read the first two books. A Client Called Noah made me cry!

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

While others may be horrified and put off because there is no happily ever after ending, this book is unflinchingly honest and real.

[Julie Trapp · Rating 4 out of 5]

The 3rd book about his younger child, author Greenfield writes diary style about living with Noah. This has to be an extremely hard decision to keep a child in your home who doesn't speak, react normally or live an even remotely normal life. Greenfield and his wife, as Noah gets older, know that eventually they will have to remove him from the home as he is very aggressive at times. At first he goes to a day care situation, then on to a facility highly recommended, but not the right place for Noah. As Noah is not autistic, but brain damaged, he is in no specific category. Eventually, Greenfield and his wife purchase a home where Noah lives with a caretaker (a series of caretakers from Japan who change every year). Growing out of his teens, Noah is harder to manage and the stress on the marriage, and Karl (older brother) is increasing daily to the point where Greenfield has heart problems. The book was good, but after a couple of years, I wanted to hurry along decisions.