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Born Lucky: A Dedicated Father, A Grateful Son, and My Journey with Autism
In a world quick to label, judge, and box in people, one father and son stood firm and refused to be defined by an autism diagnosis.
If you’re channel surfing and happen upon Leland Vittert during his nightly national cable show on NewsNation, he comes off as a poised journalist prying nuggets from guests. If you watched him for years as an anchor at Fox News Channel, you saw him on the battlefields of the Middle East, the anchor desk, and the White House North Lawn. No one, including friends and co-workers, has ever known his full life story and how miraculous it was to get to that point.
Leland was a socially awkward boy who didn’t speak for years, and when he finally did, teachers and leaders declared him “weird.” His unique behavior and inability to connect with his peers made him a frequent target for bullying and exclusion. In one particularly harsh moment, a school principal bluntly told his parents, “The people here think Leland is pretty weird. I guess I do, too.” Those words felt like being shot with an arrow, as his parents sat in stunned silence, grappling with their own fears and uncertainties for their son’s future.
From a young age, Leland showed signs of being Autistic, a term rarely used at the time, struggling with social cues, communication, and behavioral norms that came naturally to other kids. The diagnosis didn't deter his father, Mark. He knew the world wouldn't change for Leland, so he quit his job and began changing Leland for the world. He became a full-time parent-coach, training Leland and teaching him the skills he needed to navigate in society. Simple concepts like eye contact, understanding humor, and instilling motivations had to be taught painstakingly. From hundreds of pushups at age 7 to toughen him against bullies, to coaching him through complex social interactions, Mark’s relentless dedication changed the trajectory of Leland’s life.
Born Lucky offers an intimate look into their inspiring journey. Leland lays bare his experiences of the crushing bullying during middle and high school, the sting of rejection continuing into college, and his ultimate transformation into an esteemed journalist. But above all, this book is a love letter from a grateful son, who despite his diagnosis, trusted his father and defied all odds.
It offers hope to every parent and every child who is grappling with their own unique challenges, to be inspired to break labels, tear down the walls that society builds, and create a better future.
If you’re channel surfing and happen upon Leland Vittert during his nightly national cable show on NewsNation, he comes off as a poised journalist prying nuggets from guests. If you watched him for years as an anchor at Fox News Channel, you saw him on the battlefields of the Middle East, the anchor desk, and the White House North Lawn. No one, including friends and co-workers, has ever known his full life story and how miraculous it was to get to that point.
Leland was a socially awkward boy who didn’t speak for years, and when he finally did, teachers and leaders declared him “weird.” His unique behavior and inability to connect with his peers made him a frequent target for bullying and exclusion. In one particularly harsh moment, a school principal bluntly told his parents, “The people here think Leland is pretty weird. I guess I do, too.” Those words felt like being shot with an arrow, as his parents sat in stunned silence, grappling with their own fears and uncertainties for their son’s future.
From a young age, Leland showed signs of being Autistic, a term rarely used at the time, struggling with social cues, communication, and behavioral norms that came naturally to other kids. The diagnosis didn't deter his father, Mark. He knew the world wouldn't change for Leland, so he quit his job and began changing Leland for the world. He became a full-time parent-coach, training Leland and teaching him the skills he needed to navigate in society. Simple concepts like eye contact, understanding humor, and instilling motivations had to be taught painstakingly. From hundreds of pushups at age 7 to toughen him against bullies, to coaching him through complex social interactions, Mark’s relentless dedication changed the trajectory of Leland’s life.
Born Lucky offers an intimate look into their inspiring journey. Leland lays bare his experiences of the crushing bullying during middle and high school, the sting of rejection continuing into college, and his ultimate transformation into an esteemed journalist. But above all, this book is a love letter from a grateful son, who despite his diagnosis, trusted his father and defied all odds.
It offers hope to every parent and every child who is grappling with their own unique challenges, to be inspired to break labels, tear down the walls that society builds, and create a better future.
272 pages, Hardcover
Published September 30, 2025
391 people are currently reading
1707 people want to read
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November 6, 2025
Am I the only person in America horrified by this guy's story? It has been sold as an inspiring tale of a father who quits everything to raise his autistic son. But the truth is much different.
The author isn't diagnosed autistic because the parents refused to take their son to a professional to figure out what's wrong with him! At one point he takes a school exam that shows aspects of what was then called retardation, but Vittert was still sent to school to do all the normal things the rest of us do with one big exception--the parents are rich. So they make him attend rich kid schools in segregated St. Louis and enroll him in expensive activities. But as he clearly states here, private schools are much worse environments for bullying than are public schools. He's mocked, abused, and threatened everywhere he goes, but mom and dad force him to stay or move him around to worse situations. Their philosophy is that it will toughen him up for the real adult world as long as his dad is always there at the end of the school day to "put Leland back together again." Wow.
This is what the author considers good parenting? Forcing him to deal with bullies, literally not having one friend, and encountering 13 years of daily "war" from teachers and other students instead of placing him in a safe setting or finding professionals who will help him with his mental disabilities?
The kid is in third grade when he's allowed to learn how to fly planes solo! First, what parent would allow that, especially with a child that has little common sense? And second, who could afford that other than a rich man who quit his career before he turned forty and sold off his company to become a millionaire? While the elderly flight instructor is good for the kid, it all seems too adult for such a young age.
A few years later, as he's entering high school, they send him alone to a three-week British Columbia mountain backpacking camp where there's no toilet paper and the kids live in nature. Toss in a few uber-bullies there that threaten to kill the boy, and you have to wonder why the crying teen hears these comforting words from his father he phones thousands of miles away: "You don't want to quit things." Classy.
While the father's devotion to his son is admirable, the attempt to get Leland to be independent during the day at school was offset by his total emotional dependence on dad at home. Just as his brain was split between borderline genius and mildly mentally handicapped, a similar dichotomy occurs with his parents encouraging his independent intellectual growth at a young age while emotionally binding themselves together so that he never had the chance to blossom socially.
While the writer's story is somewhat inspirational, it's not for the reasons listed in the book. The guy survived bad parents who insisted that a child they never wanted should start acting like an adult at age seven. Vittert was trained well for adulthood but not for childhood, and he suffered all of his school years because of parents that didn't want to deal head-on with his mental disabilities. This is a textbook example of how supposedly good intentions ("we're preparing him for the tough adult real world") are greatly flawed by being based in adult immaturity, though there are some things the current clingy helicopter-style world could learn from just leaving kids alone and not overreacting if they test on the spectrum.
And while the father is idolized here, the statue created of him has giant clay feet. Leland doesn't want to investigate that side of his dad much (there are MANY unanswered questions about what the man did with his time and money) beyond concluding that his dad also "was on the spectrum" in a small way. The father was not just the son's "best friend," he was the boy's only friend because they raised him to not be social. There are no stories of the parents doing anything to integrate the child among peers (like having playdates or inviting schoolkids for parties), only increasing his dependency on the adult world (summers in Michigan where hundreds of famous and wealthy adult pals are his only visitors). So the dad isn't a hero, but rather a selfish man-child who quits working at a young age, gets bored, and makes decisions to keep his clueless boy attached to him long into adulthood.
Let me make this clear--I was originally thrilled to hear that a father cared for his son so much that he'd commit to spending time with him. Then I discovered the truth on the pages, which was the parents often failed to provide what the boy truly needed to be a successful child. They turned him into a self-centered know-it-all adult-acting student who would threaten teachers and school administrators, then go hide out at home with ego-stroking mom and dad. His lack of respect for others, and blaming it on all the bullies in his life, is the result of bad parenting. So as nice as it is to see rare conservative values communicated in a memoir, they come with a major lack of self-awareness and a falsification of the world around him. For a supposed "journalist" that's unacceptable.
Some of this just made me mad, especially that the author is spinning it positive when many of the facts he presents are terrifyingly negative for a child. He certainly was hovered over by his rich clingy parents, but that overprotection is not always good.
His late teen years and early times in the media business show him to be a rebellious, disrespectful colleague who concludes that "insecure people have always been threatened by me." Huh? You mean all those professionals with years of experience who don't want to put up with the self-centered arrogance that your parents allowed you to grow up with? Often when he was told rules or boundaries he'd write, "I didn't care." While some may see this as the brave fight of a privileged but repressed autistic young adult, if I were his boss he would have been tossed out of the business. Vittert's book certainly isn't a good representation of "fair and balanced" Fox News, though he seems to think it's a positive that how his parents raised him prepared him for time in the war zone!
While he may have turned out to be a functional contributing citizen, due to his very dysfunctional family he was just lucky to have survived into adulthood.
The author isn't diagnosed autistic because the parents refused to take their son to a professional to figure out what's wrong with him! At one point he takes a school exam that shows aspects of what was then called retardation, but Vittert was still sent to school to do all the normal things the rest of us do with one big exception--the parents are rich. So they make him attend rich kid schools in segregated St. Louis and enroll him in expensive activities. But as he clearly states here, private schools are much worse environments for bullying than are public schools. He's mocked, abused, and threatened everywhere he goes, but mom and dad force him to stay or move him around to worse situations. Their philosophy is that it will toughen him up for the real adult world as long as his dad is always there at the end of the school day to "put Leland back together again." Wow.
This is what the author considers good parenting? Forcing him to deal with bullies, literally not having one friend, and encountering 13 years of daily "war" from teachers and other students instead of placing him in a safe setting or finding professionals who will help him with his mental disabilities?
The kid is in third grade when he's allowed to learn how to fly planes solo! First, what parent would allow that, especially with a child that has little common sense? And second, who could afford that other than a rich man who quit his career before he turned forty and sold off his company to become a millionaire? While the elderly flight instructor is good for the kid, it all seems too adult for such a young age.
A few years later, as he's entering high school, they send him alone to a three-week British Columbia mountain backpacking camp where there's no toilet paper and the kids live in nature. Toss in a few uber-bullies there that threaten to kill the boy, and you have to wonder why the crying teen hears these comforting words from his father he phones thousands of miles away: "You don't want to quit things." Classy.
While the father's devotion to his son is admirable, the attempt to get Leland to be independent during the day at school was offset by his total emotional dependence on dad at home. Just as his brain was split between borderline genius and mildly mentally handicapped, a similar dichotomy occurs with his parents encouraging his independent intellectual growth at a young age while emotionally binding themselves together so that he never had the chance to blossom socially.
While the writer's story is somewhat inspirational, it's not for the reasons listed in the book. The guy survived bad parents who insisted that a child they never wanted should start acting like an adult at age seven. Vittert was trained well for adulthood but not for childhood, and he suffered all of his school years because of parents that didn't want to deal head-on with his mental disabilities. This is a textbook example of how supposedly good intentions ("we're preparing him for the tough adult real world") are greatly flawed by being based in adult immaturity, though there are some things the current clingy helicopter-style world could learn from just leaving kids alone and not overreacting if they test on the spectrum.
And while the father is idolized here, the statue created of him has giant clay feet. Leland doesn't want to investigate that side of his dad much (there are MANY unanswered questions about what the man did with his time and money) beyond concluding that his dad also "was on the spectrum" in a small way. The father was not just the son's "best friend," he was the boy's only friend because they raised him to not be social. There are no stories of the parents doing anything to integrate the child among peers (like having playdates or inviting schoolkids for parties), only increasing his dependency on the adult world (summers in Michigan where hundreds of famous and wealthy adult pals are his only visitors). So the dad isn't a hero, but rather a selfish man-child who quits working at a young age, gets bored, and makes decisions to keep his clueless boy attached to him long into adulthood.
Let me make this clear--I was originally thrilled to hear that a father cared for his son so much that he'd commit to spending time with him. Then I discovered the truth on the pages, which was the parents often failed to provide what the boy truly needed to be a successful child. They turned him into a self-centered know-it-all adult-acting student who would threaten teachers and school administrators, then go hide out at home with ego-stroking mom and dad. His lack of respect for others, and blaming it on all the bullies in his life, is the result of bad parenting. So as nice as it is to see rare conservative values communicated in a memoir, they come with a major lack of self-awareness and a falsification of the world around him. For a supposed "journalist" that's unacceptable.
Some of this just made me mad, especially that the author is spinning it positive when many of the facts he presents are terrifyingly negative for a child. He certainly was hovered over by his rich clingy parents, but that overprotection is not always good.
His late teen years and early times in the media business show him to be a rebellious, disrespectful colleague who concludes that "insecure people have always been threatened by me." Huh? You mean all those professionals with years of experience who don't want to put up with the self-centered arrogance that your parents allowed you to grow up with? Often when he was told rules or boundaries he'd write, "I didn't care." While some may see this as the brave fight of a privileged but repressed autistic young adult, if I were his boss he would have been tossed out of the business. Vittert's book certainly isn't a good representation of "fair and balanced" Fox News, though he seems to think it's a positive that how his parents raised him prepared him for time in the war zone!
While he may have turned out to be a functional contributing citizen, due to his very dysfunctional family he was just lucky to have survived into adulthood.
September 20, 2025
This is such an amazing book about an amazing person. I am going to give it to my sons and their children so they can benefit from it too.
This is not just a story about a news anchor personality. It is a story about perseverance, difficult years, and courage to wake up every day to fight battles over and over again. It is about a father who refused to give up on his son because of the way a label could have defined him. He taught his son guidelines and principles that would get him through the challenging days that most certainly would lie ahead of him, and come out on the other side a man of integrity, honor, and values, which would serve him well throughout his life.
I have been watching Leland Vittert since his Fox News days and have been impressed with his demeanor, straightforwardness, and impartiality.
Thank you to Harper Horizon and LibraryThing.com for the copy of this book. I will treasure it and give it to family members, knowing it will bless them. As long as they give it back!
This is not just a story about a news anchor personality. It is a story about perseverance, difficult years, and courage to wake up every day to fight battles over and over again. It is about a father who refused to give up on his son because of the way a label could have defined him. He taught his son guidelines and principles that would get him through the challenging days that most certainly would lie ahead of him, and come out on the other side a man of integrity, honor, and values, which would serve him well throughout his life.
I have been watching Leland Vittert since his Fox News days and have been impressed with his demeanor, straightforwardness, and impartiality.
Thank you to Harper Horizon and LibraryThing.com for the copy of this book. I will treasure it and give it to family members, knowing it will bless them. As long as they give it back!
November 11, 2025
I was introduced to this book a few days ago when Ben Shapiro had the author, Leland Vittert, as a guest on his show. I went in expecting a self help book on how to address the challenges of autism in children. Instead, what I found was an autobiography about how Vittert himself confronted the obstacles he faced from his “disability.”
So this isn’t a guide about autism or how to manage it..... It’s a memoir, raw, personal, and entirely centered on his own life. Vittert walks us through three generations, his grandfather, his father, and himself, tracing how each shaped the man he became. He describes his upbringing, his school years, and his eventual career as a reporter and news anchor.
Socially, he never fit in.... anywhere or with anyone. According to the memoir, he was bullied constantly and stood on the outside looking in through most of his childhood and adolescence. The problem wasn’t lack of effort, it was his inability to read the room, to catch social cues the way everyone else could.
Yet despite all of that, he managed to succeed in a world where social navigation is everything. The book’s emotional core is his relationship with his father, the man who would, time after time, “pick up the broken pieces” and help him rebuild. His father believed one hard truth: the world would not adapt to his son’s struggles.. his son had to adapt to the world.
That father and son dynamic drives the entire story. It’s what gives the book its weight. You can feel the gratitude, the discipline, the resilience forged through relentless repetition and failure.
Overall, it’s an easy read... straightforward, cleanly written, and relatable. It’s not a textbook or a manual....it’s simply one man’s story. But inside that story are universal lessons, about perseverance, accountability, and the stubborn refusal to let your limitations define you.
A pretty good book, all things considered..... and worth reading for anyone who wants a reminder that overcoming the odds isn’t about luck, it’s about grit, guidance, and getting back up every single time you fall.
So this isn’t a guide about autism or how to manage it..... It’s a memoir, raw, personal, and entirely centered on his own life. Vittert walks us through three generations, his grandfather, his father, and himself, tracing how each shaped the man he became. He describes his upbringing, his school years, and his eventual career as a reporter and news anchor.
Socially, he never fit in.... anywhere or with anyone. According to the memoir, he was bullied constantly and stood on the outside looking in through most of his childhood and adolescence. The problem wasn’t lack of effort, it was his inability to read the room, to catch social cues the way everyone else could.
Yet despite all of that, he managed to succeed in a world where social navigation is everything. The book’s emotional core is his relationship with his father, the man who would, time after time, “pick up the broken pieces” and help him rebuild. His father believed one hard truth: the world would not adapt to his son’s struggles.. his son had to adapt to the world.
That father and son dynamic drives the entire story. It’s what gives the book its weight. You can feel the gratitude, the discipline, the resilience forged through relentless repetition and failure.
Overall, it’s an easy read... straightforward, cleanly written, and relatable. It’s not a textbook or a manual....it’s simply one man’s story. But inside that story are universal lessons, about perseverance, accountability, and the stubborn refusal to let your limitations define you.
A pretty good book, all things considered..... and worth reading for anyone who wants a reminder that overcoming the odds isn’t about luck, it’s about grit, guidance, and getting back up every single time you fall.
October 2, 2025
Born Lucky, Leland Vitert
I wish I could give this book 10 stars. I wish I could gift it to everyone I know. It is such an honest appraisal of someone who has succeeded against all odds because of his unrelenting effort, his dedication to principles, his ability to reach out and ask for help when necessary, and his recognition of his own shortcomings refusing to let them defeat him, that it is one of the most inspiring books I have read. Trying to fit into a world with demands and expectations that are difficult for you, because you march to a different drummer, requires character and a determination never to quit once a goal has been set. Leland Vittert embodies those ideas and has set a series of goals for himself that have led him down a path to victory. Leland Vittert tells the story of how he was truly born lucky, and the doctor actually named him, but his life was not going to be an easy one. On the day of his birth, no one could have known that, nor could they have known how driven and successful he would eventually become, overcoming all odds and roadblocks placed before him. The world did not adjust to Leland. He adjusted to the demands of the world with the help of his father who guided him and was always there for him when needed.
Leland Vittert is on the autism spectrum, but in 1982, when he was born, there was no spectrum. Today, perhaps, he would be diagnosed as having Aspergers. When his strange behavior began to be noticed, he was tested and diagnosed as having an extremely high intelligence quotient, but the oddest and lowest recorded emotional quotient along-side it. His parents were told he would really have to struggle in life, because he would not be successful regarding social interaction. They refused to label him or request special treatment. Apparently, Leland’s dad was probably also on the autism spectrum, but only mildly, and therefore, he understood the challenges his son would face. He encouraged Leland to set goals and never quit, because if he quit, those who didn’t believe in him would win. That became Leland’s path. Neither his parents, his sister, nor Leland ever ignored his shortcomings, they just refused to let them hold him back. They knew he could not be cured, but his dad taught him to adapt to the world in spite of them. The world would not adjust to Leland, so he would have to adjust to the demands of the world.
He was bullied by his peers because he was different and socially inept, but his family buoyed his spirit when he was crushed by the world, defending his efforts and encouraging him to continue. I found it terribly disappointing to read about how the children and the authorities treated him. When he was bullied in school, the adults often supported the bully and punished him. As a result, Leland was a lonely child, but he rose above it and ignored the bullies and even the competition that resented his hard work, later on, by always looking ahead to the future and the accomplishment of the new goals he set for himself. Unfortunately, only a few people ever stepped up to the plate to support or protect him, but Leland appreciated them and has never forgotten those people. He remembers and names many of them in the book.
Leland set what others might consider impossible goals, but he achieved them, and finally he even became a war correspondent facing danger bravely. Today he is the anchor on his own program on News Nation. It is a program that presents the truth about whatever subject he covers. He will not sacrifice his principles by lying or not covering a subject accurately. He is neither left nor right. He is a breath of fresh air. Even when threatened, he doesn’t compromise his principles. He would not distort his reporting to satisfy the system. He would deal with the consequences. Perhaps it is the autism that allows him to see things more clearly than most people, but he takes things literally and will not abide dishonesty. He readily admits that he still has to struggle to understand social cues and sometimes he fails, but he goes on, always going forward, never looking backward. His life experiences are varied and interesting. He has witnessed and reported on many news events as he rose in his career. He brings all those life experiences to the book.
Dealing with differences does not mean ignoring them and pretending they are either not there or are normal when they are not, it means adjusting to the system so that you, no matter how “weird” you are, can thrive within it. Leland learned to deal with his loneliness and rejection with resilience. He didn’t have to like being friendless, but he had to live with it and keep trying to make friends. He had to learn to live in the real world. This book is an honest reveal about what it is like to live with being different in a world that does not want you, that looks the other way or mocks you. The book exposes Leland’s warts and his strengths with total clarity. He does not hide his own shortcomings. He acknowledges the help he received. He is grateful for that support. He is still trying to navigate the world. He relies on the few people he loves and that love him. They guide him. Perhaps the world would not be so troubled today if the young were taught to adapt to life rather than expecting life to adapt to them and their demands.
Readers, buy this book! It is an amazing revelation about how Leland and others like him were and still are mistreated by the system. Imagine how much they might be able to accomplish if the system and the labels were ignored and there were no bullies, but instead there were adults who set a better example to follow, one of compassion and respect for the rights of others.
I wish I could give this book 10 stars. I wish I could gift it to everyone I know. It is such an honest appraisal of someone who has succeeded against all odds because of his unrelenting effort, his dedication to principles, his ability to reach out and ask for help when necessary, and his recognition of his own shortcomings refusing to let them defeat him, that it is one of the most inspiring books I have read. Trying to fit into a world with demands and expectations that are difficult for you, because you march to a different drummer, requires character and a determination never to quit once a goal has been set. Leland Vittert embodies those ideas and has set a series of goals for himself that have led him down a path to victory. Leland Vittert tells the story of how he was truly born lucky, and the doctor actually named him, but his life was not going to be an easy one. On the day of his birth, no one could have known that, nor could they have known how driven and successful he would eventually become, overcoming all odds and roadblocks placed before him. The world did not adjust to Leland. He adjusted to the demands of the world with the help of his father who guided him and was always there for him when needed.
Leland Vittert is on the autism spectrum, but in 1982, when he was born, there was no spectrum. Today, perhaps, he would be diagnosed as having Aspergers. When his strange behavior began to be noticed, he was tested and diagnosed as having an extremely high intelligence quotient, but the oddest and lowest recorded emotional quotient along-side it. His parents were told he would really have to struggle in life, because he would not be successful regarding social interaction. They refused to label him or request special treatment. Apparently, Leland’s dad was probably also on the autism spectrum, but only mildly, and therefore, he understood the challenges his son would face. He encouraged Leland to set goals and never quit, because if he quit, those who didn’t believe in him would win. That became Leland’s path. Neither his parents, his sister, nor Leland ever ignored his shortcomings, they just refused to let them hold him back. They knew he could not be cured, but his dad taught him to adapt to the world in spite of them. The world would not adjust to Leland, so he would have to adjust to the demands of the world.
He was bullied by his peers because he was different and socially inept, but his family buoyed his spirit when he was crushed by the world, defending his efforts and encouraging him to continue. I found it terribly disappointing to read about how the children and the authorities treated him. When he was bullied in school, the adults often supported the bully and punished him. As a result, Leland was a lonely child, but he rose above it and ignored the bullies and even the competition that resented his hard work, later on, by always looking ahead to the future and the accomplishment of the new goals he set for himself. Unfortunately, only a few people ever stepped up to the plate to support or protect him, but Leland appreciated them and has never forgotten those people. He remembers and names many of them in the book.
Leland set what others might consider impossible goals, but he achieved them, and finally he even became a war correspondent facing danger bravely. Today he is the anchor on his own program on News Nation. It is a program that presents the truth about whatever subject he covers. He will not sacrifice his principles by lying or not covering a subject accurately. He is neither left nor right. He is a breath of fresh air. Even when threatened, he doesn’t compromise his principles. He would not distort his reporting to satisfy the system. He would deal with the consequences. Perhaps it is the autism that allows him to see things more clearly than most people, but he takes things literally and will not abide dishonesty. He readily admits that he still has to struggle to understand social cues and sometimes he fails, but he goes on, always going forward, never looking backward. His life experiences are varied and interesting. He has witnessed and reported on many news events as he rose in his career. He brings all those life experiences to the book.
Dealing with differences does not mean ignoring them and pretending they are either not there or are normal when they are not, it means adjusting to the system so that you, no matter how “weird” you are, can thrive within it. Leland learned to deal with his loneliness and rejection with resilience. He didn’t have to like being friendless, but he had to live with it and keep trying to make friends. He had to learn to live in the real world. This book is an honest reveal about what it is like to live with being different in a world that does not want you, that looks the other way or mocks you. The book exposes Leland’s warts and his strengths with total clarity. He does not hide his own shortcomings. He acknowledges the help he received. He is grateful for that support. He is still trying to navigate the world. He relies on the few people he loves and that love him. They guide him. Perhaps the world would not be so troubled today if the young were taught to adapt to life rather than expecting life to adapt to them and their demands.
Readers, buy this book! It is an amazing revelation about how Leland and others like him were and still are mistreated by the system. Imagine how much they might be able to accomplish if the system and the labels were ignored and there were no bullies, but instead there were adults who set a better example to follow, one of compassion and respect for the rights of others.
October 12, 2025
I really enjoyed listening to this as an audiobook. I’m very selective about what I spend my Audible credits on and this was an immediate no-brainer. I’m glad I purchased it!
The author is incredibly humble and vulnerable. I love his work ethic and resilience. It was so inspirational.
As a parent, I connected with Leland’s father. I respect his choice to not “label” his son (although, he never denied his son’s challenges) and his decision to continue pushing for and advocating for his son in ways outside of traditional classroom supports like an IEP or utilization of community supports. In fact, his dad touches on this in the afterword. He says perhaps he could have utilized these supports, and things would have been easier. He isn’t sure. He just did what he felt he needed to do. He rallied for his son tirelessly and served for the most part as his life coach. I loved his simple approach to parenting a differently-wired child. His parenting may seem old-fashioned to most, but it really resonated with me. I love learning from older generations and how they approached problems back then that we still face today. There is so much wisdom there that should not be overlooked.
The author is incredibly humble and vulnerable. I love his work ethic and resilience. It was so inspirational.
As a parent, I connected with Leland’s father. I respect his choice to not “label” his son (although, he never denied his son’s challenges) and his decision to continue pushing for and advocating for his son in ways outside of traditional classroom supports like an IEP or utilization of community supports. In fact, his dad touches on this in the afterword. He says perhaps he could have utilized these supports, and things would have been easier. He isn’t sure. He just did what he felt he needed to do. He rallied for his son tirelessly and served for the most part as his life coach. I loved his simple approach to parenting a differently-wired child. His parenting may seem old-fashioned to most, but it really resonated with me. I love learning from older generations and how they approached problems back then that we still face today. There is so much wisdom there that should not be overlooked.
November 23, 2025
Quite interesting to see how differently this man’s story would’ve turned out had he grown up in today’s world versus in the 1980s and 90s. It was a fascinating look at how he overcame and managed some of the challenges of being on the spectrum, and how his father really shaped how he would handle the myriad challenges his son would face. I’m positive their approach would be objectionable to most people today.
October 23, 2025
I just saw this author interviewed on Morning Joe and was intrigued with his story. What a great story it is. This is a book that educators, parents and anyone who is interested in opening their eyes and hearts to the challenges and joys of Autism. A must read!
November 5, 2025
Born Lucky was such an encouraging read — I cried twice! As a parent, it reminded me how much love and resilience shape our children’s stories. It’s heartfelt, hopeful, and full of moments that stay with you long after you’ve finished. I’m so glad I picked this one up.
November 6, 2025
That was such a great book! Thank you so much Leland!! You will help so many people ❤️
November 7, 2025
As a both a father and a son I will be thinking about this book for the rest of my life. 😭
December 23, 2025
Incredible story of love and dedication a father has for his son and who never gave up believing in him! Amazing story! Thank you, Leland Vittert for sharing this!
November 16, 2025
Loved this. A must read for any parent of a child with special needs - or any parent, really. I loved hearing how Vittert’s parents parented him and learning about his journalism career.
December 25, 2025
Very special book, loved the father son relationship and an interesting, valuable approach to raising a child who is wired differently
October 17, 2025
I have watched Leland Vittert on News Nation the past several years but did not know his backstory until reading this book. Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and share my thoughts and views. His story is inspiring and no matter what your political views are he leads with honesty and truth. It was heartbreaking to read how teachers and administrators treated him growing up and how they allowed bullying behaviors to continue. Through these experiences his father never left his side and picked up the pieces every time some one broke him done. Part memoir and part ode to his father, this is a book worth reading.
November 29, 2025
3.5 / 5 ⭐️
Inspiring story of resilience, endurance and building character through adversity. I wish I had read it in high school or middle school when it would have shed a helpful perspective on my own struggles to fit in, or better yet, eyes to see others who were made fun of or friendless around me. There were many memorable one-liners by his dad repetitively woven through the years to steer him towards a strong character of honesty and resiliency. Things like— The qualities that are being made fun of in high school will make you successful as an adult.
My main caution is just that this is one man’s story and experiences and is not meant to be a blueprint to blanket translate towards another person with autism or in different circumstances or abilities (also whose parents aren’t millionaires and paying for private lessons to fly airplanes as a child). It was also a little troubling that they allowed him to be exposed to so much bullying to seemingly toughen him up without hardly any support from adults at school. Because of that, he seemed to became emotionally dependent (handicapped?) on his dad to an unhealthy degree which he never grew out of as an adult.
Inspiring story of resilience, endurance and building character through adversity. I wish I had read it in high school or middle school when it would have shed a helpful perspective on my own struggles to fit in, or better yet, eyes to see others who were made fun of or friendless around me. There were many memorable one-liners by his dad repetitively woven through the years to steer him towards a strong character of honesty and resiliency. Things like— The qualities that are being made fun of in high school will make you successful as an adult.
My main caution is just that this is one man’s story and experiences and is not meant to be a blueprint to blanket translate towards another person with autism or in different circumstances or abilities (also whose parents aren’t millionaires and paying for private lessons to fly airplanes as a child). It was also a little troubling that they allowed him to be exposed to so much bullying to seemingly toughen him up without hardly any support from adults at school. Because of that, he seemed to became emotionally dependent (handicapped?) on his dad to an unhealthy degree which he never grew out of as an adult.
November 6, 2025
An interesting and heartwarming story of Leland Vittert, who is born with autism. An amazing family who challenges him and supports him as he battles bullies in school, teachers and society to be “normal”.
His father’s love and dedication to him is heroic and Leland’s determination to succeed is admirable. He tells an amazing story, full of accomplishments most of us could never even think of attaining.
Job well done to both Leland and his father.
His father’s love and dedication to him is heroic and Leland’s determination to succeed is admirable. He tells an amazing story, full of accomplishments most of us could never even think of attaining.
Job well done to both Leland and his father.
November 22, 2025
As a mom of two children on the spectrum, especially with one that’s more profound, this book gives me hope. It gives me insight into what might go through my children’s minds. This book also makes me upset about how my husband’s family went about his autism because not only was he diagnosed in high school, but they gave up easily and told him he won’t get a family, job, drive a car, and several other things due to his autism. Now he’s a husband and father of two with his dream job as a science teacher. All because he set his mind to continue his dreams no matter what his family said or did. This book gives me hope that I’m doing the right things to help my children have a great future. I highly recommend this book and will be getting it when I can to give it to family members that I feel like this will benefit from reading it.
October 19, 2025
Mom sends me books about autism from time to time. I really hated this one. There’s only one thing that makes this a two-star (versus one star) book. A few pages written by Vittert’s father to parents of autistic children. That humble and emotional end made me stop hate-reading. It made me think of all the different ways people raise children with disabilities… perhaps some people would choose this way…but certainly not me.
November 2, 2025
Valuable Insights, wherever you are on the Spectrum
This is a well written, honest, straightforward autobiography of Leland (Lucky) Vittert. If you don’t think you are on the autism spectrum, you need to ready this book. I think, in truth, we all are. My son was diagnosed with Asperger’s when he was in college. I knew he was different from many children from the time he was in elementary school. I saw the bullying by some students, and by some teachers. I am going to recommend this book to him. He is 38 now, laid off after working for Microsoft for 9 years, and looking for a job since his company fired him while he was fighting cancer. I hope this book will encourage him to stay positive.
This is a well written, honest, straightforward autobiography of Leland (Lucky) Vittert. If you don’t think you are on the autism spectrum, you need to ready this book. I think, in truth, we all are. My son was diagnosed with Asperger’s when he was in college. I knew he was different from many children from the time he was in elementary school. I saw the bullying by some students, and by some teachers. I am going to recommend this book to him. He is 38 now, laid off after working for Microsoft for 9 years, and looking for a job since his company fired him while he was fighting cancer. I hope this book will encourage him to stay positive.
October 3, 2025
A book to read, share and live with
I am a On Balance viewer and was curious about this book when Leland, Bill O'Reilly and Chris Cuomo talked about it. They didn't disappoint! I am a former director of a small Connecticut town's sheltered workshop(1980's) and was aware of the many parents struggles to provide a normalized life for their children. Oh, how I wish this book was available to them. I think Leland story can help all parents because today's world doesn't recognize good principals, encouraging good self esteem and work ethics and the family unit is almost nonexistent. Bless you Leland and Mark Better for this marvelous read!
I am a On Balance viewer and was curious about this book when Leland, Bill O'Reilly and Chris Cuomo talked about it. They didn't disappoint! I am a former director of a small Connecticut town's sheltered workshop(1980's) and was aware of the many parents struggles to provide a normalized life for their children. Oh, how I wish this book was available to them. I think Leland story can help all parents because today's world doesn't recognize good principals, encouraging good self esteem and work ethics and the family unit is almost nonexistent. Bless you Leland and Mark Better for this marvelous read!
December 11, 2025
Born Lucky: A Privileged Memoir Sold as an Autism Guide
TL;DR: Read *Born Lucky* if you want an occasionally moving, slick memoir about how one very privileged family rallied around a bright, verbal autistic child and helped him into a high‑profile media career. If you are looking for a book to understand autism, the lives of most autistic people, or what families actually need from systems and policymakers, there are much better options available.
My issue with the book is that its author "hopes it will serve as a guide and source of hope for families facing autism, ADHD, and other learning disabilities. No excuses. No pity. Just love, grit, and a refusal to let diagnosis define the man."
*Born Lucky*. The title is spot-on. But if this truly were a guide, the subtitle would read: *A Wealthy Father, A Connected Son, and My Journey with High-Functioning Autism.*
Instead of offering "hope to every parent and every child who is grappling with their own unique challenges", this book manages both to trivialize their struggles and to insult their character.
I say this as a father to an autistic teenager and as someone who's spent a lifetime alongside people with disabilities, from those with Asperger's to profoundly disabled individuals with multiple needs. I know the exhaustion of fighting institutions and insurance companies for rights that, though statutory, are made exceedingly difficult to secure. I know the economic and emotional strain on the family, the meltdowns, the school battles. I know the terror of violent bullying and the dread for what will happen when us parents won't be around anymore.
Nothing in this review questions the love, effort, or courage it took to live and tell this story. What it questions is how that story is marketed as a guide for everyone else.
In talking to my people, *Born Lucky* is tone-deaf, but in talking about my people, it is downright harmful.
Because once you strip away the inspirational packaging, the “method” turns out to be remarkably simple. Have a father who can walk away from a very successful media and business career to become your full-time coach, a mother who also seems able to fly in and out of your life at will with no visible constraints from work, summers at the family place on the lake that doubles as a revolving house party for CEOs, newspaper owners, doctors and even the chairman of Newsweek, high‑end schooling all the way through elite universities, golf, regular ski trips while on an “entry-level” salary, and flight lessons as a pre-teen, including a long flight from Alaska to Michigan before the age of 12.
Then announce that what really made the difference was mindset.
The book claims the Vitterts refused special accommodations. What it actually describes is a life arranged around a son’s needs. A father available to analyze every social interaction, practice responses, and run daily drills. Parents who can simply get on a plane when needed. Expensive recreational activities and strategic relocations presented matter-of-factly, as routine and not as luxuries.
For most families, the “program” is more basic: arguing with a school about a support plan and trying to hold a job while doing it.
On top of that, diagnosis and accommodation are treated as traps rather than lifelines. In interviews, Vittert and his father proudly stress that there were “no accommodations”, that doctors’ labels were avoided, and that they refused to let a diagnosis “define” him, warning against a “diagnosis trap”.
For those of us who know that a formal diagnosis is often the only way to access extra help at school, therapies, adjustments at work, financial support or even basic protection against discrimination, this is not an abstract disagreement: it is an invitation for institutions and policymakers to see requests for assessment and support as an inconvenience to be managed away rather than a necessity to be met.
Presented as a private story, all of this would be irritating but mostly harmless. Presented as a template, “a guide and source of hope for families facing autism, ADHD, and other learning disabilities”, it becomes something else. The subtext is clear: if you cannot produce similar results, the missing ingredient is your attitude, not the absence of two unfettered parents, considerable social capital, and a media empire in the background.
The career story follows the same script. We are invited to admire the young reporter taking on difficult assignments, and his accounts from the field are, in fairness, some of the most engaging pages in the book. Entry into journalism, however, looks very different when your father founded newspapers, sat on influential panels, and moved in the same circles as the people who hand out internships. Connections are not shameful. Erasing them while selling the outcome as something anyone could reach with enough grit is something else.
Crucially, *Born Lucky* never really looks beyond its own case. Other autistic lives do not appear: non-speaking people, those with intellectual disabilities, those with multiple disabilities, those whose trajectories will never involve high-profile jobs. They are not misrepresented: they are not even there. Yet the language remains resolutely universal.
The Afterword by Leland’s father is the one part where the book meets me halfway. His voice there is sincere, at times moving, and recognizable to any parent who has listened to bleak prognoses and decided to resist them.
That makes the overall framing even harder to accept. The book keeps reaching for “every family” while quietly relying on conditions almost no family has, and while treating diagnosis and accommodation as moral hazards rather than tools for survival. It shifts attention away from systems and supports and back onto individual virtue.
As memoir, *Born Lucky* is one more illustration of what can happen when money, time, and connections are all brought to bear on a beloved son, told with genuine feeling and with vivid reporting along the way. As a model for the rest of us, it is something else entirely: a polished way of suggesting that if we seek diagnoses and accommodations, we are falling into a trap, and if we are not “lucky”, we have only ourselves to blame.
TL;DR: Read *Born Lucky* if you want an occasionally moving, slick memoir about how one very privileged family rallied around a bright, verbal autistic child and helped him into a high‑profile media career. If you are looking for a book to understand autism, the lives of most autistic people, or what families actually need from systems and policymakers, there are much better options available.
My issue with the book is that its author "hopes it will serve as a guide and source of hope for families facing autism, ADHD, and other learning disabilities. No excuses. No pity. Just love, grit, and a refusal to let diagnosis define the man."
*Born Lucky*. The title is spot-on. But if this truly were a guide, the subtitle would read: *A Wealthy Father, A Connected Son, and My Journey with High-Functioning Autism.*
Instead of offering "hope to every parent and every child who is grappling with their own unique challenges", this book manages both to trivialize their struggles and to insult their character.
I say this as a father to an autistic teenager and as someone who's spent a lifetime alongside people with disabilities, from those with Asperger's to profoundly disabled individuals with multiple needs. I know the exhaustion of fighting institutions and insurance companies for rights that, though statutory, are made exceedingly difficult to secure. I know the economic and emotional strain on the family, the meltdowns, the school battles. I know the terror of violent bullying and the dread for what will happen when us parents won't be around anymore.
Nothing in this review questions the love, effort, or courage it took to live and tell this story. What it questions is how that story is marketed as a guide for everyone else.
In talking to my people, *Born Lucky* is tone-deaf, but in talking about my people, it is downright harmful.
Because once you strip away the inspirational packaging, the “method” turns out to be remarkably simple. Have a father who can walk away from a very successful media and business career to become your full-time coach, a mother who also seems able to fly in and out of your life at will with no visible constraints from work, summers at the family place on the lake that doubles as a revolving house party for CEOs, newspaper owners, doctors and even the chairman of Newsweek, high‑end schooling all the way through elite universities, golf, regular ski trips while on an “entry-level” salary, and flight lessons as a pre-teen, including a long flight from Alaska to Michigan before the age of 12.
Then announce that what really made the difference was mindset.
The book claims the Vitterts refused special accommodations. What it actually describes is a life arranged around a son’s needs. A father available to analyze every social interaction, practice responses, and run daily drills. Parents who can simply get on a plane when needed. Expensive recreational activities and strategic relocations presented matter-of-factly, as routine and not as luxuries.
For most families, the “program” is more basic: arguing with a school about a support plan and trying to hold a job while doing it.
On top of that, diagnosis and accommodation are treated as traps rather than lifelines. In interviews, Vittert and his father proudly stress that there were “no accommodations”, that doctors’ labels were avoided, and that they refused to let a diagnosis “define” him, warning against a “diagnosis trap”.
For those of us who know that a formal diagnosis is often the only way to access extra help at school, therapies, adjustments at work, financial support or even basic protection against discrimination, this is not an abstract disagreement: it is an invitation for institutions and policymakers to see requests for assessment and support as an inconvenience to be managed away rather than a necessity to be met.
Presented as a private story, all of this would be irritating but mostly harmless. Presented as a template, “a guide and source of hope for families facing autism, ADHD, and other learning disabilities”, it becomes something else. The subtext is clear: if you cannot produce similar results, the missing ingredient is your attitude, not the absence of two unfettered parents, considerable social capital, and a media empire in the background.
The career story follows the same script. We are invited to admire the young reporter taking on difficult assignments, and his accounts from the field are, in fairness, some of the most engaging pages in the book. Entry into journalism, however, looks very different when your father founded newspapers, sat on influential panels, and moved in the same circles as the people who hand out internships. Connections are not shameful. Erasing them while selling the outcome as something anyone could reach with enough grit is something else.
Crucially, *Born Lucky* never really looks beyond its own case. Other autistic lives do not appear: non-speaking people, those with intellectual disabilities, those with multiple disabilities, those whose trajectories will never involve high-profile jobs. They are not misrepresented: they are not even there. Yet the language remains resolutely universal.
The Afterword by Leland’s father is the one part where the book meets me halfway. His voice there is sincere, at times moving, and recognizable to any parent who has listened to bleak prognoses and decided to resist them.
That makes the overall framing even harder to accept. The book keeps reaching for “every family” while quietly relying on conditions almost no family has, and while treating diagnosis and accommodation as moral hazards rather than tools for survival. It shifts attention away from systems and supports and back onto individual virtue.
As memoir, *Born Lucky* is one more illustration of what can happen when money, time, and connections are all brought to bear on a beloved son, told with genuine feeling and with vivid reporting along the way. As a model for the rest of us, it is something else entirely: a polished way of suggesting that if we seek diagnoses and accommodations, we are falling into a trap, and if we are not “lucky”, we have only ourselves to blame.
December 26, 2025
Leland Vittert was nicknamed Lucky shortly after he was born. The reason is that he was a breech baby whose umbilical cord was firmly wrapped around his neck. Thankfully, the doctor was able to deliver him safely via C-section. As Leland grew, his parents noticed that he had developmental issues. The boy did not speak until he was three; he was unable to socialize successfully with other children; and, when he began to talk, he droned on endlessly to adults about topics that interested him. Leland's classmates and teachers bullied him mercilessly and, although he is highly intelligent, he was a mediocre student who could neither spell nor write coherent sentences. He cycled through a number of schools, but did not fit in anywhere.
Mark, Leland's dad, made a fateful decision. Knowing that his son was struggling with autism, Mark decided to do everything in his power to prevent his child from being defined by his disability. Leland's dad stressed self-discipline and encouraged his son to work hard and stay physically fit. When Leland became disconsolate over the belittling he endured, his father comforted him and urged him to set achievable goals. For example, the boy became a pilot when he was only eight. He flew a Cessna under the supervision of a remarkably patient mentor. Later, Leland would take up scuba diving and rowing.
Leland's dad retired young to spend more time with Leland. In addition, Mark and Leland's mom, Carol, did not ask for special accommodations that would have made their child's life easier. Some may be skeptical about Mark's "tough love" approach to raising their son, although one might argue that forty-three years ago, there were no effective treatments for autism. Therefore, Mark urged Leland to make an effort to handle the challenges that he faced, and instilled in him the survival skills that would stand him in good stead as an adult. It helped that the Vittert family is wealthy and well-connected.
"Born Lucky," by Leland, his parents, and Don Yaeger, is a thought-provoking, engrossing, and candid memoir. We feel the pain, loneliness, and confusion that Leland suffered during his formative years. Was Mark justified in instructing his son to do hundreds of push-ups daily, stand up for himself, and—except in a few unmanageable situations—never give up? Whatever we think about Mark's parenting techniques, the fact is that Leland, an initially lost and isolated child, went on to earn a college degree and become a successful reporter and news anchor. He recently married Rachel Ann Putnam. Leland is grateful to his mother and father for treating him with affection and concern while refusing to coddle him. This is not a handbook on how to raise a child with special needs. "Born Lucky" is a unique and fascinating account of the anguish and ultimate triumph of a remarkably determined man who achieved much more than he could have ever imagined would be possible.
Mark, Leland's dad, made a fateful decision. Knowing that his son was struggling with autism, Mark decided to do everything in his power to prevent his child from being defined by his disability. Leland's dad stressed self-discipline and encouraged his son to work hard and stay physically fit. When Leland became disconsolate over the belittling he endured, his father comforted him and urged him to set achievable goals. For example, the boy became a pilot when he was only eight. He flew a Cessna under the supervision of a remarkably patient mentor. Later, Leland would take up scuba diving and rowing.
Leland's dad retired young to spend more time with Leland. In addition, Mark and Leland's mom, Carol, did not ask for special accommodations that would have made their child's life easier. Some may be skeptical about Mark's "tough love" approach to raising their son, although one might argue that forty-three years ago, there were no effective treatments for autism. Therefore, Mark urged Leland to make an effort to handle the challenges that he faced, and instilled in him the survival skills that would stand him in good stead as an adult. It helped that the Vittert family is wealthy and well-connected.
"Born Lucky," by Leland, his parents, and Don Yaeger, is a thought-provoking, engrossing, and candid memoir. We feel the pain, loneliness, and confusion that Leland suffered during his formative years. Was Mark justified in instructing his son to do hundreds of push-ups daily, stand up for himself, and—except in a few unmanageable situations—never give up? Whatever we think about Mark's parenting techniques, the fact is that Leland, an initially lost and isolated child, went on to earn a college degree and become a successful reporter and news anchor. He recently married Rachel Ann Putnam. Leland is grateful to his mother and father for treating him with affection and concern while refusing to coddle him. This is not a handbook on how to raise a child with special needs. "Born Lucky" is a unique and fascinating account of the anguish and ultimate triumph of a remarkably determined man who achieved much more than he could have ever imagined would be possible.
October 28, 2025
Feel good story of autistic Lucky who was born via c section which likely saved his life as umbilical cord was around his neck. His dad likely also on the spectrum though not as severe and was obviously a big help in raising him, ensuring Lucky was prepared for the world and not insisting the world treat Lucky differently. As a result, for instance, Lucky learned to use the HS handbook rules to his advantage ie starting club (Young Republicans — one meeting and donuts) or joining an outside rowing team to avoid sports (he was not athletic). Lots of bullying. His parents didn’t want to give him any special treatment since he wouldn’t receive it in the real world. Lessons on not lying and not quitting ie he learned to fly when he was 8 or 9 as well as the virtues of working hard and not saying no served him well.
Goes to Nwrn for journalism and interviewed with CIA but didn’t take job because of his parents. He eventually winds up in Israel with Fox News covering Arab spring in Egypt and Libya and after 4 years, gaining all the experience he feels he could, he goes to NYC. But the “fair and balanced” news gives way to Trump and the strong election, and Lucky leaves for independent news. He gets married. Really very inspiring story of someone with integrity.
—if you’re not going to take your doc’s advice, get new doc. If you’re not going to listen to the guy who went to med school for this exact situation what was the point? Don’t replace your judgment for those you have chosen to protect you. If you don’t like their advice, find someone else you trust. But if you choose then, you listen.
—Dad’s afterword: Have no expectations of future. Don’t let them ever feel they’ve disappointed you. You are depositary of their hurt and frustrations. Repeat they have right currency of life; currency of school not currency of life. This is not a broken arm that heals. This is way they were made. Love, patience and unwavering belief in them. There’s no finish line. Most worthwhile challenge of your life. You can make an enormous difference for those you love dearly.
Goes to Nwrn for journalism and interviewed with CIA but didn’t take job because of his parents. He eventually winds up in Israel with Fox News covering Arab spring in Egypt and Libya and after 4 years, gaining all the experience he feels he could, he goes to NYC. But the “fair and balanced” news gives way to Trump and the strong election, and Lucky leaves for independent news. He gets married. Really very inspiring story of someone with integrity.
—if you’re not going to take your doc’s advice, get new doc. If you’re not going to listen to the guy who went to med school for this exact situation what was the point? Don’t replace your judgment for those you have chosen to protect you. If you don’t like their advice, find someone else you trust. But if you choose then, you listen.
—Dad’s afterword: Have no expectations of future. Don’t let them ever feel they’ve disappointed you. You are depositary of their hurt and frustrations. Repeat they have right currency of life; currency of school not currency of life. This is not a broken arm that heals. This is way they were made. Love, patience and unwavering belief in them. There’s no finish line. Most worthwhile challenge of your life. You can make an enormous difference for those you love dearly.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 25, 2025
My mom gifted me a copy of Born Lucky by Leland Vittert with Don Yaeger for my 28th birthday. Before giving it to me, she showed me a video and press release about the book and talked through why it mattered so much to her. Having an older son with severe autism, the concept of its story deeply resonated with her, and she felt compelled to share it with me.
Leland’s parents chose not to pursue a diagnosis for him, especially in the late 80s or early 90s. They did not want a label, nor the limitations or lowered expectations that might come with it. Instead, through love, dedication, and endless sacrifice, they consistently showed up for him. They empowered him to believe in himself, to develop a genuine desire to learn and grow, and to live by strong principles and life lessons. Their approach helped him learn how to belong in the world on his own terms.
His story is both touching and inspiring, demonstrating what people are capable of when they are supported without being defined by limits. While Leland did grow up with financial privilege, his success was not handed to him. His father hardly pulled strings, largely aside from introducing him to influential people and expanding his access to social capital. Even with those advantages, Leland remained an underdog and faced real challenges that required persistence and resilience.
Some of my favorite lessons in the book focus on goal setting and learning to block out the noise of life. The emphasis on making decisions based solely on what moves you closer to your goals was especially impactful. I also appreciated the lessons on persistence, integrity, humility, and redefining success not as a single moment, but as the daily act of working hard and continuing to show up.
I believe I am better for having read this book—thank you, Mom—and I can easily see how it could bring hope, especially to parents of children with special needs, by encouraging them not to define or limit their child’s future, but to actively help create it together.
Leland’s parents chose not to pursue a diagnosis for him, especially in the late 80s or early 90s. They did not want a label, nor the limitations or lowered expectations that might come with it. Instead, through love, dedication, and endless sacrifice, they consistently showed up for him. They empowered him to believe in himself, to develop a genuine desire to learn and grow, and to live by strong principles and life lessons. Their approach helped him learn how to belong in the world on his own terms.
His story is both touching and inspiring, demonstrating what people are capable of when they are supported without being defined by limits. While Leland did grow up with financial privilege, his success was not handed to him. His father hardly pulled strings, largely aside from introducing him to influential people and expanding his access to social capital. Even with those advantages, Leland remained an underdog and faced real challenges that required persistence and resilience.
Some of my favorite lessons in the book focus on goal setting and learning to block out the noise of life. The emphasis on making decisions based solely on what moves you closer to your goals was especially impactful. I also appreciated the lessons on persistence, integrity, humility, and redefining success not as a single moment, but as the daily act of working hard and continuing to show up.
I believe I am better for having read this book—thank you, Mom—and I can easily see how it could bring hope, especially to parents of children with special needs, by encouraging them not to define or limit their child’s future, but to actively help create it together.
December 11, 2025
A Moving Portrait of Grit, Love, and Seeing People Fully
I picked up Leland’s story because it struck close to home. I have a granddaughter on the spectrum, and I’ve watched her parents lovingly guide her through challenges that most people never see. So when I opened this book, I expected to relate. I didn’t expect to be astonished.
What truly grabbed me was the fierce, steady love of Leland’s father ... love that didn’t coddle or shield but strengthened. Some of the situations he walked Leland through were undeniably tough, the kind of moments many kids might interpret as unfair or unkind. But Leland didn’t crumble under that pressure. Instead, he rose. Their relationship wasn’t defined by ease; it was defined by trust, respect, and a deep understanding of what it means to prepare someone for the real world.
Leland’s personal drive is equally remarkable. Every goal, every setback, every victory ... it all reflects a character shaped by perseverance, integrity, and a quiet but powerful determination. It’s the kind of story that nudges you to sit up a little straighter and chase your own dreams with more intention.
But the part that lingered with me long after the last page was the reminder of something I already believed: the “weaknesses” we think we see in someone often keep us from recognizing their strengths ... the ones that make them shine, contribute, inspire, and rise above expectations. This world isn’t always kind to those who stand out or think differently, and yet here is a story about defying those odds with courage, heart, and a refusal to be underestimated.
It’s inspiring. It’s tender. It’s full of hard-won hope. It’s the kind of book that changes how you see people—including yourself.
I picked up Leland’s story because it struck close to home. I have a granddaughter on the spectrum, and I’ve watched her parents lovingly guide her through challenges that most people never see. So when I opened this book, I expected to relate. I didn’t expect to be astonished.
What truly grabbed me was the fierce, steady love of Leland’s father ... love that didn’t coddle or shield but strengthened. Some of the situations he walked Leland through were undeniably tough, the kind of moments many kids might interpret as unfair or unkind. But Leland didn’t crumble under that pressure. Instead, he rose. Their relationship wasn’t defined by ease; it was defined by trust, respect, and a deep understanding of what it means to prepare someone for the real world.
Leland’s personal drive is equally remarkable. Every goal, every setback, every victory ... it all reflects a character shaped by perseverance, integrity, and a quiet but powerful determination. It’s the kind of story that nudges you to sit up a little straighter and chase your own dreams with more intention.
But the part that lingered with me long after the last page was the reminder of something I already believed: the “weaknesses” we think we see in someone often keep us from recognizing their strengths ... the ones that make them shine, contribute, inspire, and rise above expectations. This world isn’t always kind to those who stand out or think differently, and yet here is a story about defying those odds with courage, heart, and a refusal to be underestimated.
It’s inspiring. It’s tender. It’s full of hard-won hope. It’s the kind of book that changes how you see people—including yourself.
September 30, 2025
Embracing the Unknown
I love diving into books without any prior knowledge of their plots. It keeps the element of surprise alive and allows the story to unfold naturally.
A Chance Encounter
Inspired by a conversation with a friend about her autistic child, I decided to request this book from # NetGalley purely based on its title.
Heartfelt Story
"Born Lucky" is a moving story that offers a genuine glimpse into the world of autism. It resonates deeply, especially for those touched by autism, portraying the challenges of development, bullying, and isolation.
A Parent's Struggle
Imagine a principal saying, "People think Leland is pretty weird. I guess I do, too." This book reveals attitudes towards autism and the strength required by families. And it meant a great deal to see how Leland was treated by his parents. I had to wonder if I would have reacted the same.
Surprising Read
Not reading the synopsis meant every page was a surprise. Leland’s parents' approach to his challenges fascinated and inspired me. And even Leland’s journey into adulthood was a complete surprise since I don’t always put names with faces.
Must-Read
I was so enthralled by "Born Lucky" that I bought and downloaded the audiobook today. It's a testament to familial strength and understanding—essential for anyone interested in heartfelt stories.
November 10, 2025
I was kind of surprised to see that this book was cowritten by a lauded author as the book feels rather disjointed for the first half of it and poorly written— not that the writing is bad, it’s just that there is so much repetition of thought. He expresses the same sentiments over and over again. His childhood is told organized in a chaotic way, not always chronologically and it’s unnecessarily complicated to follow. That said, once he gets into his career and specifically being a war correspondent, it moves becomes more chronological and moves much faster.
Overall I thought the story was compelling and interesting and his relationship with his father was very heartwarming. Despite self reporting that he made no friends in high school and being an outcast, he mentions having a girlfriend but doesn’t get into that relationship as all (a policy he continues with other remainders until he gets to his wife) and given that the memoir is about his inability you connect socially and emotionally, I found the omission of his relationships a glaring and confusing omission. On the whole though, I enjoyed this book and think it’s essential reading for parents of kids with disabilities as well as parents ofof typical kids. Mark Vittert’s sensible parenting style, told through the lens of his son’s successes, is a prescription for parenting success useful for all.
Overall I thought the story was compelling and interesting and his relationship with his father was very heartwarming. Despite self reporting that he made no friends in high school and being an outcast, he mentions having a girlfriend but doesn’t get into that relationship as all (a policy he continues with other remainders until he gets to his wife) and given that the memoir is about his inability you connect socially and emotionally, I found the omission of his relationships a glaring and confusing omission. On the whole though, I enjoyed this book and think it’s essential reading for parents of kids with disabilities as well as parents ofof typical kids. Mark Vittert’s sensible parenting style, told through the lens of his son’s successes, is a prescription for parenting success useful for all.
December 16, 2025
I heard an interview with the author and was intrigued by the fact that his parents chose to not tell anyone, including their son, that he was diagnosed on the autism spectrum. The book shared the struggles he had in school and in social settings. It may have made a difference if the parents had allowed others to be aware, not in order to change expectations but to allow some compassion. Considering how students, and a few teachers, treated the author, I would have probably handled things differently than the parents. In the long run, according to the book, he ended up in a good place; married, a good job, a few friends. Interestingly, when I read he was at News Nation when it started, with his own show, I reached out to someone I know who was working there at the time. I asked if they knew him and commented that he was on the spectrum. The person responded that would explain some of what was observed happening on the show. The author would have "tantrums" when things didn't go exactly as he expected. The book is interesting, telling his story, and discussing world events that he witnessed, showing that he did end up doing well in the long run. As with some events at News Nation, the perspective may be a bit one-sided, but that is not unusual when sharing your own personal story. Definitely worth reading.
September 29, 2025
*I received a free advance review copy of this book from the publisher.
Reading Born Lucky left me grappling for words. It unearthed emotional echoes of my own childhood trauma at the hands of bullies—a habit that can cling like a bad smell. I may be introverted, but that’s not why I relate; it’s Vittert’s universal message that resonates. He encourages us to smash through the labels society so eagerly slaps on us, to dismantle the walls we've built over the years, and to create a brighter future for those yet to come. Or at least that’s the takeaway I gleaned from my reading experience.
Vittert’s life narrative is nothing short of inspirational. Despite the considerable hurdles presented by his diagnosis, his family—especially his father—urged him to break through barriers and emerge as the best version of himself. I often wish every child had such a fierce advocate in their corner, because maybe, just maybe, that could make the world a better place. Born Lucky is a poignant, uplifting read that I wholeheartedly encourage everyone to pick up. You might just find a little inspiration in its pages, just as I did. ╌★★★★★
Find my full review at https://www.coffeeaddictedwriter.com/....
Reading Born Lucky left me grappling for words. It unearthed emotional echoes of my own childhood trauma at the hands of bullies—a habit that can cling like a bad smell. I may be introverted, but that’s not why I relate; it’s Vittert’s universal message that resonates. He encourages us to smash through the labels society so eagerly slaps on us, to dismantle the walls we've built over the years, and to create a brighter future for those yet to come. Or at least that’s the takeaway I gleaned from my reading experience.
Vittert’s life narrative is nothing short of inspirational. Despite the considerable hurdles presented by his diagnosis, his family—especially his father—urged him to break through barriers and emerge as the best version of himself. I often wish every child had such a fierce advocate in their corner, because maybe, just maybe, that could make the world a better place. Born Lucky is a poignant, uplifting read that I wholeheartedly encourage everyone to pick up. You might just find a little inspiration in its pages, just as I did. ╌★★★★★
Find my full review at https://www.coffeeaddictedwriter.com/....
November 8, 2025
This is an interesting book. I think the story is something many more people need to read.
Parents, teachers, and those working with children need to understand that character matters. But what matters more is support. We must endeavor to have the highest expectations for children. In doing so we empower them to become the greatest versions of themselves.
One thing I will say is all the book has a great message. I did not always like the writing and that’s why it is not a five star book. I think there were times when writing was a bit repetitive. But that could be a sign of the author’s thought processes. The information shared is undoubtedly important.
What I wish would’ve been longer is more information from the parental perspective. The note from Lucky’s father is informative, but additional notes at the end of each chapter might have been a better way to frame Lucky’s story. It would’ve given context to how the parents viewed the events and reacted when appropriate.
I would recommend it, however, to any parent who is struggling with a child with the disability. Well, not every parent will have the resources or time to support their children in the way described here, every parent should be able to follow the main lessons. Presence, character, accountability.
Parents, teachers, and those working with children need to understand that character matters. But what matters more is support. We must endeavor to have the highest expectations for children. In doing so we empower them to become the greatest versions of themselves.
One thing I will say is all the book has a great message. I did not always like the writing and that’s why it is not a five star book. I think there were times when writing was a bit repetitive. But that could be a sign of the author’s thought processes. The information shared is undoubtedly important.
What I wish would’ve been longer is more information from the parental perspective. The note from Lucky’s father is informative, but additional notes at the end of each chapter might have been a better way to frame Lucky’s story. It would’ve given context to how the parents viewed the events and reacted when appropriate.
I would recommend it, however, to any parent who is struggling with a child with the disability. Well, not every parent will have the resources or time to support their children in the way described here, every parent should be able to follow the main lessons. Presence, character, accountability.
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