Sister on the Edge of Autism

A sibling's-eye view of autism in life, family, and culture.

by Eileen Garvin

Park, autism author and parent, dies

Author of ground-breaking book on autism dies at age 86.

Published on July 14, 2010 by Eileen Garvin in Sister on the Edge of Autism

The New York Times reported yesterday that author Clara Claiborne Park died on July 3. Her death reportedly resulted from complications from a fall. She was 86 years old.

Park's groundbreaking first book, The Siege, was published in 1967. In it, Park cataloged life with her daughter, Jessy, who had autism in an era when few people knew what it was (and those that did often subscribed to the misguided notions that autism was caused by bad mothering and that children with autism had no option but lifelong institutionalization).

Park published, Exiting Nirvana, a sequel to The Siege, in 2001.

Besides simply being the first book of its kind, The Siege (and later Exiting Nirvana) stands out because Park was a wonderful writer. An English professor at Williams College, she drew a clear and fascinating picture of Jessy, her complex thought processes, and her brilliant renderings - from memory - of building and architecture in painting and drawings.

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As a sibling and a writer, I found Park's books to be tremendously helpful as I grappled with my own role in my sister's adult life. Jessy Park is almost 10 years older than my sister Margaret, but reading about her diagnosis and treatment in the late 1960s helped me better understand the history of autism in America and how my family fits into it.

In that the book gives readers a look into another family's life (as mine does), I have often wondered where and how the Parks were fairing.

According to The New York Times article, Jessy, 51, has worked in the mailroom at Williams for the past 30 years. She has three siblings, and her father is still living. An accomplished artist, Jesse has featured her work in a traveling show called "The Art and Life of Jessica Park." Her paintings and prints can be seen at her website.