it revolves around 2 adults with Down Syndrome, Daisy and Carl Junior- whose genuine and innocent love and care for each other makes relationships seem so simple and real- and their older siblings, Elle & Cody who eventually fall in love too..the whole story is just very sweet..Elle is a teacher in a school which gears its students with Down Syndrome up for independent living, where each of them has a Goal Day, something which gives their lives meaning and something to look forward to..Cody initially struggles against the idea as he believes that his brother CJ should be safely at home, taken care of by his family, given his medical problems..he felt that the school was just instilling impossible ideas in his brother's mind as he would never be able to take care of himself..but he slowly grows to realise that all the "life skills" Elle has been teaching were having tremendously positive effects on the students there..
I could identify with some of the life skills they tried to impart to the students cos we seek to achieve them during sessions too..but i guess the book probably catered to more high-functioning students and thus not all the ideas are applicable..but some of the skills the students mastered were memorizing bus routes, baking & cooking (where different students were in charge of bringing different ingredients), shopping within a budget, cleaning up, reading & writing, speaking at appropriate volumes, crossing the road safely, table manners, making choices between alternatives, recognizing feelings and talking about them, dancing, maintaining a healthy diet, exercising and as this book is written by a staunch christian, prayer was one of the most important skills emphasized.
each Friday Elle would bring her students on field trips, something they very much looked forward to, just like our trainees in RSPID! :) it's so sweet how CJ always tries to protect Daisy when it rains because she's afraid she would melt, just like the wicked witch in Wizard of Oz..he would tell her that "there is sunshine..just beyond the clouds"..which i felt was really heartwarming :)
other than that, there is of course the love that blossoms between Elle & Cody, both of whom have experienced life-turning events causing them to not want to love again..i highly recommend this book! :)
lastly, may i quote these phrases from the book, which touched me particularly:
"A mother know she's done a great job when she has an empty nest and a full heart"
"Down Syndrome is nothing more than a layer of clouds, really. Clouds that cover up a very bright sunshine." (and hence the title & theme of the book!)
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