When you are a child some of the best things in life are loving parents, good friends, Santa Claus, and 'fitting in'. It's not something that can be helped, the feelings just exist....we all want the same thing. Being different in any way is a block. If your family is different, a sibling......its an obstacle to hide, run from, overcome.
Margaret Combs' brother Roddy was labeled so many things in an era when fitting in with the Jones' was of utmost importance. Words like cancer, retardation, poor, were taboo. Conditions to be hidden. Margaret was torn between the love of her brother and the anguish he caused her mother, the changes his being brought to the family. Combs bares her soul with admirable honesty.
" I didn't hate my family, not my sister or my brother, not even my parents. I JUST WANTED TO PUNCH THE UNHAPPINESS, THE DEARTH OF JOY IN MY HOME." I get it. ( )

Hazard: A Sister's Flight From Family And A Broken Boy by Margaret Combs is one of the most unusual books that I have read. Why? The author and I have had an almost paralelle experience! We both have had brothers born in the 1950s, hers in 1956 and mine in 1955. who seemed life OK but then stopped talking for a long time. After years, her brother said "Hi" and my brother said "refrigerator".

Back then little was know about autism, parents were bewildered and when they went to doctors, the doctors did not know why their child was different. If they very unfortunate, they got treated to a lecture on "refrigerator mothers". Margaret Comb's mother went to pieces and tried to survive through prayer, my mother sank into deep depression. Her father kept thinking that his son would catch up and there were fierce arguments between him and his wife. My parents separated and eventually divorced. My parents were told to "put him away". But they and Margaret Comb's parents refused to do that. They kept him at home. I know about the neighbors who would not accept my brother as a human being but a few of our friends did.

The author had a different life journey than I did but we did have some of the same experiences growing up when if comes to being our brother's sister. The most striking part of this book is the author's description of a phone call with her brother. It is so similar to my experiences that I somehow wonder what it would be like for my brother and her brother to meet!

Very different things happened in our families but the author's feelings about her brother when he was an adult are the same. For both of us, he is family.

I received this finished copy from the publisher as a win from FirstReads but that in no way influenced my thoughts or feelings in this review. ( )

Having 2 young daughters with Autism I really wanted to read this book because I also have a teenage son who had to learn very early on to grow up quickly because he had to become his sisters’ protector in a way most kids will never understand.

I found the book to be informative, easy to read, and well written. Combs has a way of pulling you in and taking you on the journey with her so you see with her eyes, feel what she did. It’s a highly emotional and expressive look at family dynamics and the ability to survive overwhelming challenges.

Reading how far things have come within the special needs community and society at large in the decades since made me happy that even with the current imperfections it’s obvious large strides in both care and understanding have occurred.

As a parent I found it very interesting to read an adult’s point of view about what it was like to be the sibling of a special needs child because it gave me some insight in how to be there for my son more since his sisters get more of our attention and time than he does simply due to the circumstances. He is not loved less than them but as a parent you don’t necessarily realize how things appear from their point of view. I feel like this book will make me a better mother to him and maybe be able to help him in his role in their lives. I was very grateful for the opportunity to read this and gain some profound insight.
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