IRB Preview (Born on a Blue Day)

When trying to find an IRB to read, there were many factors I had to consider: Would I be able to read it without wanting to put it down? Was it something I was interested in? Was it a book I could talk about on a blog? I had already decided that for my first IRB I was going to read some kind of autobiography or memoir. In my opinion, those are the most intriguing non-fiction stories. Anyway, I went online and searched for almost an hour before I found Born on a Blue Day written by Daniel Tammet. When I found this book, the first word I noticed in the description was "autism". I've always had a certain, for lack of a better word, fascination with autism. In the author's particular case, this was a very different and interesting type of autism. He was diagnosed with savant syndrome, which is a kind of autism that demonstrates extraordinary mental capacities and capabilities. Being able to work with insanely large numbers or presenting beautiful and intricate artwork or music can be just a few gifts brought on by this mental disorder. In my opinion, not only is this extremely compelling, but it will be such an easy read, not in the sense that i can "get through it", but in that I'll probably be disappointed when it ends. Although he was struck by autism, Tammet taught literature in Lithuania, was the subject of a documentary film, and participated in the World Memory Championships twice, placing 12th and 4th in different years. These little tidbits that I found about the author ensured that I'd be reading the book. I find it incredible that people with mental disabilities go out into the world and make more of an impact than someone without a mental disability would. It is extremely motivational, and I'm really excited to hear about how Daniel Tammet's story goes. Non-fiction has never really been my favorite kind of text to read, but I'm hoping that this book and the others that I read this year will change that for me.