State Book Awards finalist will speak about her new memoir

Friday, September 27, 6 p.m., Orcas Library

— from Mary Pugh for Orcas Library —

The Library will host Kristin Jarvis Adams, a 2018 Washington State Book Awards finalist for her memoir The Chicken Who Saved Us, on Friday September 27 at 6 p.m. in the Graves Reading Area.

Kristin’s memoir is about her young autistic son who finds a way to communicate through his pet chicken named Frightful. This true account inspires communities to share difficult conversations and heart-opening dialogues. Her presentation focuses on finding surprising hope, being vulnerable, and how to find community in challenging situations. 

Eight-year-old Andrew was autistic and bilingual. He spoke English – and Chicken. But the day he told his pet chicken Frightful that his body was trying to kill him, Andrew’s family and an entire medical community were launched into a decade-long quest for answers. This honest memoir of fierce and faithful parenting takes readers on a heartfelt journey through chronic illness and Asperger’s syndrome to discover the healing bond between a boy and his chicken. Navigating the complex landscape of modern medicine and genetics, through a rare diagnosis of Trisomy 8 Mosaicism and an experimental bone marrow transplant, readers venture to places where chickens talk, superheroes come alive, and a boy on the brink of death finds the courage to survive.

Kristin Jarvis Adams is the winner of the Nancy Pearl Book Award, the Gold IPPY Award, and is a Washington State Book Award Finalist. Her memoir The Chicken Who Saved Us: The Remarkable Story of Andrew and Frightful has received national attention in the Wall Street Journal and on NBC News affiliates. Her writing can be found in the Washington Post, ParentMap Magazine, Autism Parenting Magazine, The Autism Blog, Focus on the Family, Salvation Army’s War Cry, and Seattle Children’s Pulse. 

Kristin is an advocate for children with special needs and serves on the board of the Lake Washington School District Transition Academy, one of the nation’s leading transition programs for adult students with special needs. She is a member of the Festival of Trees Guild at Seattle Children’s Hospital, a fundraising and awareness group supporting children with autism in Washington, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho. Find her online at kristinjarvisadams.com, or on Facebook at Kristin Jarvis Adams, Author.  

Kristin Jarvis Adams’ visit is made possible by a grant from The Washington Center for the Book, which promotes literacy and a love of books, reading, and libraries. The Center celebrates Washington’s robust literary heritage and shines a spotlight on the contribution of reading and libraries in strengthening communities and in fostering civic engagement. The Washington Center for the Book, an affiliate of the Library of Congress Center for the Book, is a partnership between The Seattle Public Library and the Washington State Library.

The Washington State Book Award honors works of outstanding literary merit by Washington authors. An award is given based on the strength of the publication’s literary merit, lasting importance and overall quality to an author who was born in Washington state or is a current resident and has maintained residence here for at least three years.