Jabberwocky - by Steven Gardner

Book Synopsis

"This is a holy book"
-Rabbi Lawrence Kushner

Graham Hale Gardner died before turning twenty-three and never learned to walk or speak due to severe cerebral palsy complicated by epilepsy. Yet he left a legacy of love and compassion that deeply moved scores of people from widely different backgrounds.

How was that possible?

Graham's story, written through the eyes of his father, speaks of the enormous legacy left by a boy who never spoke. A story that raises provocative questions about the "invisible lines of connection" that make us human.

Graham was a strikingly beautiful boy who faced formidable challenges on a daily basis that most of us will never encounter. His ability to confront adversity with resilience and grace astonished and inspired nearly everyone whose lives he touched.

On the bucolic island of Martha's Vineyard, at a pioneering summer camp for the disabled, a place "where hope flourishes," Graham and his father become camper and camp doctor. There, they encounter an eclectic group of people who eat, work and create together. They write and cry together. They argue and dance together.

Camp Jabberwocky, as it is widely known, embraces the boy and his father and they become part of a passionate and zany extended family that will forever change how they see the world.

As the years pass, Graham and his parents experience both surprising adventures and formidable challenges. Wherever they live and travel, they encounter people who are drawn to Graham. These people, from widely different backgrounds, want to be near him, to assist in his care and to laugh with him. To them, the person they uniformly cherish is nothing less than a living angel.

Can we imagine living in a parallel universe known as "Jabberwocky," where people open their hearts and minds to those who are different and nobody is left behind?

Review Quotes

This is an unusually moving and inspirational book, a clear-eyed and loving portrait of a son and his too-short but transcendent life. Graham's story is a tribute to the human spirit and the invisible bonds which connect us to each other.
-- Ken Burns, Documentary Filmmaker

"The story of a beautiful boy who showed us a life without limits and embodied the power of love."
--Katie Couric, Journalist

"To what lengths would the loving parents of a severely disabled child go to enrich his life? And in return, what profound lessons would that child teach all who nurtured him? Readers of Jabberwocky will be pondering those questions long after they finish this remarkable story."
-- Joseph P. Kahn, columnist, Boston Globe

How lucky we are that Steven and Cynthia were chosen to receive the gift of Graham and that they knew he was meant to be shared. In Graham's world-including a madcap summer camp called Jabberwocky-something wondrous and beyond us is at play...
--Robin Young, NPR host

This is a holy book.
--Rabbi Lawrence Kushner

"It was a story I needed to hear. It was a deeply spiritual story. Graham reflected beauty, goodness, humility into a self-absorbed, goal driven, power hungry world. For those who were present and aware, Graham taught them life changing lessons of life. And his spirit continues to do so!"
--Phil Reppert, contributor to Vineyard Gazette and author of Nativity on East 7th, a New York City Christmas Love Story

"Graham Gardner is a stellar example of the invaluable place held by the greatly different. The sheer force of humanity called forth by Graham gives testament to their bedrock value. To begin, no boy was ever more beloved by his father, in a world that aches for fathers who make manifest their love for their sons."
--Dr. Gina Higgins, psychologist and author of Resilient Adults: Overcoming a Cruel Past and Resilient Women

... Gardner is a physician and an artist who sees with his heart.
--Dr. Carl Cooley, Dartmouth Medical School