Book Explores Neurodivergence, Ancestry
A strange, gorgeous love letter to different brains, I think it’s quite possible that this is one of those books that all people should read.
About the Book
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/47pP0To
Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/43a7PqV
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/129905481-orchid-child
Author Website: https://www.victoriacostelloauthor.com/
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Kate is a neuroscientist who covets logic and order, unless she’s sleeping with her married lab director, and then logic goes out the window. So does her orderly life in Manhattan when she’s fired over the affair and Kate’s mother presses her to accept responsibility for her fifteen-year-old nephew, Teague, an orchid child who hears voices and talks to trees but rarely people.
To salvage her career, Kate agrees to conduct a study in West Ireland where hostile townsfolk rebuff her study of their historically high rate of schizophrenia and a local chief Druid identifies Teague’s odd perceptions as the gift of second sight, thrusting a bewildered Kate on a trail of madness, magic, and armed rebellion that leads to her own grandparents, who were banished as traitors from the same town.
When a confrontation with the chief Druid endangers Teague’s life, Kate lands at the intersection of ancient Celtic mysticism and 21st-century neurodiversity, where the act of witnessing old wounds can heal suffering in both past and present – even hers, if she can accept the limits of science and the power of ancestral ties.
My Thoughts
Sometimes, books are almost too beautiful for words. But it’s my job to tell you about it, so I’m going to do my best. As a neurodivergent individual raising and loving other neurodivergent individuals, this was quite an experience. I could see how it might make some people uncomfortable, but to me, it felt like a hug. Like a reminder that I am enough, my daughter is enough, and everyone who is different from us is enough.
Though autistic and schizophrenic individuals are different, they have some overlap and are both considered neurodivergent now. So while I didn’t understand Kate or Teague’s struggles exactly, I did understand them to a degree. The overwhelm of feeling like you don’t know what you’re doing. The fear of whether a treatment will be right for your child. Will it help them or will it be neutral? Or worse, could it actually cause them more harm? These are all decisions all parents face, but if you’re the parent or caregiver of a neurodivergent child you will especially connect with Kate.
And, of course, neurotypical people make mistakes, too. At the outset, the pair travel to Ireland because of mistakes Kate has made. Like I tell my daughter, grown-ups make mistakes, too. And this book is chock full of imperfect people making mistakes and the consequences of those actions. While it is definitely an exploration of mental illness and neurodivergence intertwined with the mythology and folklore of Irish society, it is also an exploration of mistakes, decisions, and how our actions can affect those around us – sometimes generations down the line.
The atmospheric small-town setting became almost like a character all in itself. Lesser characters blend with the weather and rally together to form a chorus of gossip that turns on our main characters. The twists and turns made this an engaging read that kept me on the edge of my seat and finding excuses to keep listening.
I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was fantastic. She was American – I think – but didn’t seem to have any trouble with the Irish accents when needed. Please forgive me, Irish friends, if you disagree! They sounded good to my Southern U.S. ears. I am so grateful to have been included on this tour by the author and Love Books Tours.
Question for the Author
What inspired your interest in this topic? How did you find out about Orchid Children?
Who’s It For?
The book is labeled as Fantasy, but it’s not high fantasy by any stretch. It is extremely low fantasy, in fact, barely fantasy. I’d say urban, but the setting is mostly rural. Maybe realistic fantasy or alternate reality? It’s basically like our world but magic/mysticism is real, and while I am not one of those people, some people do believe that it is – so I’m not sure if it counts as fantasy or not. But if you enjoy family drama, mysticism, magic, found family, coming-of-age stories, and tales of overcoming odds, you will enjoy this story. There is also some fantastic mental health representation in this book.
Content Warning: Suicide/Ideation, Drug/Alcohol Use, Violence, War, Adult Situations, Adult Language
About the Author
Victoria Costello’s latest book, Orchid Child blends history, mystery, science, fantasy, and romance to imagine a tragedy-plagued, Irish American family’s youngest member halting the chain of suffering that came before him by tapping his neurodiversity and the ancient wisdom of his Celtic ancestors. Partly autobiographical, in writing Orchid Child, Victoria Costello drew on her own experience as a neurodiverse woman, her genealogy, and the highs and lows of raising two wonderful, now-grown sons as a single mom.
Orchid Child reflects the author’s fascination with ancestry; how the legacies of those who came before us can appear in our lives in mysterious ways, and the challenges faced by second and third-generation descendants of immigrants who wish to understand and reclaim their ancestry. As author Rudy Ruiz wrote in his review of Orchid Child, “Costello artfully weaves together an intimate family saga that spans continents and centuries while reminding us that the deep ties that bind souls together have the capacity to supersede time and space, and – when understood and nurtured – the power to illuminate and heal multigenerational wounds.”
Before turning to fiction, Victoria Costello earned Emmy and American Society of Journalists & Authors Awards for her writing on the environment, neuroscience and psychology. Her feature articles have appeared in Scientific American MIND, Brain World, and Psychology Today. She has blogged on family mental health and parenting for HuffingtonPost, Mamapedia, PsychCentral, All About Psychology, Tween Parent, DivineCaroline, and Yahoo Health & Wellness News.
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