The incredibly moving and inspiring story about a quest to finally be heard. In
Underestimated: An Autism Miracle, Generation Rescue’s cofounder J.B. Handley and his teenage son Jamison tell the remarkable story of Jamison’s journey to find a method of communication that allowed him to show the world that he was a brilliant, wise, generous, and complex individual who had been misunderstood and underestimated by everyone in his life.
Jamison’s emergence at the age of seventeen from his self-described “prison of silence” took place over a profoundly emotional and dramatic twelve-month period that is retold from his father’s perspective. The book reads like a spy thriller while allowing the reader to share in the complex emotions of both exhilaration and anguish that accompany Jamison’s journey for him and his family. Once Jamison’s extraordinary story has been told, Jamison takes over the narrative to share the story from his perspective, allowing the world to hear from someone who many had dismissed and cast aside as incapable.
Jamison’s remarkable transformation challenges the conventional wisdom surrounding autism, a disability impacting 1 in 36 Americans. Many scientists still consider nonspeakers with autism—a full 40 percent of those on the autism spectrum—to be “mentally retarded.” Is it possible that the experts are wrong about several million people? Are all the nonspeakers like Jamison?
Underestimated: An Autism Miracle will touch your heart, inspire you, remind you of the power of love, and ultimately leave you asking tough questions about how many more Jamisons might be waiting for their chance to be freed from their prison of silence, too. And, for the millions of parents of children with autism, the book offers a detailed description of a communication method that may give millions of people with autism back their voice.
"Children's Health Defense"--Title page.
“The Handley family’s mission to save their son, Jamie, is the greatest love story ever told. The power of love, determination and strength creates yet another paradigm shift in autism therapies that will affect the masses on a global scale. Jamie Handley is a real-life superhero and his story brings hope to all of humanity. Life, for many, will never be the same after reading this book. Thank you JB, Jamie, and the whole Handley family for sharing your miraculous journey.”
—Jenny McCarthy, author of
Louder Than Words; coauthor of
Healing and Preventing Autism “I’m both dumbstruck by and grateful for the dogged determination of Jamison Handley and his loving family. With this book he shows the world that a debilitated, nonspeaking youth severely disabled by full blown autism can transform into a gifted and wry individual with humor and wisdom to share with the world. This book is at once an exhilarating joyride and a pointed critique of the catastrophic failures of the mainstream mental health orthodoxies. Jamison, the trailblazer, shows the world that nonspeakers with autism have extraordinary potential and cognitive gifts. Millions more like Jamison are awaiting their chance to be heard.”
—Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., author of
American Values: Lessons I Learned from My Family,
Crimes Against Nature, and
The Riverkeepers “A breathtaking story of one family’s fight to overcome adversity. Get out your handkerchiefs. It’s impossible to read this book without crying happy tears."
—Jennifer Margulis, Ph.D., author of
Your Baby, Your Way and co-author of the #1 Amazon bestseller,
The Vaccine-Friendly Plan (with Paul Thomas, M.D.)
“Jamison’s journey is the most powerful testimony of God’s grace. As a parent of an autistic adult this book above all books teaches us the most valuable lesson—they are brilliant, they understand, they feel, they hurt, they are human beings, and given a chance—this chance—they will contribute to society in a way we never believed possible.”
—Polly Tommey, founder, Autism Media Channel; author of
Autism--a practical guide to supporting your child’s quality of life "The world has a new hero, and his name is Jamie Handley. If you want your heart to be touched, your mind blown, and your view of the possible to be forever changed, this is the book for you. Read it and get to work making the world a better place."
—Kent Heckenlively, co-author of
Plague of Corruption; author of
Inoculated: How Science Lost its Soul in Autism “The Handleys thought they'd exhausted every option to help their son speak. Then they discovered that Jamie's communication was intact but trapped—until a method called S2C opened the flood gates of his social, emotional and academic prowess.
Underestimated: An Autism Miracle will help bring this life-changing communication method into the forefront of treatment options.”
—Kim Rossi, author of
All I Can Handle: I'm No Mother Teresa 
