Emma Pivato Publishes “…And Along Came Alexis,” a Memoir

Retired psychologist turned writer, Emma Pivato recently published “…And Along Came Alexis,” a personal, comforting, and moving book meant not only for people with disabilities and those who support them but for anyone who enjoys reading stories about coping with unusual challenges.

In 1978, Emma gave birth to her third child, Alexis. She was declared normal at birth but at nine months of age a specialist diagnosed her as blind, epileptic, and spastic quadriplegic. Emma was told that Alexis would never walk or talk and that her cognitive and physical impairments were severe. You can imagine how any parent would feel upon receiving that sort of information. Alexis’ condition affected their whole family but Emma and her husband, Joe, made the choice to create as meaningful a life for their daughter as possible. By writing this book, Emma hopes to help others facing similar challenges but most of all to provide a positive picture of her daughter and to demonstrate that there is always hope even under the most dire of circumstances.

Though one would expect that this book would attract sympathy, the most striking thing about it is that it really doesn’t. Emma has written it in a straightforward and honest manner, making the readers feel a sense of wonder and enriched perspective instead. In the book, she also highlights how Alexis has introduced the family to a whole community of earnest and interesting people dealing with similar challenges. Truly, it is an exceptional book where one can find every detail, the grim and happy moments, milestones, setbacks, and victories that Alexis and her family have achieved in terms of building a rich and satisfying life for her.

Witness the special journey of sweet Alexis narrated in her loving mother’s viewpoint.

Available at Amazon and Barnes and Noble

“…And Along Came Alexis”
Author: Emma Pivato
Publisher: MiroLand
Published Date: October 1, 2021

About the Author
Emma Pivato spent her formal career working as a psychologist in various settings and teaching in a graduate program at Athabasca University. She also did some writing along the way, first an edited work, “Different Hopes, Different Dreams” (1984, 1991), Alberta stories about families having children with developmental disabilities. Later she published some academic and literary articles dealing with topics ranging from philosophical to practical - the development of a specialized wheelchair, for example. In 2013 she published her first Claire Burke mystery novel, featuring individuals with disabilities and other characters with various personality quirks. The 8th volume in this series will be out soon and the 9th is underway. But in the last few years her focus has been on putting together the present memoir “…And Along Came Alexis,” which describes the numerous joys and challenges that Alexis and her family have experienced together.

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