Review: Harmony by Carolyn Parkhurst

The Hammond family lives in Washington, D.C. They live a fairly unremarkable life, until Alexandra Hammond begins to notice her oldest daughter, Tilly, is developing differently than others her age.  While her intelligence is off the charts (she taught herself to read at the age of three!), her social skills are less than average. She utters inappropriate phrases and, finally, is kicked out of the last school in the area, deemed out of control and disruptive.

The Hammonds turn to Scott Bean and his Camp Harmony for help. Scott is a child behaviorist Alexandra randomly discovered and his camp in the woods of New Hampshire offers a possibility of hope and change for the Hammond family.  Rather than being visitors of the camp, they will join a handful of other families struggling with the same issues and serve as camp staff. They sell their home and get rid of the majority of their possessions, getting a new start on life.

Told from the alternating viewpoints of Alexandra and her daughters, Iris and Tilly, this emotional and heart-wrenching novel details what they uncover about themselves, and one another, at the remote New Hampshire camp.

What a truly remarkable novel, perhaps one of the best examinations of a family dealing with autism.  Parkhurst has first-hand knowledge of the subject matter, for her own son is on the spectrum.  This insider knowledge and experiences grants readers a uniquely honest and filter-free sampling of life with an autistic child.  The chapters narrated by Tilly, in an undisclosed date and time, allow readers to experience the brilliance that resides within her, despite her behavioral issues.

Tilly is brilliant, there is no doubt about it. Her outlook on life is unique, as is her way of relaying her thoughts and feelings. The Hammond family gives up everything they have in this last ditch effort for help.  On the surface, Camp Harmony is the vehicle for this change, but in reality it always existed within them, they simply needed to step away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life to open their eyes to what exists before them.

The haven they dreamed of at Camp Harmony was far less than imagined; they find themselves mixed up in a cult-like setting, far removed from the rest of the world. This completely blank slate, combined with the things they experience with other families there, allow them to realize that things are far better than they seem. Sometimes it takes a completely new setting, and a jolt of shock and change, to realize what is important in life.

Though I didn’t feel the camp setting to be necessary, I understood a new change in life, a completely different setting, was required in order to showcase the story and evolution the family underwent as part of their period of growth. All in all, this was a tremendously powerful and moving family drama, told through Parkhurst’s brilliantly vivid and stunning prose. Highly, highly recommended.