Hi Simon the Snail fans! Some of you may be wondering why I wrote this book.  Well, aside from having a need to be entertaining I had a much more significant reason behind creating Simon and writing this story.  When my youngest daughter was little we found out that she was learning disabled with global developmental delays. Her seizure disorder made matters worse and made it even more difficult for her to concentrate throughout the day.  On top of that, she was diagnosed with ADD, faced a lot of turmoil and struggled greatly in school.  The other children teased her and the teachers were less than sympathetic. At one point, her fourth grade teacher told me that we should “forget about college…she can’t do it.”  How she knew that when Erica was only eight years old I’ll never know.  Long story short, we all experienced a great deal of stress on a daily basis until we were fortunate enough to come across a wonderful parent advocate who helped us find the Summit School in New York.  After experiencing constant anguish, we were lucky enough to get Erica into Summit and it totally changed our lives forever!  Erica went on to Queensborough Community College and from there to Queens College where she earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology.

When we were going through those trying times I searched and prayed for some help on a daily basis.  But, the internet was not as developed as it is today and I had to rely on “word of mouth” rather than “click of mouse”.  Luckily enough, little by little, I started to meet people who led me in the right direction and before long I had gotten the answers I needed.

And so, Simon was born out of my need to share our experiences with others.  I created a character who faced some of the same obstacles Erica did.  I created a character who triumphed in the end the way Erica did.  I created a character who defied the odds and showed everyone that a family’s unconditional love and support can lift us through the hardest times in our lives.  I wanted to send a message to those undergoing the same pain – the deep pain felt by parents who want desperately to help their child but don’t know how. The message is this: keep looking for answers, keep looking for help, keep digging for information, don’t listen to naysayers, and most of all never take no for an answer!! Believe in yourself and the power you hold within and don’t give up!! Erica did it, Simon did it and you can do it too!