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Ian Brown

The Globe and Mail’s Ian Brown discusses his new memoir The Boy in the Moon: A Father’s Search for His Disabled Son (Random House, 2009), a heart-rending yet uplifting chronicle of his son’s life with cardiofaciocutaneous (CFC), a rare genetic disorder, with Joseph Planta.


The Boy in the Moon: A Father’s Search for His Disabled Son by Ian Brown. (Random House, 2009) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: The Boy in the Moon [1]

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line. This is THECOMMENTARY.CA.

A couple of years ago, in a series of pieces in the Globe and Mail, my guest now, Ian Brown wrote about his son, Walker, who suffers from a rare genetic mutation, it’s so rare that only a hundred or so people in the world suffer have it. It’s called cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome, CFC. Walker is delayed in development, and has to wear cuffs on his arms as he constantly hits himself. And at night, someone has to sleep with Walker to calm him, and to make sure he doesn’t hurt himself. Amidst the turmoil to Walker and his family, something deeper, thoughtful and marvellous is revealed, not only about Walker, but his father. I am sure the reader will find something profound to take away from this book. The book is called The Boy in the Moon: A Father’s Search for His Disabled Son. It’s published by Random House. It breaks your heart, as well as lifts your spirits, this book. Ian Brown is a feature writer at the Globe and Mail and anchors two documentary programs on TVO, Human Edge and The View From Here. He was the host of that CBC Radio program, Talking Books. He’s written two previous books. Here in Vancouver this day, please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Ian Brown; Good morning, Mr. Brown.