Cinderella with Wrong Shoes

About the Book

Champagne sparkles.

Champagne has a tiny bit of bitterness
When swallowed.
Our lives are like that.
Many struggles lead to sparkle.

—from A Brighter Tomorrow by Jennifer Fan

Since childhood Jennifer Fan has been unique. She had trouble concentrating and struggled to keep up with kids her age. After a psychotic episode in April 2000, Jen was diagnosed with Asperger's disorder which is also called higher fuctioning autism.

As Jen recovered from her mental breakdown, her mother, Autumn Fan, strived to see the world through Jen's eyes. At Autumn's urging, Jen recorded all her fears, pain, joy, love, and her appreciation of life in a collection of poems. Through poetry, both mother and daughter are learning more about living with autism and how beautiful, simple and special that life can be.

About the Author

Jennifer Fan is an education major at Brookdale Community College in New Jersey. She experienced learning difficulties throughout her youth yet never lost her ability to enjoy nature, to love and to hope. She lives in Holmdel, New Jersey with her parents. Autumn Fan is a free-lance journalist, writer and poet. She has raised two daughters with special needs: Jessie, a gifted child who is now a medical doctor and Jennifer, who is learning to cope with Asperger's syndrome.