When Ben Hartranft was 3 years old, his mother Sandy found him “swinging from the chandelier.” She told herself in that moment that if she were to ever write a book, that would her title. A few small victories and major milestones later, her first book — “Swinging From The Chandelier: Finding Joy In The Journey Through Autism” — is now available to be pre-ordered and shipped Sept. 1.
Ben was diagnosed with autism at two-years-old. As a way to cope with the influx of emotions upon learning about his diagnosis and to document the highs and lows of their journey, Sandy began journaling.
Three years ago, Sandy decided she wanted to publish her journal, so it would offer insight to other people who weren't as far on the journey as they were.
“We really hope that maybe by sharing some of the struggles and the way we solve problems and the way we found resources might help other families that are just starting on their journey, as well as just to find some hope because Ben has accomplished some amazing things in his life,” Sandy said. “There's never a promise that anybody else is going to do the same thing your child does, but seeing people succeed is always encouraging.”
From being named homecoming king to appearing on The Ellen Show, Ben has gone against all odds placed on him since his diagnosis. But those major achievements were just the result of small victories he made early on. The book highlights moments like finding the right program to teach Ben to read, advocating for the services he needed in school, teaching him how to drive, and everything in between.
Sandy’s cousin edited the book for her, which took about a year. They decided to self-publish after seeing how competitive major publishing companies were. Her middle son Dan designed the cover and formatted the rest of the book.
The book features stories from Sandy’s perspective as well as Ben’s. It is available on their website for $19.99 and with free shipping. Pre-ordered copies will be signed by Ben and Sandy.
“[The book is] really understanding the journey in the process of the diagnosis and what that looks like and the emotions and all that go along with dealing with that,” Sandy said. “[It talks about] finding resources, both in this community and in the schools so that you can really get to the best outcome for your child. And then just some of the funny stories. Ben is a very funny person and they're really, really sweet and funny moments in the book that helped me just kind of look back and keep going sometimes. [We’re] really trying to offer hope for those people that are struggling in the thick of it at the moment.”
Sandy said that in any family, whether there is someone with special needs or not, there are going to be things in their lives that give them joy and things that produce sorrow — the book documents their personal experience with both.
“There's just generally a lot of good parenting thoughts and ideas of things that we were able to kind of come to. My husband is always the one who really thinks outside the box when we're problem-solving…,” Sandy said. “[We’re hoping to offer] a little bit of joy, a little bit of hope, a little laughter, and then maybe some direction for those resources they might need in the midst of what they're going through.”
For more information on Ben, visit https://www.benergy1.com/.
See also:
Local Author Shines Light on Deaf Community with Debut Novel, ‘deaf Not Deaf’
Area Author's Children's Book Helps Kids Cope With Corona Crisis
After Fiancé's Suicide, Local Writer Starts Magazine To Help Others Heal
Local Author Honored In 2019 Indie Book Awards
Local Children’s Author To Host Book Signing, Public Reading At Barnes And Noble Next Week
