Undiscovered Scotland

 

I usually engage more with the way a book is crafted than with any aspect of its emotional content, but "The Days of Our Birth" by Charlie Laidlaw left me weeping. Maybe it was that I could empathise so strongly with Sarah, one of the two main characters in the book. I share many of her traits and while I don't share her extraordinary talents, I totally get her social inadequacy.

Sarah and Peter, her next door neighbour, share a birthday and a friendship that has endured since primary school. Peter does not see Sarah as "odd" or "freaky" or "weird", as many of her peers describe her. She is his friend and he is her protector. As they grow so does their friendship. Peter doesn't care what his other friends think of his relationship with Sarah and he makes her feel safe. So when Sarah is forced to leave, to go to a school her mother thinks is more suited to her needs, both are cast adrift to continue their lives apart. They find it hard, but adapt and initially maintain daily contact, despite being at opposite ends of the country. But as all relationships evolve, so does that between Sarah and Peter. She tries to signal she wants more, he misreads those signals and the result is separation.

As the story moves on, we see Sarah and Peter's lives progressing through young adulthood into taking on jobs and responsibilities. Peter is more laid back in his approach to life and has turned things round since school and made something of himself. Sarah exhibits many of the traits she has always shown and struggles to fit into working life, though her new school did give her two girl friends - Gloria and Maggie - who are still on the scene and all three remain mutually supportive of one another. However, Sarah's no nonsense, analytical approach sees her frequently ostracised in the workplace, though its not like she would try to fit in anyway. When something happens to turn her life upside down it serves as a catalyst for change.

"The Days of Our Birth" is a frank discussion about the challenges faced in life by those considered by society to fit poorly with the expectations of their peers and elders. Whether that is someone who is diagnosed as autistic, someone with talents that mark them out as different, or simply someone who feels they don't fit in for any other reason, these are characteristics that are found in all of us at some point in our lives. We are all somewhere on "the spectrum" that is so frequently referred to these days. Charlie Laidlaw treats his characters with a sensitivity that is touching but totally believable, exposing the vulnerabilities and anxieties we all experience when we find ourselves out of our depth at times. "The Days of Our Birth" is an enjoyable and very moving book for lots of reasons, but perhaps it's the sense of recognition I felt when reading it that made me cry.