The Bryant Park Library is hosting an evening with the Roslyn School District’s Special Education Parent Teacher Association for New York Times op-ed columnist and author Judith Newman to discuss her recently-released book, “To Siri with Love: A Mother, Her Autistic Son, and the Kindness of Machines.”
The event will take place at the library, located at 2 Papermill Road in Roslyn, on Tuesday, Feb. 6 at 7 p.m.
Titled after Newman’s op-ed column, “To Siri with Love” is a collection of touching, hilarious, and illuminating stories about life with her 13-year-old son Gus, who has autism, that offers many insights and revelations.
When Newman shared the story of how Apple’s electronic personal assistant, Siri, helped Gus, she received widespread media attention and an outpouring of affection from readers around the world. Basking in the afterglow of media attention, Gus told anyone who would listen, “I’m a movie star.”
Newman’s story of her son and his bond with Siri is an unusual tribute to technology. While many worry that our electronic gadgets are dumbing us down, she revealed how they can give voice to others, including children with autism like Gus — a boy who has trouble looking people in the eye, hops when he’s happy, and connects with inanimate objects on an empathetic level.
The New York Times has called “To Siri with Love” “an uncommonly riotous and moving book… with whipsaws of brilliant zingers and heart punches.” The Washington Post called Newman “a gifted personal essayist, her warmth and wit recalling Nora Ephron’s.”
Newman’s previous books include “You Make Me Feel Like an Unnatural Woman: Diary of a New (Old) Mother” about her adventures in the world of infertility. In addition to books and personal essays, Newman writes for magazines about entertainment, science, business, beauty, health and popular culture. Her work has appeared in publications including The New York Times, Vanity Fair, AARP and National Geographic, and she is a contributing editor for Allure and Prevention.
Online registration for this event is required by going to www.bryantlibrary.org or you can call the library at 516-621-2240.
