Raising Will: Surviving the Brilliance and Blues of ADHD

By: Katherine Quie

Narrated by: Katherine Quie

Raising Will is a heartfelt, humbling memoir written by a Texan-turned-Minnesotan mother and child psychologist. Her heart breaks for Will when he is repeatedly banned from Fun Friday in first grade shortly after he is diagnosed with ADHD. The family zigzags through an obstacle course of therapy, medication side effects, tutoring, and sleepless nights, while shining a light on Will's inherent strength - blues guitar. Listeners will surely recognize themselves in this story and find solace, laughter, and hope as they celebrate the surprising blessings ADHD can bring.

©2019 Katherine Quie (P)2019 Katherine Quie

Beautifully written and performed.

Absolutely loved Katherine Quie’s memoir, Raising Will: Surviving the Brilliance and Blues of ADHD. Expertly crafted, it is written with heart, humor, and educates the reader on the realities of ADHD, its markers. This is a love letter to Quie’s son, her family, and to any readers who’ve ever experienced the struggle toward self-discovery, particularly with regard to embracing the beauty of one’s innate differences from other human beings. Audio version is expertly performed by the author. A beautiful and uplifting story.

Plot with Heart and Humor

This was an excellent story of overcoming obstacles - and the people who love us so much to persevere in getting us there. Even though I don’t have experience with ADHD or motherhood, I enjoyed it tremendously. It was plot driven with beautiful prose. The author has a great sense of humor throughout a difficult story.
I’d recommend this book to anyone who appreciates a character-driven story, told with heart and humor. And for those who enjoy seeing the good guy conquer the odds. Of course, it must be even more touching and insightful for folks dealing with ADHD or for the people who love them.

Excellent for any parent

The struggle is real! I'm not alone! And there IS light at the end of the tunnel. Praise be to God!

so relatable!!!

So much of your son's story is like my sweet 7 year old. Thank you!!! You have given me vocabulary and insight so that I can advocate for him better.

Opportunities for co-listening & discussion

Co-listened to Katherine Quie’s laugh-at-loud memoir while driving in the car with my 2 pre-teen daughters (ages 10 and 12).... I appreciated the simple honesty, humility and heart-warming reflectivity in the author’s voice ( Quie read her book for Audible- which is always a plus ). As a family, we took full advantage of the many invaluable opportunities to discuss the themes, emotions and memories that it conjured up. This memoir offers, for lack of a better description “empathy training” for everyone... period , end of story. Additionally, this book offers concrete take-ways, life lessons & perspectives for families and friends of folks who have kids who are diagnosed or perhaps undiagnosed with ADHD type traits. Both my husband and myself have families over-flowing with ADHD type traits and this is the first book that has provided the raw honesty and humor to get all engaged in the conversation.