My Top Ten Books About Down Syndrome

What are your favourite books, factual or fictional, for adults or children that have a theme of Down's syndrome running through them?

What are your top books about Down's syndrome ?

There are so very many and everyone has their preference. It's impossible to include them all here, but I think for me, the following would be my essential capsule library. These are the books I turn to for advice, those that make me smile, those that make me weep and those that have kept me going when the going got tough.

My Tops Ten Books About Down's Syndrome 

A Minor Adjustment by Andy Merriman
Sarah Merriman is six year's old, conventionally naughty and enchanting by turns, and a radio star. But unconventionally, she has Down's syndrome.

Mongol: A Memoir by Uganda Ramsay
Uuganaa is a Mongol living in Britain, far from the world she grew up in: as a nomadic herder she lived in a yurt, eating marmot meat, distilling vodka from goat's yoghurt and learning about Comrade Lenin. When her new-born son Billy is diagnosed with Down’s Syndrome, she finds herself facing bigotry and taboo as well as heartbreak.




Paint the Octopus Red by Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen
As six-year-old Emma anticipates the birth of her new baby brother or sister, she vividly imagines all of the things they can do together. Emma feels ready to be a big sister! Then when the baby is born, her dad tells her that it's a boy and he has something called Down syndrome.




Parenting 101 by Natalie Hale
Down Syndrome Parenting 101 is a savvy and inspirational guide for parents, grandparents, and anyone who shares life with a person with Down syndrome! It's full of uplifting advice and best practices gleaned from Hale's personal and professional experiences raising a son, now an adult, and 20 years spent tutoring children, teens, and adults with Down syndrome.





Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards

It should have been an ordinary birth, the start of an ordinary happy family. But the night Dr David Henry delivers his wife's twins is a night that will haunt five lives for ever. For though David's son is a healthy boy, his daughter has Down's syndrome. And, in a shocking act of betrayal whose consequences only time will reveal, he tells his wife their daughter died while secretly entrusting her care to a nurse.

Six percent: My photographs, Their Stories by Graham Miller
The most powerful, moving honest photo book featuring a collection of families and their everyday lives. 






A Mother Like Alex by Bernard Clark
An inspiring true story of a life devoted to helping children. Alex Bell is a 53 year old woman who lives in Swinton, on the outskirts of Manchester. She is feisty, funny with a real firecracker of a personality. She has needed that strength of character for Alex is the adoptive mother of 8 children with Downs Syndrome or other disabilities, children who some parts of society would perhaps prefer to forget.


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The Politics of Down Syndrome by Kieron Smith
Are we a more accepting society than ever before? Is there no longer a them and us division between the disabled and everybody else? The Politics of Down Syndrome looks at how we got to where we are today, from the racist roots of its identification to the rising number of abortions today.



I Love You Natty: A Sibling's Introduction to Down's Syndrome by Mia and Hayley Goleniowska
Big sister Mia, 9, writes lovingly about life with Natty, who has Down's syndrome. In this inspirational introduction aimed at children, she shows that we are all more alike than we realise. New parents will benefit too, as they share this beautifully illustrated book, complete with family photos. A must-read for families welcoming a new baby with Trisomy 21 into their midst, for teachers discussing inclusion and for medical professionals helping families with a recent diagnosis.




Down's Syndrome: The Essential Guide by Antonia Chitty
Down's Syndrome: The Essential Guide explains exactly what Down's Syndrome is, how to accept a diagnosis of Down's Syndrome and move forward, and what support is available should you need it. 

You might also like to read about our support cards for parents. Talking About Downs Syndrome - Conversations for New Parents are available from Fink Cards 

by Hayley Goleniowska