Daniel Tammet - Born on a Blue Day

review by Corinna Christopher on show 22nd Sept 2011

This is a memoir of an extraordinary mind, that of Daniel Tammett.
He has Savant Syndrome, an extremely rare form of Asperger’s. He sees numbers as shapes, colours and textures and can perform unique mathematical problems in his head. He can also learn and speak fluently foreign languages and once learnt Icelandic which is very difficult in only a few days and then went on television for a public interview speaking fluently.

There is a foreword by professor Simon Baron-Cohen, a leading authority on the subject who says that Daniel’s condition occurs in only 1 in 10,000. In a public competition he set the record by reciting the mathematical constant Pi from memory to 22,514 decimal places.

Daniel was born on 31 January 1979 – a Wednesday and the date is blue as Wednesdays are always blue. He was his parents first child and devoted to each other they were very much looking forward to this new child. His first home was a very small flat and with his constant crying his parents had a hard time. Shortly afterwards another child arrived and eventually Daniel had eight brothers and sisters. This of course necessitated in them moving a lot into larger homes.

In all the time of his growing up there were of course problems with his behaviour and development but unfailingly his parents supported him and gave him unconditional love. Academically he did well at school but always found friendships difficult and spent a lot of time in libraries. At school it was known that he talked to trees and was weird. At times he wanted to vanish, did not seem to fit anywhere
as though he had been born into the wrong world. He did not want to go to university and decided to go as a volunteer teacher with the VSO where he was posted to Lithuania. This was a move that was brave but gave him confidence to be independent.

Daniel met his partner Neil online in the autumn of 2000 and this enabled him to form a loving relationship with someone who accepted him for who he was. Six months later they moved into together . Daniel applied for several jobs but because of his lack of interpersonal skills he was not successful. Finally he set up his own educational web-site with the help of Neil ‘ especially for language learners.

His parents throughout were brilliant, his father teaching him chess and he feels that he owes everything to them, All his siblings were equally loving and supportive and to-day they all get on very well. Daniel is virtually unique amongst people who have severe autistic disorders in being able to live a fully independent life.

This is an inspiring book and one to relish.