Kristy's newest baby-sitting charge is Susan Felder, who goes away to a special school.

"Will Susan get better?" I asked.

"Maybe. Some educators and doctors believe that if an autistic child starts acquiring meaningful language by the time he's five, he can become much better. That hasn't happened for Susan."

Just when I was beginning to feel terribly sad, though, Mrs. Felder spoke again. "We're somewhat encouraged, her father and I," she said almost proudly, "because Susan is autistic but she's also a savant. That means she has some very specialized talents."

"Really?" I asked, intrigued.

"Yes. You should hear her play the piano. She's really remarkable," Mrs. Felder went on. "She astonishes everyone - her teachers, her doctors, even music teachers. She can usually play any new piece of music after hearing it only once. Just like that - she's got the whole thing memorized and she can play it."

Mrs. Felder paused. "But if you ask her how she is, what she wants for dinner, if she has to use the bathroom...nothing. No response. She never initiates conversations, either. She just does not communicate. She can be very trying at times, too. Stubborn. Especially if you want her to stop playing the piano. But she's never violent....Do - do you still want the job?"

"Oh, yes!" I said. I guess you can tell by now that I thoroughly fascinated with Susan. I'd never met anyone like her . I'd never even heard of anyone like her. I was also feeling just the teeniest bit angry, though Susan was very special. That was obvious. But everyone treated her like some kind of outcast. Her parents were taking her out of one away-from-home school and putting her in another. Why couldn't they keep her with them? There are schools for handicapped kids around here. Day schools like the one Matt Braddock goes to in Stamford. Why didn't her parents try to help Susan make friends?

I decided that I would not only take on the job with Susan, but that I would use the month I had with her to show the Felders that she could live and learn and make friends at home. She did not have to be an outcast.

Kristy and the Secret of Susan
Published by Scholastic Inc. 1996
ISBN: 0590424963