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Praise and reviews

“…a beautiful love story…about how two parents moved heaven and earth to make both their children’s futures bright.”

Nicole Rogerson, CEO and founder, Autism Awareness Australia

“Lam’s prose is evocative and unflinching… The result is a profound and moving family saga that illuminates and richly humanizes the challenges of autism.”

Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“This tender, masterfully written narrative kept me turning pages deep into the night, offering a profound glimpse into the unimaginable hardships that some parents face.”

Anne Freeman, award-winning fiction author

“…absolutely capitvating…will help to normalise the struggles that so many of us deal with in our daily lives.”

Andy McCarthy, author of Here Comes the Sun

“ABA is sometimes considered a controversial support for autistic people however, Lam describes how it should look and how it can be compassionate, contextual and tailored…”

Tineke Sibbel, M.ED, BCBA, CBA

“This is a brave and honest story of persistence, resilience, and the light at the end of a very dark tunnel…I couldn’t put it down.”

Dr Sally Munday, paediatrician

“Grips you, shocks you, and compels you to keep turning the pages.

This is essential reading for every parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, carer…”

Camille Booker, author and literary judge

“The Unlocking will resonate deeply with parents of children on the spectrum while also appealing to general readers seeking a heartfelt story.”

Dr Erin Leif, BCBA, Senior Lecturer, School of Educational Psychology and Counselling, Faculty of Education, Monash University

“Porscia’s very personal account of her family’s experiences raising autistic and neurotypical siblings will resonate with many.”

Craig Salisbury, psychologist

About the book

The Unlocking: An Autism Story unfolds in pandemic-stricken Melbourne, charting one family’s desperate battle against the escalating behavior of their autistic toddler. Amid the lack of in-person services, Harry exhibits severely restricted eating, obsessive-compulsive tendencies, crippling separation anxiety, and a demand avoidance that impedes every function in his young life. Harry meets the description of Pathological Demand Avoidance, a sub-type of autism that is not yet recognised in Australia, where an individual exhibits an anxiety-based need for control by avoiding the ordinary demands of living.

During a break between lockdowns, and with much trepidation, the family embark upon a journey with applied behaviour analysis (ABA) therapy. ABA is an intensive therapy considered the gold standard in early intervention for autism, but with a controversial past. The outcome is life-changing. Beneath the veil of dysfunction and anxiety, they discover an outrageously creative, highly intelligent, and hilarious little boy.

The Unlocking is an atypical memoir spanning five epic years—agonising and wretched, hilarious and triumphant, offering solace and hope to others while shining a spotlight on a little-known profile of autism. It is an ableist’s humbling lesson on disability.

More Details
ISBN: 978-1-7635083-2-3

PUBLISHER: THE KIND PRESS
RELEASE DATE:  25th FEBRUARY 2025

Porscia Lam is a Melbourne-based corporate lawyer. She took a career break in 2021 to care for her two young children, one diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. The success of her son’s early intervention led her to write her first book, The Unlocking: An Autism Story, which was shortlisted for the Hawkeye Manuscript Development Prize in 2024 and earned a Kirkus Star in 2025.