Bliss Road

Readers’ Favorites 5-star Review:

“I believe this story will immensely help those who want to understand Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and how it affects the lives of people around them.”

“Ultimately, her story is one of hope and resilience, a testament to the power of self-discovery and the importance of living authentically.”

Bliss Road by Martha Engber is heartfelt. Written in eight parts, Engber takes us through different phases of her life, with each piece delving into her journey of self-discovery and acceptance. Engber's story begins with her childhood; even then, she knows her father is an enigma. It is years later that she realizes he is on the autism spectrum. Her world implodes years later when she is married with two children. Suddenly Engber has no idea what she stands for, who she is, and how she feels about certain things. As she learns to understand herself, she finds answers she may not be ready for.

Bliss Road is a vulnerable and honest recollection of a life spent unsure. The memoir is painful at times, but it is worth it in the end. I believe this story will immensely help those who want to understand Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and how it affects the lives of people around them. Martha Engber goes into immersive details about ASD and educates us before she shares her story so we fully understand what she went through. Engber slowly accepts her identity and embraces her true self despite her challenges and obstacles. Ultimately, her story is one of hope and resilience, a testament to the power of self-discovery and the importance of living authentically. She chooses a conversational style over an informative tone to ensure she connects with us. The chapters are short but impactful. Each part of her journey is detailed in a way to make you feel it all. Engber strives hard for happiness and self-acceptance, and her words encourage others to do the same.

"★★★★★ “Illuminates the complicated path of a neurodiverse family.” Liane Holliday Willey, author of Pretending to be Normal: Living with Aspergers Syndrome

Martha Engber lives a charmed life in the suburbs with a husband and two kids where everything is fine, fine, fine until suddenly she’s… completely broken. She’s so used to lying to others and herself that she has no idea who she really is or how she feels about anything. What happened? Why is her life smooth driving one minute and totaled the next?

In this sometimes funny, often devastating memoir, Martha describes the arduous journey toward discovering the invisible roadblock that ran her life off course: her psychological distress is the result of being the neurotypical daughter of a dad with undiagnosed Autism Spectrum Disorder, a condition that affects over 75 million people worldwide.

Martha uses personal anecdotes and research about the emergence of ASD as a diagnosis to explain the psychological, emotional and social challenges she faced as a child, then as an adult and parent. Along the way, she shows the sometimes harrowing, but eminently rewarding, route others can follow to chase down the source of their family angst and so reach a more blissful future."

- Goodreads

"Bliss Road is a raw and real memoir, illuminating the complicated path of a neurodiverse family fixed in a legacy between trepidation and tenderness; a legacy that may well have repeated itself had it not been for Engber’s ability to face the mirror and find the answers to the questions she didn’t even know she had about autism and the power of love. “

- Liane Holliday Willey, author of Pretending to be Normal: Living with Aspergers Syndrome

“In ‘Bliss Road,’ Martha Engber takes the reader on a candid and poetic journey through her life with a neuroatypical father. A glorious blend of insights and wisdom, this memoir may just be what we need to deepen our human capacity for love and understanding.”

- Imi Lo, author of Emotional Sensitivity and Intensity: How to Manage Intense Emotions as a Highly Sensitive Person

“With bracing honesty, and rare insight, Martha Engber’s courageous, highly readable account of her experience as the child of a parent with undiagnosed ASD is compelling, joyous and inspiring.'”

- Byddi Lee, author of The Rejuvenation Trilogy

"Her poignant and profound memoir, Bliss Road, trailblazes with painstaking precision and humility through the psychological minefield of growing up with a handsome, brilliant, blue-eyed, socially awkward and peculiar father whose seemingly invisible surface battle with ASD is beginning to emerge as its own phenomenon.”

- Frances Rivetti, author of The House on Liberty Street

"In reading Bliss Road I began to feel as if I were a trout swimming upstream after a meaty fly, all the while knowing full well there was a dangerous hook attached to the lure. And, man, was I hooked. Bliss Road is thoughtful and illuminating; a heartfelt and brilliantly crafted memoir.”

-Steve Zettler, author of Careless Love