The footpath of a special child becoming a special man, and the challenges met and surmounted by his mother, form the core of this captivating narrative. As we shift between the perspectives of Ella, the mother, and Andrew, the son, we touch down in different time frames, capturing unfettered glimpses into his simple outlook and guileless character, in contrast to Ella’s complicated and multifaceted emotions. Ella juggles poverty, divorce, health crises, remarriage, and tragedy while raising six young children and struggling to navigate Andrew’s special needs. Through her journey, she discovers that life is as much about opposition and extremity as it is about smooth sailing.
Izzard Ink provided full-service publishing—editorial refinement plus cover and interior design, typesetting, and print/eBook production—so this deeply personal, multigenerational novel could be released as a polished, bookstore-ready literary title.
Andy loves his job driving a bus. The routes are predictable, the rules are clear, and the small kindnesses he can offer his passengers—a longer pause at the curb, a steady smile, a helping hand—make sense to him in a way the rest of the world often doesn’t. To most people, Andy is “different.” To his mother, he is brilliant in all the ways that matter.
In The Bus Driver’s Mother, Beverly Pridgen traces their intertwined lives over decades, as one family learns to navigate disability, stigma, faith, and everyday survival in a culture that rarely knows what to do with those who don’t fit the mold. From tense school meetings and baffling medical evaluations to awkward church encounters, brushes with the law, and unexpected moments of grace, Andy’s mother fights—quietly but fiercely—for her son to be seen as more than a diagnosis.
Told through the mother’s honest, reflective voice, with unforgettable glimpses into Andy’s own way of thinking, this novel offers a rare, intimate look at what it means to raise—and be—an adult child with special needs. As the years pass and roles shift, mother and son must renegotiate independence and protection, love and letting go, and what “a good life” can look like when the world keeps trying to decide for them.
Lyrical, unsentimental, and deeply humane, The Bus Driver’s Mother adds a fresh dimension to mother–son and special-needs fiction. It’s a story for anyone who has ever loved someone the world misunderstands—and for every book club ready to talk about how we measure worth, family, and the courage it takes to see each other clearly.
Category: Memoir
Release date: January 25, 2022
Page size: 6″ x 9″
Word count: 123,062
Estimated page count: 358
Beverly Pridgen works from her home in Utah. You will often find her in a quiet corner of her garden reading a book. She has a degree in English and owns an interior design business. She is the mother of eight children. This is her first novel.
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