Southington Author’s Story Brings Awareness to Rare Diseases

SOUTHINGTON, CT — A children's book written by a Southington resident is fostering awareness of rare health conditions by illuminating a special story based upon her own son's rare genetic condition.

Author Amy Magyar's son, Mitchell, almost died away during the first week of his life and was diagnosed with a Urea Cycle Disorder when he was seven days old.

Now 11, Mitchell has never eaten by mouth and lives a life very different from other children.

Mitchell’s challenge is captured in the book "Bobby B. Button and His Magic Button," which features a young boy who has a magic stomach button that, when twirled three times, brings him on exciting adventures.

Magyar, a Wallingford native and University of Connecticut graduate, also illustrated the self-published book, which has been recognized by such organizations as the Feeding Tube Awareness Foundation, the National Urea Cycle Disorders Foundation and EURORDIS, an alliance representing 884 rare disease patient organizations in 72 countries.

In addition, the Southington-Cheshire Community YMCAs purchased copies to distribute to their school-age child sites.

"The focus of the book is to show that not all children are the same, but that differences can be extraordinary and amazing," Magyar said. "I also hope to enlighten and educate children who have never been exposed to such health conditions or special needs and provide them with an understanding of differences they may encounter in school or in the world."

Available through Amazon, Bobby B. Button and His Magic Button is aged for readers 6 through 10 and is written from the perspective of Robert Beufford Barronbakomeul, better known as Bobby B.
Button.

Bobby says in the book, "It is NOT just a normal button. Not a button that is on my shirt. OR a button that fell off my shirt that I carry in my pocket. Not EVEN a button that I found in my mom’s sewing basket that was supposed to be sewn back onto one of her dresses. THIS is a completely different type of button. This button is MAGIC."

For more on Bobby B. Button and His Magic Button, visit https://www.amazon.com.