That's right. April is Autism Awareness Month. I'm sure we've all seen the colorful puzzle piece ribbons, the light-it-up-blue tints on profile pictures, and autism articles floating around. For me, this is something close to my heart, as our first appointment with a developmental pediatrician is next month (trust me, it's been a lengthy journey to get here!). With awareness comes understanding, and with understanding comes acceptance. So in honor of Autism Awareness Month, I wanted to bring light to fictional works that bring awareness to autism.
As I mentioned in my One More Chapter Syndrome post back in March, I was reading a companion series by Stephanie Perkins, one of which was Isla and the Happily Ever After. This book really struck a chord with me because it was the first one I read after realizing the potential for a spectrum disorder in my son that featured a character on the spectrum. And that sparked the idea for this post, along with several articles people have brought to my attention.
Because I, admittedly, haven't read many books that contain such a topic, I relied on my reading friends to compile a list (a sincere thanks to those who added books!). An asterisk (*) marks the books I've actually read. Also, these are in no particular order and not organized by genre or audience.
- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night by Mark Haddon
- Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger
- Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine
- Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins*
- Dear John by Nicholas Sparks*
- House Rules by Jodi Picoult
- Tilt by Elizabeth Burns
- To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
- Rain Man by Leonore Fleischer and Kieran McGovern
- Stim by Kevin Berry
- Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Have you read a fiction book with spectrum characters? I'd love to add to my always growing TBR list!
--Brianna Lebrecht
7 comments:
Great post! I love when an author gets it right. Isla was my least fav of the three but Kurt saved it for me. House Rules was so intense. Have you read What I Thought Was True by Huntley Fitzpatrick? The little brother in that story was wonderful.
I have not yet read What I Thought Was True, but I did love My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick. I suppose I should definitely read that one then! Adding it to my TBR now!
Great post, Brianna! It's an important cause and I love how books can help people gain understanding and acceptance for people on the spectrum. Have you read The Rosie Project? While it doesn't come right out and say that the main character Don is on the spectrum, it's clear that he is. It takes a more humorous approach to life on the spectrum, which I liked because I felt that it might open the door for many to relate to Don, even if they don't personally know anyone on the spectrum. I've also heard that Rain Reign is really good. I've not read it yet, but it's on my TBR list.
Brianna. Your post worked! My awareness is officially raised. I've read some of the classics on this list, but I apparently need to get caught up on the more contemporary works. Thank you.
Both The Rosie Project and Rain Reign narrowly missed being on this list. I realized as I was adding titles that I really haven't read many of these books at all, so I figured I'd stop adding them ;) But I'm adding both those titles to my TBR list now. Thanks!
Score! I'm terrible when it comes to the classics. I read what I was supposed to in school, but I missed a huge chunk of them moving around (I repeated a few, even).
Great list. I've read The Curious Incident and I loved it.
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