Little Plum continued

Belinda has just left the first nastygram for Gem and my son asked, "Shouldn't she have left a nicer note?"

I was so pleased to have him recognize that, and how fascinating to see him trying to navigate the world of interactions... I didn't think of that at all when I chose this book, but it's really quite emotionally complex. What better place to learn about people than children's books? It's where I learned.

Book 8: The Panic Virus by Seth Minookin

I'll add my stats later, because I probably won't finish this book tonight and -- I hope -- will sleep too late to do any more reading for the challenge tomorrow.

It's traditional for me to read an autism book during the challenge and a nonfiction break seemed like a good idea. This is very interesting, though I'm not sure I'm taking everything in. I was very struck by how vulnerable children who can't yet be immunized are when immunization rates fall. It's not just an individual risk we're taking for our own children.

183 out of 311

Reading: 2 hours, 40 minutes
Blogging: 8 minutes
Networking: 3 minutes

Book 3: The Last Days by Scott Westerfeld

The Last Days by Scott Westerfeld. Razorbill, 2006

The sequel to Peeps, though could probably be read on its own; I didn't remember a whole lot about Peeps but everything got explained.

I had some trouble getting into this: the first half is primarily about five people forming a band and seemed to be written for an audience far, far crazier about music than I am. Once the intersection of the band plot and the science fiction elements became clearer, I enjoyed the book much more. Despite its depressing title and some very disturbing elements, it's got a positive side and was very funny in spots. Negatives are the constant catchphrases used by almost every character, and that quite a few of the characters are really unpleasant. (First person narratives by unpleasant characters are haunting me right now... I'm having very bad luck with my chosen audiobook. More later.)


Reading: 2 hours, 25 minutes
Blogging: 8 minutes
Networking: 7 minutes

Review: What it is to be Me!

What it is to be Me!: an Asperger Kid Book by Angela Wine. Illustrated by David Crary. Fairdale Books, 2005 (1-59352-199-5) $9.95 pb

I have the same problem with this book that I have with most children's books about understanding Aspergers: it's too specific. To quote a favorite phrase, if you've met one person with autism, you've met one person with autism--just a few added words to make it clear that some Aspies are very good with computers and some Aspies take things literally would have been great.

Other than that, this is probably the best book of its kind I've seen. The illustrations are simple but engaging, with the kind of exaggerated style my Aspie son finds very funny: Enormous ears to illustrate having "very strong senses", smiling faces on gears and computer terminals. The information is straightforward, focusing on strengths as well as challenges: "I am a friendly boy... but sometimes I stand too close." It's great to see the narrator portrayed as likable and happy, getting away from one of my least favorite stereotypes. With personal addendums to the text, this can be a good beginning for any child wanting to understand what Asperger's Syndrome is like. (3-12)

You can see the book's website here.

© 2010 Wendy E. Betts


FTC disclosure: Review copy from my son's collection, originally purchased from Amazon.com. This blog is completely independent, but I receive a small percentage if you order books from Powell's via this site.

Starred review: Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes

Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin. Illustrated by James Dean. HarperCollins, 2010 (978-0-06-190622-0) $16.99

Pete the cat loves his new white shoes so much, he even sings about them: "I love my white shoes, I love my white shoes..." Then Pete steps into a large pile of strawberries, turning his white shoes--red! But the insouciant Pete just thinks, "everything is cool" and changes his song: "I love my red shoes, I love my red shoes..." The story ends after several colorful adventures, with the comment: "The moral of Pete's story is: no matter what you step in, keep walking along and singing your song... because it's all good."

A repetitive question/answer format is almost sure to grab little kids, but there's variety and humor here for older readers too. The pictures of mellow Pete have an offbeat zaniness; sometimes he's got sneakers on all four feet, sometimes he's playing guitar, sometimes he's just hanging out with a cup of coffee. Size and perspective constantly change, which adds to the visual impact--there's something very funny somehow about enormous sneakers, or sneakers on varied numbers of feet.

Although this is a book with a strong general appeal, it could also have been designed to steal its way into the hearts of parents of kids with autism. That cheerful flexibility... ah, it's like finding a golden ticket, for us.

The book includes a link to an mp3 of performer Litwin and kids reading and singing the story. This could be a boon to anyone feeling a little uncertain of their storytelling skills, since it demonstrates where to put emphasis and provides a tune for Pete's song. But it's not quite the same without Pete's little off-the cuff thoughts after each adventure: "everything is cool," "awesome," "groovy," and "rock and roll!" * (3 & up)

© 2010 Wendy E. Betts

FTC disclosure: Review copy provided by the publisher. This blog is completely independent, but I receive a small percentage if you order books from Powell's via this site.

Other blog reviews:

The Reading Tub
Brimful Curiosities -- includes a video and craft idea.

Book 9: The London Eye Mystery

The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd.

This was recommended to me by my mother, and knowing her, I'm guessing she loved it for its Britishisms. Not just the setting with the London Eye, a sort of extra-big, extra-long ferris wheel, but all the phrases: "Bunk off." "Skivving." Shreddies for breakfast! This book can't possibly be as fun to read if you're actually from England.

I confess my first thought when she told me it was about a boy with Asperger's Syndrome who solves a mystery was "oh, not another one." But the story worked--I think because it's so much in the classic mode of a children's story. There genuinely is a mystery to solve, and our hero Ted does it with the help of his older sister, which has an impact on their difficult relationship reminiscent of the brother and sister in From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L Konigsburg. And he finds a way around the fact that no one will listen to him, as all misunderstood heroes must.

As a portrayal of someone with Asperger's (never labelled, but it's pretty obvious), I don't know if this was all that great. But it certainly was an interesting mystery and family story. (9 & up)


323 pages
Reading: 1 hour, 53 minutes
Blogging: 14 minutes

Book 6: Mozart and the Whale

Mozart and the Whale by Jerry and Mary Newport.

I think I read a non-fiction book about autism during every challenge. Not deliberately, there's just always at least one in my pile.

I didn't think much of the movie "Mozart and the Whale," but it did get me interested in reading the book, which is really not the same story. The real characters were much older when they met, for one thing, and already had a lot of life experiences behind them. This is not just their love story, but also their autobiographies.

I had some trouble getting into this book. One problem is that two different people are writing in turn and it's hard to tell when the points of view have changed (this was an ARC -- perhaps they made it clearer in the finished book.) The other problem was that the sections by Jerry Newport were so full of worn-out phrases. It was a nagging irritation.

But I persisted and wound up relating to a lot of what I read. And it was intriguing to read the points of view of two autistic adults, who share a lot in common yet also have many differences.

Like many autobiographies I read, this one sometimes felt too... elliptical, is the word that comes to mind. So much happened to them and they just drop little bits and pieces of it into the narrative, leaving me with tons of questions. How someone got from point A to point B is often a mystery. It reminds me of confusing autobiographies of children's book authors I read when I was younger.

Two bits of trivia

1)The "Mozart" of the title, Mary's costume at the Halloween party where they met, was not Wolfgang Amadeus -- it was his sister, the thwarted prodigy Nannerl. I find that very touching.

2) I can't find any verification of this, but I'm almost certain that the opening of the show "the Big Bang Theory" was inspired by a paragraph in this book. Or possibly, since both came out in 2007, the other way around?

261 pages
Reading: 129 minutes
Blogging: 31 minutes

selected review round-up: Anything But Typical

I don't even want to think about trying to review Anything But Typical. It hit me in such a personal way and I am so endlessly grateful to Baskin for writing it, I just want to kiss her feet. So instead, here are a few reviews I randomly found via Google blog search:

Here's an excellent review at Wrapped in Foil, which points out how interesting the story is for anyone interested in the art of writing.

A good review from a "tween" perspective at The Golden Bookmark.

An appreciation from someone who usually avoids books about autism at The Book Gargoyle.

Review by another mom of an Aspie at The Betty and Boo Chronicles.

Review by a mom of a child with developmental delays at The Simple Life

A questioning review at Semicolon

Strong personal impressions from Ultimate Teen Reviews

Karen at Literate Lives writes about reading it with her students.

currently reading: Anything But Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin

A couple of my friends with Aspie sons recommended this and I can see why. This is the story about being autistic I was hoping someone would write.

maybe it's not impossible

(Some spoilers for Impossible ahead.)

Since it's still autism awareness month, I feel vaguely justified in writing this mostly personal post. I didn't try to work it into the review, but Impossible had some unexpected resonances for me. One of the oddest things about being the mother of my son is seeing so much of my own childhood replaying before my eyes--something I very much didn't expect, because our environments are so extremely different. I was very happy to be able to give him everything I didn't have -- stable home, two loving parents, security, material comforts. And sometimes it just kills me that it doesn't seem to make any difference. He is still so anxious, so much an outsider, so often unhappy. Nature trumps nurture.

But -- that's not entirely true. My autistic son can express himself verbally better than I ever could. (Another friend, whose son is not autistic but has had lots of interventions for emotional problems, notes the same thing - they do learn from all the therapy they get.) He has inner resources -- not enough yet, but a start. Although he is very unhappy about his physical development compared to other children, he has an enjoyment of physical activities and his body's abilities that I have been cut off from for most of my life. Every time I see him hanging from one leg on his chin-up bar or hear that he got to the top of the climbing wall, I feel triumphant. Take that, obnoxious PE teachers who try to force all kids at the same pace!

When I first read Impossible, I was a little disappointed in how the tasks were completed. It seemed too easy, a little too mundane. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that the "how" of the tasks were completed was not the important part of the story at all. It was the willingness to even try, to give your all, to keep going no matter how futile it seemed. And having the right supports can make all the difference in someone's ability to do that.

Here's hoping.

Autism *Really* Speaks

autism awareness, now extra fun!

hey you - notice autism today!

Another year, another World Autism Awareness Day. Quite coincidentally, I just watched Autism: the Musical, which had me crying about three-fourths of the show and wanting to punch someone in the snoot the other one-fourth. Which is a fairly reasonable breakdown of what it's like to have an autistic child, keeping in mind that some percentage of those tears are of pride and joy.

For those who haven't seen it, it's a documentary about a group of autistic kids and their parents who put on a show in the old barn! Seriously, it's really touching. There are kids from all levels of the spectrum, from those with virtually no speech to those who can never stop talking. It really gives a sense of what it's like to be a parent to one of these kids, but I was impressed at how well it also gave a sense of what it's like to be one of these kids. Though I am still not buying the facilitated communication.

I really wish they had included the entire musical on the DVD. How hard would that have been?

autism on the brain

There is something about the first summer vacation of my son's life that puts autism in the forefront of my mind. Day after day of unstructured time... utter bliss for some kids, utter torture for an autistic kid. And his parents.

Schedules, clocks, breaking everything down into controllable-feeling chunks of time... these are the days of our lives.

review: It's Time by Judith Mammay

Note: The only place I've been able to find this book for sale online is Barnes and Noble.


It's Time by Judith Mammay. Illustrated by Todd Fargo. Turtle Books, 2007 (978-0-944727-20-1) $9.95 pb

It's Time follows a school day in the life of Tommy, an autistic boy "mainstreamed" in a regular classroom. Tommy has a hard time when people touch him, it's too noisy, or the routine gets changed, and sometimes that leads to screaming and tantrums. But Tommy doesn't want to scare the other kids in his class, so he is doing his best to keep calm and use his words.

It's Time stands out amongst most other autism books for being from the autistic child's perspective, and Mammay does a nice job of showing how hard Tommy is working not to melt down and demonstrating the tools he uses, like asking "what will happen?" when there's a scary change in routine. The sometimes negative responses of the other children in the class are also depicted; they are reminded by their teacher that "it is Tommy's autism that makes him do this" and encouraged to help him by being quieter when it's too noisy for him.

An artificially high note at the end of the story is a bit jarring--"After that, whenever there was a change, Tommy did better using his words"--but my main problem with this book is the pen & ink and watercolor illustrations, which are unattractive , stilted and oddly proportioned, not maintaining much character consistency from page to page. Insets of a mouse at the bottom of the pages, intended to demonstrate what Tommy is feeling inside, just come off as gimmicky since they basically show the same emotions already shown in the illustrations. Perhaps they would have seemed to have more kid-appeal to me if they were more attractively drawn.

It's Time may be of interest to autistic kids, but its main audience will probably be classrooms like Tommy's, that need some understanding of an autistic child's needs. I actually think the story is inherently interesting enough to have a more general appeal, if the book was redesigned and reillustrated. (6-10)

review: Tacos Anyone?/Alguien Quiere Tacos?

Tacos Anyone?/Alguien Quiere Tacos? by Marvie Ellie. Illustrated by Jenny Loehr. Speech Kids, 2005 (978-933319-02-5) $16.95

Thomas is sad because his little brother Michael, who has autism, doesn't like to play with him. But after seeing Michael work with his therapist, Thomas understands better what Michael enjoys and happily "makes tacos" by rolling him in sofa cushions. "It was the first time Michael and I had played together in a long time." A final illustration shows the two boys smiling on the cushions together, about to play with one of the wooden peg puzzles Michael likes.

Narrated by Thomas (with text in both Spanish and English,) this story describes a lot of the activities occupational therapists use with children with autism and sensory needs: learning sign language, bouncing on balls, blowing whistles, and so on. Its obvious audience is brothers and sisters of autistic kids, and they may find it helps them think of ways to relate to their challenging siblings. I really like the happiness and promise of the ending, but the rest of the story might be a little dry to appeal to a more general audience; it could also use some notes for readers who aren't familiar with these activities and might wonder what they're all about.

Unsophisticated illustrations have strongly defined features and lots of crayon or colored pencil shading; it's not a style I find very attractive, but again, I like the enthusiasm depicted, as Michael eagerly says "Tado!" with an enormous smile. (5-8)

"ransom note" campaign ended

I'm quoting this, because it really says it all:

"I am pleased to inform you that this afternoon the NYU Child Study
Center announced that they will be ending the "Ransom Notes" ad
campaign in response to widespread public pressure from the disability
community. You can read that announcement here. The thousands of
people with disabilities, family members, professionals and others who
have written, called, e-mailed and signed our petition have been
heard. Today is a historic day for the disability community.
Furthermore, having spoken directly with Dr. Harold Koplewicz,
Director of the NYU Child Study Center, I have obtained a commitment
to pursue real dialogue in the creation of any further ad campaign
depicting individuals with disabilities. We applaud the NYU Child
Study Center for hearing the voice of the disability community and
withdrawing the "Ransom Notes" ad campaign.

Twenty-two disability rights organizations came together to ensure the
withdrawal of this advertising campaign. Our response to this campaign
stretched continents, with e-mails, letters and phone calls coming
from as far away as Israel, Britain and Australia. The disability
community acted with a unity and decisiveness that has rarely been
heard before and we are seeing the results of our strength today. Our
success sends an inescapable message: if you wish to depict people
with disabilities, you must consult us and seek our approval. Anything
less will guarantee that we will make our voices heard. We are willing
to help anyone and any group that seeks to raise awareness of
disability issues, but those efforts must be done with us, not against
us. This is a victory for inclusion, for respect and for the strength
and unity of people with disabilities across the world. It is that
message that has carried the day in our successful response to this
campaign. Furthermore, we intend to build on this progress, not only
by continuing a dialogue with the NYU Child Study Center and using
this momentum to ensure self-advocate representation at other
institutions as well, but also by building on the broad and powerful
alliance that secured the withdrawal of these ads in the first place.
We are strongest when we stand together, as a community, as a culture
and as a people.

Thank you to all of you who have made this victory possible. Remember:
"Nothing About Us, Without Us!"

Regards,
Ari Ne'eman
The Autistic Self Advocacy Network, President
http://www.autisticadvocacy.org
info@autisticadvocacy.org"

"and now at NYU Child Study Center: BOO!"

A campaign to raise parental awareness about childhood psychiatric disorders is using ransom notes.

Because parents of children diagnosed with these issues aren't scared enough already, or doing their best already.

My child is not a disorder and he is not a prisoner.

How about raising awareness by helping people with undiagnosed children recognize the signs? Not to mention the doctors who fail to notice or to believe parents reporting the early warning signs? (Yes, pediatrician who told me autism was fashionable, I do mean you.)

Book Four: Born on a Blue Day by Daniel Tammet

226 pages. reading and writing: 2 hours

Born on a Blue Day by Daniel Tammet. Simon & Schuster, 2007 (9778-1-4165-3507-2) $24.00

I think I'm going to have to buy this book, to ensure that it's available when my son is old enough to read it. A memoir by a man with savant syndrome, it is also (and more importantly from my point of view) a story about a person with high functioning autism who survives and thrives, finding meaningful work, friendship and love. The sections on what it's like to have synesthesia, and Tammet's relationship with numbers and words are interesting glimpses into an unusual brain; I loved his description of why certain sections of the decimal represention Pi are beautiful to him. It makes the fact that he broke a record by learning Pi to over 22,000 places meaningful instead of pointless.

***

I'm going to be out of town for most of today, but am hoping I will get one more book in before my 48 hours are up.

review: I am Utterly Unique

(Much though I like this book, after a particularly rough weekend, I find myself inevitably writing parodies: "I am Fiercely Freaky when Frustrated" and "I am Never invited Near by the Normal Neighbor kids.")




I Am Utterly Unique by Elaine Marie Larson. Illustrated by Vivian Strand. Autism Asperger Publishing, 2006 (1-931282-89-7)

I'm usually annoyed by books that attempt to sum up personality traits associated with autism, but this book, designed to "celebrate the strengths of children with Asperger Syndrome and High-Functioning Autism," does it with so much affection and care, I have to like it. Using an alphabet format--in itself an excellent choice for ASD kids, many of whom are extremely attracted to letters and numbers--the book lists 26 positive traits often found in HFA children, from "I am an Animal lover" to the unfortunate Z cop-out "I love piZZa and puZZles." (An engaging illustration of a jigsaw pizza helps redeem this one.) In addition to generally positive traits like "I am a Happy Helper," the book pinpoints some of the more fascinating aspects of the typical HFA brain, like "I am a Detail Detective," "I have Fantastic Focus," "I have a Vivid Vocabulary" and "I have an XXL (eXtra, eXtra large memory.)" Some of these concepts must have been a challenge for the illustrator, who rose well to the occasion, depicting simple, almost stick-figure kids expressing the ideas through one often goofy detail: "I have an original outlook" shows a brightly smiling child wearing psychedelic rainbow striped sunglasses. Many of the kids illustrated throughout the book are shown again on the page for U, "I am Utterly Unique," a reminder that though all of them have HFA, they are all unique beings. And of course, not every child with HFA will find him or herself in every one of these pages, which can be a good start to some conversation about similarities and differences, even in people with the same diagnosis.

In addition to the enormous benefit of showing HFA kids a too rare, positive vision of themselves in a book, I Am Utterly Unique has value for showing that the stereotypes of these children are often quite off base: "I have enormous enthusiasm," for example, is certainly true of my own autistic son, and not something I would ever have expected before becoming his mom. This is overall a terrific book for sharing with a young child with HFA or Asperger Syndrome, or with siblings or classmates who could use more insight into what HFA is like. (3-9)