Review: A Boy Called Bat by Elana K. Arnold
Despite some reservations, our reviewer would recommend this contemporary novel about young Bat – and the reviewer’s ten-year-old goddaughter agrees.
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Review: Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde
Queens of Geek is an authentic and refreshing portrayal of an autistic and anxious girl.
Review: The Half-Life of Planets by Emily Franklin and Brendan Halpin
While some elements of the representation were handled decently, I ultimately wasn’t a fan.
Review: On the Edge of Gone by Corinne Duyvis
An emotionally wrenching book, but a worthy one, and one that treats its autistic protagonist with every bit of the realism and respect that she deserves.
Review: A Whole New Ballgame by Phil Bildner
Although several elements of Red’s autism are portrayed well and I’m eager to read the sequels, the character is often relegated to muttering statistics and nervously stimming in the background.
Review: Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins
Although Kurt’s character seems to largely exist to serve the central romance, I was pleasantly surprised by how many pitfalls Perkins avoided in a wonderfully understated manner. Various assumptions and tropes were casually turned over with a single line here or there.
Review: A Wizard Alone by Diane Duane
It’s a rare occurrence when an author can update an already published book, and even more rare when that update includes a huge overhaul of the portrayal of an autistic character. Alyssa Hillary takes a look at both the original and updated version in this review.
Review: The Categorical Universe of Candice Phee by Barry Jonsberg
The Categorical Universe of Candice Phee is a fun, well-written book, if an imperfect autism read.
Review: The End Games by T. Michael Martin
The book deals in a thought-provoking way with many issues of human interaction; readers’ enjoyment will depend on their tolerance for abuse themes and for protagonists driven to terrible behavior without fully understanding how terrible it is.
Review: The End Games by T. Michael Martin
This book definitely had its creepy moments, but I think other books have taken the protective older brother trope and did it better—without turning the younger brother into a plot device.
Review: Evidence of Things Not Seen by Lindsey Lane
Tommy Smythe disappears one Friday night, and even after weeks of searching he can’t be found. This is the story of a rural community’s search for Tommy, and the complicated social networks created by wrongdoings and secrets in a small town.
Review: How to Fly with Broken Wings by Jane Elson
The book ultimately provides a single-faceted understanding of autism and many of the painful interactions with Willem’s teacher and peers would likely hit too close to home for autistic students.
Review: Anything But Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin
Like in real life, autism spectrum disorder alone is never the whole story, and Baskin does a good job balancing Jason’s autism with his writing life, family, school, and budding friendship. She’s succeeded in creating an authentic autistic character who is anything but stereotypical.
Review: Rain Reign by Ann M. Martin
For all that there are moments when Rose’s voice is nuanced and shines, those nuances continuously pushed aside for a far more stereotypical narrative. This is not the story of an autistic character written for an inclusive audience; this is a story about an autistic character written for a neurotypical audience.
Review: Harmonic Feedback by Tara Kelly
I saw a lot of myself in Drea, and I imagine other autistic folks will be able to do the same. It was so nice to see accurate representation, because as an autistic person, I don’t see that very often.
Review: Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine
This book was awarded the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, but as well intentioned as it might have been, it was clearly written by someone with almost no understanding of what Aspies are really like—it was written by and for a neurotypical audience.
Review: The Real Boy by Anne Ursu
Insecure autistic boy meets thoughtful, magical adventure: The Real Boy is now my go-to recommendation when people ask for books with autistic protagonists.
Review: Rules by Cynthia Lord
This is a book about a girl with an autistic brother. The autistic brother is crucial to the plot, but her actual brother is really more of a plot device than anything else.
Review: Rogue by Lyn Miller-Lachmann
What I love most about Kiara—and the novel itself—is that she is unflinchingly genuine. Sooner or later, most Aspie characters written by neurotypicals eventually become caricatures. Having an Autistic character written by an actual Aspie makes all the difference.
Review: Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool
People like Early do exist, and it’s great to see historical fiction that includes a disabled character, but Early gets a little too close to the trope of the magical or extra-special autistic for my comfort.
Review: Colin Fischer by Ashley Edward Miller & Zack Stentz
I truly wanted to love this book—especially as it features one of the very few textually autistic characters written by an autistic author. In the end, though, I was left with mixed-to-negative feelings and a lot of disappointment.
Review: Chime by Franny Billingsley
A good ending doesn’t erase the time I spent feeling isolated, excluded, and hurt because of the way Rose is treated.
Review: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
This book portrays its autistic protagonist in ways that will give readers negative, incorrect, and in some cases abusive ideas about autistic people.
Review: Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko
Overall, I was very pleased with Al Capone Does My Shirts and how it depicts autism. Moose and Natalie are complex and endearing characters who remain with you long after the book is closed.
Review: Silence by Michelle Sagara
What’s missing here is not any aspect of how the autistic character is depicted, per se—what’s missing is something subtler in the narrator’s depiction, and in her point of view.