The Reason I Jump: The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year-Old Boy with Autism by Naoki Higashida
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Naoki uses an alphabet grid to construct words, sentences and thoughts that he can’t say out loud. You’ll find answers to questions like: “Why do people with autism talk so loudly and weirdly?” and “Why don’t you make eye contact when you’re talking?”
There are a lot of reviewers who seem to think perhaps Naoiki had a hand in writing this book. I’m not an expert on autism, and therefore am not qualified to say if it was or wasn’t. However, as a reader, the insight and the words were very beautiful. Knowing someone dear who has an autistic child, I know this helped her immensely and is a great insight into how an autistic mind thinks, feels and responds.
Of course it’s a generalization, and of course kids with autism are varied. Humans are varied; we are all different. This is a book from one point of view (it is, after all, a memoir), and I found it beautiful and a great insight. It isn’t going to fix everything and give you insight into all children with autism, but it can give you insight into the way one person with autism works, and you might be able to pull useful things out of it.
