Carly's Voice: Breaking Through Autism by Arthur Fleischmann and Carly Fleischmann (2012)

At the age of two, Carly Fleischmann was diagnosed with severe autism and an oral motor condition that prevented her from speaking. Doctors predicted that she would never intellectually develop beyond the abilities of a small child. Carly remained largely unreachable through the years. Then, at the age of ten, she had a breakthrough.

While working with her devoted therapists, Carly reached over to their laptop and typed HELP TEETH HURT, much to everyone's astonishment. Although Carly still struggles with all the symptoms of autism, she now has regular, witty, and profound conversations on the computer with her family and her many thousands of supporters online.

In Carly's Voice, her father, Arthur Fleischmann, blends Carly's own words with his story of getting to know his remarkable daughter. One of the first books to explore firsthand the challenges of living with autism, it brings readers inside a once-secret world and in the company of an inspiring young woman who has found her voice and her mission.

Publisher: Touchstone
ISBN: 9781439194157

Brave Love: Making Space for You to Be You (2019) by Lisa Leonard

Women today feel pressure to be the best wife, mom, and professional possible - often at the expense of their own identity. But what if you could experience deep peace - knowing you are loved right now, just as you are? In Brave Love, the founder of the multi-million dollar company Lisa Leonard Designs inspires women to find themselves again amidst the noise and competing demands of real life.

Brave Love is about what it means to be human, how it feels to be broken and afraid, and what happens when we dare to love deeply. Join Lisa on a journey where you will discover you are worthy and lovable just as you are. You don't have to try harder or be better. You don't have to prove yourself and you don't have to make others okay. In this freedom you will find more peace and more joy. Most importantly, you will learn that as you stop trying to be everything to everyone, you will love others better.

Lisa Leonard shares her story of finding truth and wholeness in the midst of life's competing demands. When she said her marriage vows, she was determined to be the best wife she could be. When her first son was born with a severe disability, Lisa promised herself she would always be the mother he needed. When she began her jewelry business, Lisa committed to giving it her all.

Over the years, the exhaustion of trying to be the perfect wife, mother, and businesswoman took its toll. Lisa knew it wasn't working. She wanted to change things, but how? Everyone depended on her. So she kept going, kept pushing, kept trying to prove she could do it all. Until one evening, in tears and desperation, Lisa realized that she could no longer be everything to everyone. Somewhere along the way, she had lost herself.

Publisher: Zondervan
ISBN: 9780310352303

My Therapist Told Me to Journal: A Creative Mental Health Workbook (2020), by Holly Chisholm

Write that sh*t down!

Keep anxiety and depression in check with tons of totally doable mental health tips and techniques included here. You'll find some silly things, some serious things, some resources and exercises—oh, and a whole page of STICKERS to use throughout your journal. 

The author HATES journaling. This is the journal she wishes she had had when first starting out in therapy.

From the creator of Just Peachy Comics, this interactive self-care book uses journaling, drawing, and goal-tracking to help improve the user's overall mental health and well-being. The journal will introduce you to a variety of therapy practices such as CBT (Cognitive behavioral therapy) and EMDR. It will also illustrate the author's “dot method” of goal tracking to help reduce anxiety.

These inviting pages include checklists, doodle boxes, gratitude prompts, goal pages, supportive characters, encouragement, resources on how to get through anxiety attacks, and more. This is a journal for anyone feeling down, looking for some extra support, or just trying to stay positive and practice daily self-care. 

Hardcover: 176 pages
Publisher: Skyhorse
ISBN: 978-1510761124

Play to Progress: Lead Your Child to Success Using the Power of Sensory Play (2022), by Allie Ticktin

A game-changing book on child development--and the importance of physical play--for this digital and screen age.

For children to develop to their fullest potential, their sensory system—which, in addition to the big five of sight, hearing, taste, touch, and smell, includes movement and balance (vestibular), body awareness (proprioception), and internal perception (interoception)—needs to be stimulated from the time they are born. Their senses flourish when they explore their environment by touching new textures, including their food, running, jumping, climbing, and splashing outside.
 
As an occupational therapist with a specialty in sensory integration, Allie Ticktin has seen an increase in cases of children who struggle to sit in circle time or at their desk upright and who are delayed in walking, talking, and playing by themselves and with their peers. In the recent past, kids spent their days playing outside and naturally engaging their sensory system and building key developmental skills. But with increasing time pressures for both kids and parents, children are spending more time in front of screens and less time exploring and interacting with their environment.
 
The good news is that boosting your child’s sensory development doesn’t take enormous amounts of time or supplies, or any special skills. Here, Ticktin discusses the eight sensory systems and how a child uses them, and offers easy, fun activities—as well as advice on setting up a play area—that will encourage their development so that your little one will be better able to respond to their emotions, build friendships, communicate their needs, and thrive in school. That’s the power of sensory play.

Hardcover: 272 pages
Publisher: TarcherPerigree
ISBN: 978-0593191927

Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law (2020), by Haben Girma

"This autobiography by a millennial Helen Keller teems with grace and grit." -- O, The Oprah Magazine

"A profoundly important memoir." -- The Times


The incredible life story of Haben Girma, the first Deafblind graduate of Harvard Law School, and her amazing journey from isolation to the world stage.


Haben grew up spending summers with her family in the enchanting Eritrean city of Asmara. There, she discovered courage as she faced off against a bull she couldn't see, and found in herself an abiding strength as she absorbed her parents' harrowing experiences during Eritrea's thirty-year war with Ethiopia. Their refugee story inspired her to embark on a quest for knowledge, traveling the world in search of the secret to belonging. She explored numerous fascinating places, including Mali, where she helped build a school under the scorching Saharan sun. Her many adventures over the years range from the hair-raising to the hilarious.

Haben defines disability as an opportunity for innovation. She learned non-visual techniques for everything from dancing salsa to handling an electric saw. She developed a text-to-braille communication system that created an exciting new way to connect with people. Haben pioneered her way through obstacles, graduated from Harvard Law, and now uses her talents to advocate for people with disabilities.

Haben takes readers through a thrilling game of blind hide-and-seek in Louisiana, a treacherous climb up an iceberg in Alaska, and a magical moment with President Obama at The White House. Warm, funny, thoughtful, and uplifting, this captivating memoir is a testament to one woman's determination to find the keys to connection.

Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Twelve
ISBN: 978-1538728734

Advanced Parenting: Advice for Helping Kids Through Diagnoses, Differences, and Mental Health Challenges (2023), by Kelly Fradin

“An invaluable resource for parents and caregivers,” this important, empathetic guidebook offers practical steps for managing children's health (Emily Oster, PhD,  New York Times bestselling author of Cribsheet and Expecting Better).

Any parent who has ever walked out of a concerning appointment with their child's doctor or teacher has experienced a heady mix of emotions--fear, love, confusion, concern, sadness, and perhaps even anger. While every parent hopes for a healthy child, the reality is that children face many common challenges, including medical issues like ADHD, asthma, food allergies, feeding issues, learning disabilities, anxiety and depression, and developmental delays, throughout their formative years. As the role of a parent becomes one of a caregiver, it can be overwhelming for parents and children alike, particularly if money, time, access, or any combination of those are in short supply. 

As a balm, Dr. Kelly Fradin offers Advanced Parenting, based on her experience as a complex-care pediatrician. In this crucial guide, parents will find empathy and support as well as evidence-based practical guidance. Of greatest import is the need for tools with which to manage the emotional stress that comes from having a child who deviates from the norm, as well as coping with uncertainty and navigating the business of care. Readers will discover ways to optimize the outcomes for their family and make their day-to-day life easier.

Advanced Parenting will help families from the beginning of their journey, helping parents to decide when a child needs help, accepting the implications of a challenge, obtaining a correct diagnosis, learning about the issue, building a treatment team and coming up with a comprehensive plan. Dr. Fradin explores how a child struggling can affect the entire family dynamic including the parent’s relationships and the siblings overall well-being, and with her experience as a complex care pediatrician, she will help parents avoid common mistakes. Parents will feel seen, supported, and better prepared to be both a parent and a caregiver.

Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Balance
ISBN: 978-1538722466

Loving Your Place on the Spectrum: A Neurodiversity Blueprint (2021), Jude Morrow

Loving Your Place on the Spectrum provides answers to many of your questions about autism, helping you to embrace neurodiversity and love your autistic self and the autistic people in your life. Jude Morrow speaks from personal experience when he says that he has learned to be proud to be autistic and he wants you to be proud too.

Browse through the many books available on autism and you might notice a trend: too many of them are written by neurotypical professionals who aim to “fix” autism or help autistic people appear “normal.” Jude Morrow noticed this problem and decided that something needed to change.

Loving Your Place on the Spectrum is a guide for living a happy and successful autistic life. Jude combines his own experiences as an autistic man with the stories of others to provide a handbook to help autistic individuals navigate life’s major changes, from childhood to college, jobs, and relationships. Each chapter identifies common issues faced by autistic people of a particular age or social group and explains how educators, teachers, parents, and professionals can be supportive through all these life stages.

The world needs a new perspective on autism, and Jude Morrow’s Loving Your Place on the Spectrum provides parents, workplaces, individuals, and society an alternative, strengths-based viewpoint, where autistic people are accepted, embraced, and loved.

Paperback: 255 pages

To Siri with Love: A Mother, Her Autistic Son, and the Kindness of Machines by Judith Newman (2018)

From the author of the viral New York Times op-ed column "To Siri with Love" comes a collection of touching, hilarious, and illuminating stories about life with a thirteen-year-old boy with autism that hold insights and revelations for us all.

When Judith Newman shared the story of how Apple’s electronic personal assistant, Siri, helped Gus, her son who has autism, she received widespread media attention and an outpouring of affection from readers around the world. Basking in the afterglow of media attention, Gus told anyone who would listen, "I’m a movie star."

Judith’s story of her son and his bond with Siri was an unusual tribute to technology. While many worry that our electronic gadgets are dumbing us down, she revealed how they can give voice to others, including children with autism like Gus - a boy who has trouble looking people in the eye, hops when he’s happy, and connects with inanimate objects on an empathetic level.

To Siri with Love is a collection of funny, poignant, and uplifting stories about living with an extraordinary child who has helped a parent see and experience the world differently. From the charming (Gus weeping with sympathy over the buses that would lie unused while the bus drivers were on strike) to the painful (paying $22,000 for a behaviorist in Manhattan to teach Gus to use a urinal) to the humorous (Gus’s insistence on getting naked during all meals, whether at home or not, because he does not want to get his clothes dirty) to the profound (how an automated "assistant" helped a boy learn how to communicate with the rest of the world), the stories in To Siri with Love open our eyes to the magic and challenges of a life beyond the ordinary.

ISBN:  978-0062413635
Publisher: Harper

The Parents Guide to Down Syndrome: Advice, Information, Inspiration, and Support for Raising Your Child from Diagnosis Through Adulthood by Jennifer Jacob and Mardra Sikora (2016)

Help your child succeed and thrive!

As a parent of a child diagnosed with Down Syndrome, you may be feeling unsure of what to do next or where your child's journey will take you. In this book, authors Jen Jacob and Mardra Sikora share their experiences and guide you through life with DS with expert advice from diagnosis to adulthood. Each page teaches you ways to support your child through major milestones; nurture their development; and ensure that they succeed behaviorally, socially, and cognitively. You'll also find valuable information on:

• Sharing the news with loved ones
• Transitioning into primary school
• Developing your child's social skills
• Discussing future opportunities, including employment and housing options

With The Parent's Guide to Down Syndrome, you will have the tools you need to raise a happy, healthy, and thriving child.

ISBN: 978-1440592904
Publisher: Adams Media

Sitting Pretty: The View from My Ordinary Resilient Disabled Body by Rebekah Taussig (2021)

A memoir-in-essays from disability advocate and creator of the Instagram account @sitting_pretty Rebekah Taussig, processing a lifetime of memories to paint a beautiful, nuanced portrait of a body that looks and moves differently than most.

ISBN:  9780062936790
Publisher: HarperOne
Hardcover Edition

ADHD Girls to Women: Getting on the Radar (2023), by Lotta Borg Skugland

ADHD girls and women often fall under the radar. Their lives impacted by a society that is largely disinterested in understanding ADHD outside of the male framework. No longer. This book connects the latest science on ADHD in women to the compelling lived experiences of girls and women with ADHD, weaving in their personal struggles and their breakthroughs, from childhood and the teen years through to motherhood, menopause and beyond.

Family doctor, psychiatrist, and international ADHD expert Lotta Borg Skoglund combines years of experience in the treatment and assessment of ADHD with the powerful testimonies of the women she has encountered along the way, exploring issues such as hormonal changes, emotional regulation, organization and concentration, relationships, work, and treatment. She provides valuable tips, strategies and insights as to how ADHD girls and women can achieve the self-understanding they need to live to their best potential. 

Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Jennifer Kingsley Publishers
ISBN: 978-1805010548

Learning Outside The Lines: Two Ivy League Students with Learning Disabilities and ADHD Give You the Tools for Academic Success and Educational Revolution (2000), by Jonathan Mooney and David Cole

Written by two Ivy League graduates who struggled with learning disabilities and ADHD, Learning Outside the Lines teaches students how to take control of their education and find true success with brilliant and easy study suggestions and tips.

Every day, your school, your teachers, and even your peers draw lines to measure and standardize intelligence. They decide what criteria make one person smart and another person stupid. They decide who will succeed and who will just get by. Perhaps you find yourself outside the norm, because you learn differently—but, unlike your classmates, you have no system in place that consistently supports your ability and desire to learn. Simply put, you are considered lazy and stupid. You are expected to fail.

Learning Outside the Lines is written by two such “academic failures”—that is, two academic failures who graduated from Brown University at the top of their class. Jonathan Mooney and David Cole teach you how to take control of your education and find true success—and they offer all the reasons why you should persevere. Witty, bold, and disarmingly honest, Learning Outside the Lines takes you on a journey toward personal empowerment and profound educational change, proving once again that rules sometimes need to be broken.

Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Touchstone
ISBN:  978-0684865980

Hidden Brilliance: Unlocking the Intelligence of Autism (2023), by Lynn Kern Koegel and Claire LaZebnik

A groundbreaking exploration of the ways in which the intelligence and abilities of children and young adults with autism are often overlooked and misjudged, with tried-and-true interventions that can be used to help them reach their full potential.

Our limited and often biased view of what’s considered “normal” often prevents us from recognizing the gifts and brilliance of those who don’t fit a specific mold. Too often we don’t explore and take advantage of the far-reaching gifts and potential of those diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum or neurodiverse. Dr. Lynn Kern Koegel has had vast experience researching Autism Spectrum Disorders—ASD—and working with autistic people of all ages. She has repeatedly witnessed firsthand evidence of great intelligence that hasn’t yet been nurtured or realized.

In Hidden Brilliance, Dr. Koegel and writer Claire LaZebnik explore the ways in which the brilliance and talents of children and young adults diagnosed with ASD are commonly overlooked or misjudged, even by trained professionals. This book isn’t about changing people, but about bringing out their best, by focusing on and nurturing their strengths.

The authors examine the forces at play—including outdated attitudes, a lack of sufficient training, and an overreliance on standardized testing--that complicate and confuse the effort to see the remarkable capabilities of these kids. The authors argue that behaviors often described as disruptive or interfering are actually brilliant attempts at communication and point the reader toward interventions that can encourage people to effectively communicate their needs and thoughts. Hidden Brilliance helps us see how and why parents—who often feel alone in their ability to see past their children’s struggles to the incredible capabilities underneath —are often dismissed or ignored.

This long overdue book explains ways to identify your child’s strengths and abilities and then use them as a tool for social communication, improved learning, and overall growth. While no one can predict a child’s future, a positive and supportive attitude combined with the right goals and interventions that consider the child’s strengths can lead to extraordinary growth and connection. Warm and hopeful, Hidden Brilliance opens the door to a new way of looking at people diagnosed with ASD—those who deserve to have their brilliance shine brightly for all to see.

Hardcover: 288 pages
Publisher: Harper
ISBN: 978-0063225374

Last Pick (2018), by Jason Walz

In this first volume of Jason Walz's dystopian graphic novel trilogy, the kids last picked are humanity's last hope.

Three years ago, aliens invaded Earth and abducted everyone they deemed useful. The only ones spared were those too young, too old, or too “disabled” to be of value. Living on Earth under the aliens’ harsh authoritarian rule, humanity’s rejects do their best to survive. Their captors never considered them a threat―until now.

Twins Sam and Wyatt are ready to chuck their labels and start a revolution. It’s time for the kids last picked to step into the game.

A YALSA Recommended Reading Great Graphic Novel
A 2020 Texas Maverick Graphic Novel

Age Range: 12-18
Publisher: First Second
ISBN: 978-1626728912

Five Things About Ava Andrews (2022), by Margaret Dilloway

A heartfelt and funny story about a shy eleven-year-old who learns to manage her anxiety through improv classes—and discovers her activist voice. From Margaret Dilloway, author of Summer of a Thousand Pies, and perfect for fans of Sharon Draper, Lynda Mullaly Hunt, and Holly Goldberg Sloan.

Eleven-year-old Ava Andrews has a Technicolor interior with a gray shell. On the inside, she bubbles with ideas and plans. On the outside, everyone except her best friend, Zelia, thinks she doesn’t talk or, worse, is stuck-up. What nobody knows is that Ava has invisible disabilities: anxiety and a heart condition.

Ava hopes middle school will be a fresh start, but when Zelia moves across the country and Ava’s Nana Linda pushes her to speak up about social issues, she withdraws further. So Ava is shocked when her writing abilities impress her classmates and they invite her to join their improv group, making up stories onstage. Determined to prove she can control her anxiety, she joins—and discovers a whole new side of herself, and what it means to be on a team.

But as Ava’s self-confidence blossoms, her relationship with Zelia strains, and she learns that it isn’t enough just to raise your voice—it’s how and why you use it that matters.

Age Range: 8-12 years
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
ISBN: 978-0062803504

An Outsider's Guide to Humans: What Science Taught Me About What We Do and Who We Are (2020), by Camilla Pang PhD

WINNER OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY SCIENCE BOOK PRIZE

An instruction manual for life, love, and relationships by a brilliant young scientist whose Asperger's syndrome allows her--and us--to see ourselves in a different way...and to be better at being human

Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder at the age of eight, Camilla Pang struggled to understand the world around her. Desperate for a solution, she asked her mother if there was an instruction manual for humans that she could consult. With no blueprint to life, Pang began to create her own, using the language she understands best: science.

That lifelong project eventually resulted in An Outsider's Guide to Humans, an original and incisive exploration of human nature and the strangeness of social norms, written from the outside looking in--which is helpful to even the most neurotypical thinker. Camilla Pang uses a set of scientific principles to examine life's everyday interactions:

- How machine learning can help us sift through data and make more rational decisions
- How proteins form strong bonds, and what they teach us about embracing individual differences to form diverse groups
- Why understanding thermodynamics is the key to seeking balance over seeking perfection
- How prisms refracting light can keep us from getting overwhelmed by our fears and anxieties, breaking them into manageable and separate "wavelengths"

Pang's unique perspective of the world tells us so much about ourselves--who we are and why we do the things we do--and is a fascinating guide to living a happier and more connected life.