Sensory: Life on the Spectrum: An Autistic Comics Anthology (2022), ed. Bex Ollerton

A colorful and eclectic comics anthology exploring a wide range of autistic experiences—from diagnosis journeys to finding community—from autistic contributors.

From artist and curator Bex Ollerton comes an anthology featuring comics from thirty autistic creators about their experiences of living in a world that doesn’t always understand or accept them. Sensory: Life on the Spectrum contains illustrated explorations of everything from life pre-diagnosis to tips on how to explain autism to someone who isn't autistic, to suggestions for how to soothe yourself when you’re feeling overstimulated. With unique, vibrant comic-style illustrations and the emotional depth and vulnerability of memoir, this book depicts these varied experiences with the kind of insight that only those who have lived them can have.

Paperback: 176 pages
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 978-1524874766

How to Keep House While Drowning: A Gentle Approach to Cleaning and Organizing (2022), by KC Davis, LPC

This revolutionary approach to cleaning and organizing helps free you from feeling ashamed or overwhelmed by a messy home.

If you’re struggling to stay on top of your to-do list, you probably have a good reason: anxiety, fatigue, depression, ADHD, or lack of support. For therapist KC Davis, the birth of her second child triggered a stress-mess cycle. The more behind she felt, the less motivated she was to start. She didn’t fold a single piece of laundry for seven months. One life-changing realization restored her sanity—and the functionality of her home: You don’t work for your home; your home works for you.

In other words, messiness is not a moral failing. A new sense of calm washed over her as she let go of the shame-based messaging that interpreted a pile of dirty laundry as “I can never keep up” and a chaotic kitchen as “I’m a bad mother.” Instead, she looked at unwashed clothes and thought, “I am alive,” and at stacks of dishes and thought, “I cooked my family dinner three nights in a row.”

Building on this foundation of self-compassion, KC devised the powerful practical approach that has exploded in popularity through her TikTok account, @domesticblisters. The secret is to simplify your to-do list and to find creative workarounds that accommodate your limited time and energy. In this book, you’ll learn exactly how to customize your cleaning strategy and rebuild your relationship with your home, including:

-How to see chores as kindnesses to your future self, not as a reflection of your worth
-How to start by setting priorities
-How to stagger tasks so you won’t procrastinate
-How to clean in quick bursts within your existing daily routine
-How to use creative shortcuts to transform a room from messy to functional

With KC’s help, your home will feel like a sanctuary again. It will become a place to rest, even when things aren’t finished. You will move with ease, and peace and calm will edge out guilt, self-criticism, and endless checklists. They have no place here.

I Am Autistic: A Workbook: Sensory Tools, Practical Advice, and Interactive Journaling for Understanding Life with Autism (By Someone Diagnosed with It) (2022), Chanelle Moriah

Navigate the world of autism with this friendly, full-color guide for those interested in learning more about autism spectrum disorder (ASD), getting an early diagnosis, and recognizing how being autistic can impact a person’s life.

In this first-ever creative guide, author and illustrator Chanelle Moriah offers an interactive tool for both diagnosed and undiagnosed autistics to explain or make sense of their experiences. It also offers non-autistic people the chance to learn more about autism from someone who is autistic.

Packed with full-color illustrations, sensory elements, and spaces for reflection, this book is designed to be personalized to the individual’s experience. I Am Autistic helps people feel less alone in their autism and brings knowledge to an often-misunderstood condition.

Paperback: 144 pages
ISBN: 978-1646044184

The Everything Parent’s Guide To Sensory Processing Disorder: The Information and Treatment Options You Need To Help Your Child With SPD (2014), Terri Mauro 

If your child has been diagnosed with sensory processing disorder (SPD), you understand how simple, everyday tasks can become a struggle. With The Everything Parent's Guide to Sensory Processing Disorder, you can help your child learn how to reduce stress and minimize the symptoms of SPD. In this all-in-one guide, Terri Mauro provides all the information you need regarding SPD, including:

• An in-depth definition of SPD and its effects
• The newest treatments, therapies, and diets
• Techniques for use outside of the therapist's office
• The latest research on physical causes of SPD
• Advice for coping at school, home, and play

Your child deserves to live a life free of the difficulties SPD can bring. The Everything Parent's Guide to Sensory Processing Disorder gives you professional advice to help your child to manage sensory needs and feel calmer, happier, and in control, now and in the future.

ISBN: 978-1440574566
Publisher: Everything

Autism in Heels: The Untold Story of a Female Life on the Spectrum, by Jennifer Cook O'Toole  (2021)

"Autism in Heels," an intimate memoir and Wall Street Journal bestseller, reveals the woman inside one of autism’s most prominent figures, Jennifer O'Toole. At the age of thirty-five, Jennifer was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, and for the first time in her life, things made sense.

Jennifer exposes the constant struggle between carefully crafted persona and authentic existence, editing the autism script with wit, candor, passion, and power. Her journey is one of reverse-self-discovery not only as an Aspie but--more importantly--as a thoroughly modern woman.

Beyond being a memoir, Autism in Heels is a love letter to all women. It’s a conversation starter. A game changer. And a firsthand account of what it is to walk in Jennifer's shoes (especially those iconic red stilettos).

Whether it's bad perms or body image, sexuality or self-esteem, Jennifer's is as much a human journey as one on the spectrum. Because autism "looks a bit different in pink," most girls and women who fit the profile are not identified, facing years of avoidable anxiety, eating disorders, volatile relationships, self-harm, and stunted independence. Jennifer has been there, too. Autism in Heels takes that message to the mainstream.

From her own struggles and self-discovery, she has built an empire of empowerment, inspiring women the world over to realize they aren't mistakes. They are misunderstood miracles.

Paperback: 288 pages
ISBN: 978-1510758698

Laziness Does Not Exist, by Devon Price (2022)

Extra-curricular activities. Honors classes. 60-hour work weeks. Side hustles.

Like many Americans, Dr. Devon Price believed that productivity was the best way to measure self-worth. Price was an overachiever from the start, graduating from both college and graduate school early, but that success came at a cost. After Price was diagnosed with a severe case of anemia and heart complications from overexertion, they were forced to examine the darker side of all this productivity.

Laziness Does Not Exist explores the psychological underpinnings of the “laziness lie,” including its origins from the Puritans and how it has continued to proliferate as digital work tools have blurred the boundaries between work and life. Using in-depth research, Price explains that people today do far more work than nearly any other humans in history yet most of us often still feel we are not doing enough.

Filled with practical and accessible advice for overcoming society’s pressure to do more, and featuring interviews with researchers, consultants, and experiences from real people drowning in too much work, Laziness Does Not Exist “is the book we all need right now” (Caroline Dooner, author of The F*ck It Diet).

Publisher: Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 978-1982140113

The Rules of Rain by Leah Scheier (2017)

Rain has taken care of Ethan all their lives. Before she even knew what autism meant, she was her twin brother’s connection to the world around him. Each day with Ethan is unvarying and predictable, until one night when her world is turned upside down by a mistake she can’t take back. As her new romance with her longtime crush and her carefully constructed life begin to unravel, Rain discovers that the fragile brother she’s always protected has grown into a young man who no longer needs her. And, for the first time, she discovers just how much she needs him.

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
ISBN: 9781492654261
Reading Age: 14-17

Doctor Dogs: How Our Best Friends Are Becoming Our Best Medicine by Maria Goodavage (2019)

New York Times bestselling author Maria Goodavage takes us on a thrilling, delightful, globe-trotting journey to discover the heartwarming and fascinating new world of doctor dogs.

In this groundbreaking book, Goodavage brings us behind the scenes of cutting-edge science at top research centers, and into the lives of people whose well-being depends on their devoted, highly skilled personal MDs (medical dogs). With her signature wit and passion, Goodavage explores how doctor dogs are becoming our happy allies in the fight against dozens of physical and mental conditions.

We meet dogs who detect cancer and Parkinson’s disease, and dogs who alert people to seizures and diabetic lows or highs and other life-threatening physical ailments. Goodavage reveals the revolutionary ways dogs are helping those with autism, anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, and post-traumatic stress disorder. And she introduces us to intrepid canines who are protecting us from antibiotic-resistant bugs, and to dogs who may one day help keep us safe from epidemic catastrophe. Their paycheck for their lifesaving work? Heartfelt praise and a tasty treat or favorite toy.

The emotional element in Doctor Dogs delivers as powerfully as the science. You don’t have to be a dog lover to care deeply about what these dogs are doing and what we are learning from them—although if you’re not a dog lover, you probably will be by the end of the book.

Publisher: Dutton
ISBN: 978-1524743048

Disability Visibility (Adapted for Young Adults): 17 First-Person Stories for Today (2021), ed. Alice Wong

Disabled young people will be proud to see themselves reflected in this hopeful, compelling, and insightful essay collection, adapted for young adults from the critically acclaimed adult book, Disability Visibility: First Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century that "sheds light on the experience of life as an individual with disabilities, as told by none other than authors with these life experiences." --Chicago Tribune, "Best books published in summer 2020" (Vintage/Knopf Doubleday edition).

The seventeen eye-opening essays in Disability Visibility, all written by disabled people, offer keen insight into the complex and rich disability experience, examining life's ableism and inequality, its challenges and losses, and celebrating its wisdom, passion, and joy.
 
The accounts in this collection ask readers to think about disabled people not as individuals who need to be “fixed,” but as members of a community with its own history, culture, and movements. They offer diverse perspectives that speak to past, present, and future generations. It is essential reading for all.

Age Range: 12-17 years
Hardcover: 160 pages
ISBN: 978-0593381670

The Autism Job Club: The Neurodiverse Workforce in the New Normal of Employment (2015), Michael S. Bernick and Richard Holden

The Autism Job Club is a groundbreaking book for bringing adults with autism and other neurodivergent conditions into the work world.

The book has its basis in the autism job club that the authors have been part of in the San Francisco Bay Area, the job-creation and job-placement efforts the club has undertaken, and similar efforts throughout the United States.

The authors review the high unemployment rates among adults with autism and other neurodivergent conditions more than two decades after the ADA, and national data on autism employment and unemployment with the individual employment searches of job club members.

Bernick and Holden also outline and explain six strategies that, taken together, will reshape employment for adults with autism:

*The art of the autism job coach.
*The autism advantage in technology employment.
*Autism employment and the internet economy.
*Autism employment and the practical/craft economy.
*Autism and extra-governmental job networks.
*Autism and public service employment.

The Autism Job Club will be a vital resource for adults with autism, their families, and advocates who are committed to neuro-diverse employment, not unemployment. But it will also speak to a far broader audience interested in how to carve out a place for themselves or others in an increasingly competitive job world.

Paperback: 272 pages

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

Anything But Typical (2010), Nora Raleigh Baskin

Told from the first-person perspective of an autistic boy, Nora Raleigh Baskin’s novel is an enlightening story for anyone who has ever worried about fitting in.

Jason Blake is an autistic twelve-year-old living in a neurotypical world. Most days it's just a matter of time before something goes wrong. But Jason finds a glimmer of understanding when he comes across PhoenixBird, who posts stories to the same online site as he does.

Jason can be himself when he writes and he thinks that PhoneixBird-her name is Rebecca-could be his first real friend. But as desperate as Jason is to met her, he's terrified that if they do meet, Rebecca wil only see his autism and not who Jason really is.

By acclaimed writer Nora Raleigh Baskin, this is the breathtaking depiction of an autistic boy's struggles-and a story for anyone who has ever worried about fitting in.

Age Range: 10-12 years
Paperback: 224 pages

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