This should be on every educator's reading list. We don't all think alike, and this book, written by a 13-year old AS (Asperger Syndrome) boy helped me understand how he is "wired" differently. Excerpt:
Luke Jackson, author, narrator describes a scene wherein he is daydreaming in math class...

"I glance up and see the formidable form of the teacher. He towers over me, arms folded, the pungent mixture of sweat and after-shave filling my nostrils [extra sensitivity to sensory input is common among AS people]. I await the moment when he pounces. 'Jackson,' he suddenly booms, 'Would you care to tell us exactly where you are?'
'Class E2, Sir,' I respond as quickly and politely as possible.
'Are you trying to be smart?' he snarls, his face reddening with anger.
'Yes, Sir,' I reply, 'of course I'm trying to be smart.' I think to myself, 'Surely that is why we are at school?' I breathe an inward sigh of relief, presuming he will now leave me alone, but when I look up, I see I am wrong.
His eyes are bulging, he is breathing fast and hard and his face is the colour of a beetroot [yes, Jackson is British]. 'Jackson, I will not, repeat not, tolerate such insolence. You can pull your socks up or get to the headmaster's office.'
Now when I was younger I would have bent down and done just that, pulled my socks up. However, I smile to myself inwardly.'Ha,' I think, 'I know this one -- it means get on with your work, not pull your socks up.' Grinning with delight at the fact that I finally understood, I pick up my pen and start to write. Well you would have thought that that was the end but it seems not!
'This is no laughing matter and how dare you ignore me when I am speaking to you?'"

The "teacher" further goes on to assign and hour's detention for Jackson's behavior.

Started on Saturday, finished on Sunday (and now't to do with Solomon Grundy).

So, here is another memoir from someone with Asperger's Syndrome (or Asperger Syndrome (AS) as it is referred to here).

This one is written by a thirteen year old boy that seems to come from a family with multiple autists (is that a word?) including his mother.

I suppose that this gives him a unique opportunity to write this book for other teenagers that have difficulty adjusting to a world largely composed of people who do not have AS.

He has plenty of examples to give - mainly drawn from his own experience and that of his family, and his entertaining (for a geeky teenager) style makes for an interesting book.

Paradoxically, his writing style is harder to read than the previous 2 books I read about AS (Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger's and Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant). Probably because I'm not thirteen anymore and so just cannot get my head around that teen vernacular. Either that or the author isn't as good a writer as the other two (yet).

Here's another paradoxicality for you - the very thing that makes the author well placed to write this book (closeness to himself and to his family) make him ill placed to write this book (distance from non-AS people).

This is demonstrated in one chapter entitled 'Dating', where Luke tries to give tips on how to have a successful date and relationship with someone. Fact is - he hasn't done this himself, and so it makes it difficult to believe that he is qualified to give advice.

Actually, the advice is credited to his three sisters - so I guess that makes it ok in this case; but the point still stands. It is obvious that Luke is a young man with huge amounts of potential, and yet at the age he writes this book, his life is still ahead of him, as well as all the experiences and triumphs that would make this book even better than it already is.

Still - eleven out of ten for effort. He's written and published a book by his early teens, which is more than I've done in four times that amount of time.

I'm going to stop now before I seriously depress the heck out of myself.

I was not too impressed by the book. It had been recommended to me, but did not hold through. I think I was not well fitted as a target audience. I still liked some extra information I was able to extract about asperger syndrome.

I gained insight into my own daughter's feeliings by reading this book written by a thirteen year old boy who is dealing with Asperger's Disorder.

I LOVED this book. I gained a lot of insight into what might be happening in the minds of some students and think every teacher should read this book. There were so many passages that I thought, "Oh, such and such teacher should read this" or "parents who are reluctant to 'label' their kid should see this." I also learned why families may pursue a gluten-free/casein-free diet for their kids with autism spectrum disorders. I just really enjoyed this book. How many non-fiction books make you laugh out loud (in a good way!) and keep you wanting to pick up the book until you're done. Highly recommend!!!

not impressive

If I had had a book like this one when I was thirteen, it would have changed my life.

That's not to say that I think the book is perfect - I think it could have stood a little bit of gentle editorial help to smooth out some of the rough edges. I think Luke could have dispensed with the self-depreciating stuff like "After all, I'm only thirteen" and "I don't know how it is in other countries, but..." and just communicated what life is like for him and what he does know. Then again, maybe his way of expressing himself tells the reader something about Asperger's Syndrome that they need to know: talking with someone with AS can be an awkward experience for everyone involved.

That said, I like the book. I think Luke has compiled a lot of useful information (clearly he has done some research and knows his stuff pretty well) and the presentation is friendly and easy to read. I may try to get a copy to a teenager I know who has all the earmarks of AS and see if it helps.

Startling in clarity, wit, and honesty. Hard to believe book was written by a 13-year-old. Straight-on images of how a child with Asperger Syndrome experiences the world, and, by these insights, how to make their life and the lives of those around them less stress filled.

I have given this book 5 stars. I liked it for lots of reasons, and considering it was written by a boy of 13 who obviously has many other things going on in his life, it's fantastic.

I have a daughter of 11 currently being assessed for Asperger Syndrome, and I read this to find out more about Aspergers from the point of view of a child who lives with it. That is exactly what this book gives. It's a clear, no-jargon, honest account of life with Aspergers from the point of view of a 13 year old boy with Dyspraxia and Aspergers, who, through being an observant member of a large family of children with various disorders, and a mum who is nothing short of superhuman, has written a particularly informative book which is both articulate and positive and provides the 'AS kid' with reassurance that they are not alone and advice on how to deal with many of the issues they are likely to face, as well as enlightening parents / carers / teachers of 'AS kids' about what it really is like in that world.

As I read, I found myself, nodding vehemently and laughing in recognition of many things he describes as well as his humour. If I had to complain about this book at all, it would be that it was a little repetitive at times, but that certainly didn't anoy me enough to stop me from reading it. I'm glad I didn't.

This has been a great starting point for me and has given me a wonderful peek into the world of children with Aspergers. It has been thought provoking and has prompted many discussions with others (parents & professionals) as well as encouraging me to ask my own questions and search for answers, helped greatly by the numerous links provided in the back of this book.

As Luke says in his book (many, many times) he is only thirteen and is not the expert on everything Aspergers, and this book is written in an informal style which I would expect of a child of his age (possibly a little older), but although this means it is easier for young teenagers to read and understand, it is by no means exclusively written for them and I recommend it for anyone who, like me, wants an insight into 'Planet Asperger'.

Eerste hoofdstukken gelezen, de rest gescand. Boek biedt weinig tot niets nieuws als je al bekend bent met het onderwerp en de toon is belerend, wat het lezen bemoeilijkt en vooral irritatie opwekt.
Boek met een uitgesproken tunnelvisie, veel herhaling en neerbuigend naar ouders en leraren (pedagogen) die er duidelijk niets van begrepen hebben.

Het geeft wel een aardig beeld van hoe het voelt als een kind met AS continu aan je mouw staat te trekken en steeds weer roept: luister naar mij. wat ik te zeggen heb is heel erg BELANGRIJK.

Yeah right!

Great book, a must read for all teachers.

If you have ever wondered if your partner, child, sibling, friend is Aspergers this book will help you understand them better and behave towards them in a kinder way.
If you are an Aspie this book will help you to understand why you may get adverse reactions to your actions and why people get cross or frustrated with you.
If you are a parent of an Aspie kid then encourage them to read this book and make sure you read it. I found it quiet uncomfortable at times but I now feel I understand my child's behaviour so much better and am therefore, able to deal with him in a much more relaxed manner.

So this is another book written by an author within the spectrum of autism, Aspergers Syndrom. He is only 13 years old and so writes from the view point of a teenager, with the language of a teenager and the compulsions of a teenager with Aspergers. He descibes his family and everything he writes about in detail yet it is quite obvious by his writing style, that he is very factual. Not once did I feel sorry for him nor his brothers (who are also autistic and more so than him). This is in fact an author who emphasizes that he wouldn't change his Aspergers for anything. He likes the way he thinks and acts. It is also very obvious that he is within the realm of what is called extremely high functioning and therefor he is conciously aware of the few -what we maybe would call short comings, but he sees as advantages-differences between most people's thinking and that of a person with Aspergers. This enables him to an unusual amount of control over his actions and reactions as well as a surprising adaptability to function as "normal" as possible.
The book is addressed universally and written in a conversational way. He will give advise to teenagers like him at one point, then tell parents of an autistic child what to expect etc. In this the books gives great insights into the workings, exceptional abilities and sometimes limitations of the autistic mind.
A great read for all those interested and that would like to delve deeper into the Aspergers mind.