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NeuroTribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity
NeuroTribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity | Steve Silberman
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ncsufoxes
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Pickpick

I‘ve had this chunkster sitting my shelves for a while. I‘m so happy I finally decided to take the time to read it. It was a well researched book about the history of Autism from before the days of Asperger & Kanner that identified Autism (although their initial guidelines have changed significantly). The book also has discussed the change of how Autism has been perceived by professionals, parents & now self advocates. Autism was first identified

ncsufoxes in the 1930‘s but most of the current understanding/guidelines weren‘t fully developed until the DSM-IV in 1994. There are still many misconceptions about Autism & when you realize that it has been a diagnosis shrouded in misunderstanding & misdirection. Advocates & families have fought for better treatment, services, awareness, & education. Definitely would recommend for anyone looking to understand a lot about the history of Autism. 8mo
TheAromaofBooks Great review!! 8mo
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rwmg
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azulaco
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I‘m just starting this one. It‘s going to be an interesting read, I can already tell.

MatchlessMarie I loved this one. I put it off so long because of I was intimidated by the volume but it really is an easy read. 🧡 12mo
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rwmg
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Pickpick

Basically a history of the concept of autism and psychologists'/psychiatrists'/physicians' perceptions and how they fitted in with general ideas on mental illness as they developed from autism being a very rare childhood disease to a broad spectrum of human variation.

Fascinating. I didn't know about the mass sterilisations of mentally ill people in the US. A stark account of the Nazis' treatment of those they considered “mentally defective“.

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rwmg
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Every evening in the last years of the eighteenth century, at precisely the same hour, a solitary figure stepped forth from the most unusual house on Clapham Common to take his nightly constitutional.

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

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rwmg
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adoramichaels
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Pickpick

This was a great deep dive into the history of autism and showing how it is not a disease.

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RaeLovesToRead
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Mehso-so

This is an important subject. I learned a lot about the history of autism, but, I really didn't gel with Silberman's biographical style. It felt disorganised and waffly, never quite bringing the subject to life.

At it's heart though, this is a book advocating for acceptance of difference and urging us to be more thoughtful and accommodating of others. A message I wholeheartedly approve.

⭐⭐⭐ 3 stars

squirrelbrain Hi Rae, I just posted about this year‘s #readingretreat and I know you were really keen to come along…. Check out my post! 2y
RaeLovesToRead @squirrelbrain Yes, I'm definitely in! 😊😄 Can't wait!! 2y
RaeLovesToRead @squirrelbrain Thanks for inviting me! 💕 2y
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RaeLovesToRead
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I've got a new book model 💕💕 He was a gift from a patient and I love him ❤

Neurotribes is a history of autism, full of valuable information presented in a biographical style that I am not clicking with.

I was not emotionally ready for the chapters about the holocaust and the maltreatment of children.

I hope that our society is evolving in a way to make us all more accepting of difference, more inclusive and more accommodating of others.

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RaeLovesToRead
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#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

1) Tagged. Not loving it so far. I was hoping for a concise history of autism encompassing the concept of neurodiversity. I'm finding the writing very rambling and unfocused. Hopefully it will get better.

2) I would say cold, but having had convos with Littens about what constitutes "cold", I daren't when it's only 2°c ?

3) Feet by the radiator, blanket, cup of tea ?

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MatchlessMarie
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Pickpick

Didn‘t quite make it to 20 for #20in4 but I am glad that I finished my April #DoubleSpin book 🎉 I‘ve followed Steve in online spaces for years but was always too intimidated to start this chunkster, but I really shouldn‘t have been. This book is a thorough history of autism but it is extremely readable albeit harrowing at times especially re: early history (eugenics, child death). If this has been on your TBR I really recommend starting. 💯

TheAromaofBooks Yay!!! 2y
Andrew65 Still a great time!👏👏👏🙌🥳🍾🥂😍👍😊 Thanks for playing along. (edited) 2y
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MatchlessMarie
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Spent yesterday listening to NeuroTribes for #20in4

Andrew65 Great. 👏👏👏 2y
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MatchlessMarie
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My only goal for this #20in4 readathon is to finish the tagged 500+ page chonk which is also my #DoubleSpin book for April

Andrew65 Thanks for sharing 😍 3y
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slategreyskies
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This is my take on the opposite of same. It‘s different to be neurodiverse, but that‘s often a pretty cool thing to be. This book is on my bookshelf, but I haven‘t read it yet.

#OppositeDay #same

TheKidUpstairs I love this. As we accept and learn more about neuro-diversity and neuro-atypical people, I think we have much to learn and grow from that knowledge! (I don't know if that sentence made sense. I hope it did, but I've had two children screaming all day, while a third quietly built a hamster empire for a fake plastic hamster) 3y
slategreyskies @TheKidUpstairs yeah, that makes sense. And yay for you still being able to form a sentence! When my boys were young, I was fairly non-communicative due to my nerves being frazzled all the time. The hamster empire sounds cool! 3y
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jenniferw88
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Mehso-so

3 🌟 leftover book from March's #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

Have circled the speed as I normally stick to 1x! Should probably have bailed on this 20 hour audiobook.

lilycobalt I read this in print and thought it was great, but see how it wouldn‘t adapt to audio very well! 3y
TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 3y
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MatchlessMarie
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Here‘s my #BookSpinBingo card. I love that Neurotribes got picked this month because it‘s Autism *Acceptance* month and I have read portions of this book but haven‘t yet finished it. ♾ 🌈

#BookSpin: Speak
#DoubleSpin: Neurotribes

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 3y
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jenniferw88
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#bookreport week 20/3/21 @Cinfhen

Finished top 2, continued tagged & started bottom 2.

melissajayne The Book of Negroes is excellent; have an illustrated edition as well. 3y
Cinfhen Excellent progress 🥰 3y
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jenniferw88
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#bookreport week 13/3/21 @Cinfhen

Finished top 2, continued bottom 2.

Cinfhen Fabulous ❤️ 3y
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dylanisreading
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Pickpick

After an eye-opening conversation with my psychiatric NP last week, I decided to pick up this book again. It was difficult to read at many points, but it made me feel seen.

Highly recommend.

SkeletonKey Definitely one of my faves on the subject. 3y
Libby1 ❤️ 3y
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jenniferw88
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Cinfhen Looks like a good week ahead 💜 3y
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SkeletonKey
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Current audiobook.

#autism #neurodiversity

Gezemice It is very good. Enjoy! 3y
SkeletonKey @Gezemice - I‘m almost done, enjoying it very much. 3y
Megabooks I‘ve heard it‘s good 👍🏻 3y
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uwak
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Pickpick

I'm only vaguely familiar with the history of autism through my undergrad/grad school work, so this was an interesting read. Silberman covers the overall history in depth up to the present in an approachable manner. if I have any minor issues, the book does downplay some of the more severe behavioral challenges of autism in children and also focuses a bit too much on high-functioning for the sake of meaningfully contributing to society.

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sarahljensen
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Pickpick

Excellent romp through the diagnostic history of ASD. I highly recommend to anyone interested in such a history

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sarahljensen
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Lovely Saturday morning :)

BookmarkTavern That looks perfect! 🥰 4y
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BookishShelly
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Pickpick

This book is excellent. It could have been trimmed down a bit, but that‘s true of most books IMO. 5⭐️
#nonfiction

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Aimeesue
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#audiowalking
#autism

Job related reading, so I‘m totally working right now, right? 😄

julesG Of course! 5y
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LittlePixels
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There are many good aspects of our culture being more accepting of "neurodiversity", but as the mom of special needs kids, one with autism, I'm going to have a very unpopular opinion here. Books like this piss me off. I guess more specifically they make me sad, and feel like I'm not seen. My kid's autism isn't good, or cute, or fun. Talking about Daryl Hannah or Jerry Seinfeld being autistic...really? (Continued in comments...)

LittlePixels In my world, being autistic doesn't look like a successful actor, or even someone who can ever live independently. It looks like screaming fits, speech difficulties, sign language, anxiety, aggressive outbursts against family members...did I mention the screaming? So much screaming. It isn't charming, and it isn't good for siblings to have to deal with. Yes, there are good moments, and yes we all love each other. 5y
LittlePixels But whitewashing the negative aspects invalidates those of us who deal with the downside of autism on a daily basis. :( (edited) 5y
rretzler 🤗 5y
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LittlePixels @rretzler Thanks ❤️ 5y
Bookwomble 💖 5y
LittlePixels @Bookwomble Thanks 💕 5y
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LindseysLibrary
Pickpick

This book was so excellent, but quite long, and sadly my library insisted I return it before I got to finish it, haha. That said, it was AMAZING to read the backstory of why we have the ideas about autism that we do: all the stigmas, the stereotypes, and even a possible explanation for why there are so many parents who believe they themselves can do something to help their child‘s “condition.” I hope I get a chance to finish it someday!

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dylanisreading
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THIS

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dylanisreading
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Trying a new book tonight.

I would always rather be reading than at a party.

Crazeedi Me too!!! 5y
Reviewsbylola I‘ve read about 1/3 of this. 5y
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CampbellTaraL
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1. Yes!
2. 60/40 - more fiction
3. Science
4. Neurotribes by Steve Silberman
5. I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life by Ed Yong

@wanderinglynn

wanderinglynn Thanks for playing! 😀 6y
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kgriffith
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We need to do better at interrogating media that misrepresents autistic folks, stop hero-worshipping the “autism mom,” and demand that publishers and film/TV production companies prioritize works by autistic writers if they want to cash in on autistic main characters. Tagged an “autistic-approved” work I‘ve been reading for a while. Quote in the pic is from https://aeon.co/essays/the-autistic-view-of-the-world-is-not-the-neurotypical-cl...

Emilymdxn I loved the tagged book so much! It opened my eyes and deepened my understanding of these issues a lot - I knew the issue was important before but hadn‘t read much or thought about it in depth. I‘ve been recommending it to everyone I know 6y
kgriffith @Emilymdxn a former partner, who is an academic and knows their shit around research, said Silberman is the only NT they‘d trust to tell this story properly. That was good enough for me. 6y
Broke_Girl_Reads The shade in the last line of this quote is legendary 😂 this book has been on my tbr for ages, I need to pick it up! 6y
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kgriffith @Broke_Girl_Reads isn‘t it great? The whole piece is just a string of zingers and perfectly articulated truths. 6y
LindseysLibrary My library insisted I return the book before I finished it, but I got about 3/4ths of the way through, and I totally agree with everything you say in your post. Thanks for sharing! 5y
kgriffith @LindseysLibrary good luck getting it again to finish! I‘ve been away from it for a while but it‘s one I just pick up for a bit here and there; it‘s too emotionally charged for me to stick to for long 😬 5y
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Emilymdxn
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Pickpick

I‘m so glad I read this book! It made me think I should read more by autistic people about their lives and experiences which I will make sure I bear in mind next time I can afford to buy books. Harrowing sometimes, hilarious sometimes, really made me laugh at myself as a non-autistic person sometimes which I loved so much. Really recommend!

rwmg Have you read this by a 13 year old Japanese autistic boy? 6y
Emilymdxn @rwmg oh that‘s just what I‘m looking for! Thank you! 6y
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Emilymdxn
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I‘m so happy I‘ve finally got round to this book! I like to think of myself as a progressive, inclusive person but I‘ve been realising recently how my reading history does NOT reflect that and I need to work harder. Can‘t believe this is my first ever book about autism! It‘s so interesting so far, well researched but comprehensible for a non scientist. Really recommend so far particularly if you‘ve never read about autism like me!

Aimeesue Due to my job, I know a lot of people who are on the spectrum. It's amazing - it's a whole different way of thinking and structuring the world. I've learned a whole lot from people who see things differently. ❤️ 6y
Emilymdxn @Aimeesue I‘ve just started working in education support and access and understanding more about what students might have going on in their lives is so important to me - there‘s so much to read about it and so many books on every issue that I have no idea how to even approach it but I guess trying is most important 6y
Aimeesue @Emilymdxn I‘ll give you a super important tip: you‘re going to come across people who have so - called “challenging behaviors,” meaning they do things that are socially frowned upon in larger society. Sometimes those behaviors need to be mitigated. Self- injury or aggression towards others, for example. ALWAYS ask yourself “What is this person trying to communicate here?” Or “What need is this fulfilling?” Try to see things from their point of … 6y
Aimeesue …view. You can solve a lot of “problems” that way. As a reader, you‘re one step ahead of a lot of people in that regard - we‘re good at looking at things from different viewpoints! 6y
Reviewsbylola I‘ve read 1/3 of this but needed to take a break. I hope to eventually get back to it! 6y
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Christine
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Pickpick

I found this to be well-written and impressively researched. The historical data was intense and extensive, and overall the book is heavier on the “legacy of autism” part of the subtitle and lighter on the “future of neurodiversity.” As a mom of an autistic son and having my own point of view re: what matters, I wanted more about neurodiversity, but that‘s just my preference, not an indictment of the book at all, which was well worth the listen.

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Well-ReadNeck
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Mehso-so

Eh. Very detailed history (with extensive notes) on the history of autism. Concentrating on those who studied the condition and two long chapters on the DSM and, yes, rain man. Picked this up after it was repeatedly mentioned on Laura James‘ great memoir, Odd Girl Out. This was way too academic and had too few case studies for my taste.

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tysephine
Pickpick

What an amazing look into the history of autism! Highly recommended.

TW for abuse of/ unethical medical experimentation on children. Nazis were awful, we know this. But their treatment of disabled children was beyond evil on a level I couldn't have imagined.

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tysephine
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Started a new audiobook on my way home! Has anyone read this one? It's interesting so far.

Cinfhen No, but I love the cover 🦋🦋🦋🦋 6y
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kgriffith
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“The beginning of autonomy is being able to communicate ‘yes‘ and ‘no.‘”
So simple, and yet... #autismawareness #autismacceptance #redinstead #audiobooks

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kgriffith

Testing tagging when you know the person‘s whole username @raimeygallant okay, this is a workaround but until we address tagging wonkiness here‘s how I did it: type @ NAME then go back and delete the space, X out of the pop up at the top right, then tap after NAME, X out of the pop up again, hit space and type on. NOT elegant, but it works, and I‘ll pass this along; thanks, Raimey!

RaimeyGallant Thanks. :) Just tried it with @maggie but it didn't work...maybe because I'm on ios? 6y
kgriffith Hm, nope, me too. I‘ll try her. 6y
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kgriffith
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Yep, time to quit. 🤬🤬🤬 #redinstead #autismacceptance #autismawareness

Blueberry 😓 5y
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kgriffith
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This book is breaking my heart as it further educates me. Not that I didn‘t expect it. #autismacceptance #redinstead #autismawareness

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kgriffith
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This book strikes exactly the tone I was imagining when I decided I needed to go back to school so :I: could write a book. And with this bit that echoes my personal lending-library dreams, I‘m having all the feelings, don‘t mind me. #autismacceptance #redinstead #autismawareness

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kgriffith
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“By sharing the stories of their lives, they discovered that many of the challenges they face daily are not ‘symptoms‘ of their autism, but hardships imposed by a society that refuses to make basic accommodations for people with cognitive disabilities as it does for people with physical disabilities such as blindness and deafness.” #autismawareness #redinstead #autismacceptance #neuroqueer

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kgriffith
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Lunch listen: Audible daily deal, $5.95 today. It‘s a tome, ~500 oversized paperback pages, but I‘ve read a bit here and there since I bought it several months ago at the recommendation of an autistic person who said that reading this made them feel incredibly seen. I know some of it will be hard to read, but it‘s important to me personally not to avoid the hard stuff: autistic folks don‘t get to. #autismawareness #redinstead #audiobooks

Emilymdxn I just bought the audiobook of this too! Excited to read it 6y
Christine I appreciate you sharing your thoughts on this one...as a mom of a 13 year old with autism, I really need to read it but have been putting it off for (conscious and unconscious, I‘m sure) reasons. Hearing that it made your friend feel seen is huge motivator to finally get to it, though - thanks! 6y
kgriffith @Emilymdxn I think it‘s going to be a much faster listen than a read. 6y
kgriffith @Christine I‘m so glad it helped with that motivation. I have autistic folks in my life in a few different capacities and am neuroqueer myself, so when they held this up as a must, I knew it was indeed that for me. 6y
Christine ❤️ 6y
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MatchlessMarie
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Bourriquet76 The Red Tent is one of my top 5 books ever. 6y
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kgriffith
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Neuroqueers, what are your recs for fiction by autistic folks, whether they center autism, discuss it tangentially, or not at all? How about non-fic about autism and neurodiversity? Tagging Neurotribes as a rec from an autistic person who said Silberman is the only NT they trust to speak for them. I really want to combat this "parent narrative as the voice of autism" bullshit that is so pervasive in books and television, especially of late.

keggergoldy 💗📚 6y
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kendrastephaniekaryn
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#allthebooksof2017 #longestbookyouread

Weighing in at just under 500 pages, this was the chunkiest book I read this year. It was also one of my favourites, and I recommend it to any fellow #teachersoflitsy (whether you work in SPED or not!)

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clbeattie123
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Well with my day being cancelled due to Storm Ophelia I am currently reading Neurotribes- I work with kids with Autism every week and I have heard this is essential reading for anyone who wants to expand their knowledge on it!

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msflewell
Pickpick

Awesome book. Helpful in understanding Autism and other neurological issues. Fabulous.