Leaders Around Me - Autobiographies of Autistics Who Type, Point and Spell to Communicate ; book is a collection of 45 essays written by non-speaking Autistics and edited by Edlyn Pena.
The book features essays that are grouped into separate parts and cover autobiographies of non-speaking Autistics who are - Book authors and bloggers; Creative and emerging writers; Visual and performance artists; Featured in films and documentaries; Innovators, founders & creators; University and college students; Educational inclusion advocates and Community inclusion advocates. The sheer courage and resilience of these beautiful souls brought tears of joy and made me feel so proud of our community! The most beautiful thing was the depth of their writing; so mature and beyond their years that many a times I found myself rereading their thoughts. The "Voice Angels" like Soma Mukhopadhyay, every therapist and educator who encourages non-speaking Autistics to find their voice deserves a huge round of applause. We need more generous souls like them!
This book is very close to my heart as my twenty year Autistic son is non-speaking and types to communicate. I have seen first hand his courage, tenacity and resilience as he overcame his dyspraxia, severe sensory issues and started typing to communicate. I don't have enough words in my vocabulary to express how proud we are of him and how much we love and admire him. Reading this book was like travelling to meet some amazing souls who not only overcame their sensory motor difficulties to learn to type, but are also strong advocates, who in spite of facing constant disbelief and criticism, stand tall and share their immense inner light with the world! Shine on my dear stars and dazzle the world with your brightness!!
This World Autism Awareness Day, I hope and pray for a future where every Autistic, both speaking and non-speaking, lives in a world where there is not only awareness but acceptance and support and understanding of Autism.
You can purchase this book on Amazon India
