The secrets of my Spectrum - An open door into the world of Autism is written by Callum Knight and is the third book featured in our month long celebration of Autistic Pride.
Callum was diagnosed when he was 13 and wrote this book in his sixteenth year and offers a refreshing take on Autism from a teenager's perspective. He writes in bite sized chapters on different aspects of life like communication, travel, socialization, focus, anxiety, stimming, meltdowns/shutdowns, education, overthinking, etc. and ends each chapter with what helped him in dealing with that.
In the communication chapter and many other places, he talks about how stressful it is for him to engage in small talk and how sometimes he feels incapable of talking and shuts down. Two incidents from the book that I would like to share with you all highlight this aspect of Autism. One incident is when he is answering a call from Open university and talked eloquently about his interests though he was very anxious. In the second incident, when talking to someone in the bank, he freezes when asked about his date of birth. Though he can speak well, he shares attributes of unreliable speakers; defined as ones who have eloquent speech but when stressed or overwhelmed, they can't communicate via speech. If your child matches this description, read this book as the author shares many tips and suggestions about what he found helpful and how people around him can support him.
Callum, thank you for sharing such valuable insights. God Bless You dear and may all your dreams come true.
You can purchase this book on Amazon India
