Small Stories Big Thoughts

 

                                        

Small Stories Big Thoughts book is a collection of short stories authored by Aditi Sowmyanarayan. She is an young and upcoming writer with two books under her wings and this is her third outing. Aditi is a non-speaking autistic and is here to shatter many myths surrounding autism by showcasing her versatile writing skills. 

This 17 year old writer is definitely an old soul and her maturity is reflected in all her works. Her short stories are a reflection of that as she writes about everyday slice of life and draws deep and insightful conclusions from them. These are some of my favourite short stories from the book:

The alien story - Aditi writes about the super human skills of her teacher, a unique and endearing way of showing respect.

Uncommon sense - Aditi writes about the much needed common sense and how it's essential in our life

The answer lies within - Simple story with a deep hidden message that more often than that the answer to our problem lies within us.

A trip to remember - a spooky yet funny story

The vendor of joy - I just loved the title of the story and the simple message that sometimes you have to trust your partner and take the leap

Things unsaid - a closer to life short story of sibling love.

This bouquet of short stories is a ably supported by the illustrators - AP Shreyas, Akhil Nair, Sai Kumar and R Jayanth, all are amazing artists on the Autism spectrum. 

Here are the quotes from others who have read the book:

"A really colourful bunch of stories depicting so many varied facets of life, each story putting across a very profound message in a subtle manner. Loved reading each and every story. The icing on the cake is that all the stories are penned by a young lady whose writing I am increasingly becoming a huge fan of. Aditi has a fantastic writing ability and an amazing imagination that gets highlighted through the stories. Looking forward to her next piece of writing. Way to go Aditi, keep penning your thoughts and sharing with us readers!"                                                                           

Chitra Paul

" An eclectic collection of short stories. An interesting twist to fairy tales, start up stories, spooky stories...And also some profound thoughts presented through simple short stories by Aditi. Interesting read."

                                       Viji Rajmohan

"The title is perfect doorway into Aditi's perception of the world around her. The stories are simple while keeping it open for the reader to reflect on different points expressed. I love the illustrations, they are simple to grasp. The narrative is interesting."

                                                Anitha Anand

The third book of Aditi is definitely a feather in her cap and with her steadily growing fan base, I am sure she is getting closer with every book to becoming a successful and accomplished writer. God bless you dear Aditi!

You can purchase the book here:

https://bookosmia.com/shop/books/small-storiesbig-thoughts-collection-of-short-stories/

With You, Right Through

 

                                                         

With You, Right Through is a novella written by a non-speaking Autistic gem - Aditi Sowmyanarayan. Everyone who believes that Autistics lack theory of mind, I urge you to read this book; I am sure Aditi will leave no stone unturned to prove your misconceptions wrong and along the way, you get to read the work of a budding author who is destined for a great career as a writer. 

Let's try something new today! Instead of me introducing the book, why not hear it directly from the author and also learn what encouraged her to write this book. Stay tuned till the end wherein she gives us a glimpse of her upcoming book. 

Talking about her debut novella, Aditi says,

" I am Aditi Sowmyanarayan . Writing is my passion . I love to observe people and spin tales that are engaging and entertaining - tales that reflect the rich tapestry of human emotions and a never say die attitude that makes the quintessential girl next door a superhero . I write to highlight the humour that exists even in the most difficult of situations and sorrow that may be hidden beneath a smiling face . Most of all , I write because in my head I can be the protagonist I create and live her life .

My novella With You, Right Through is a tale about ambition, family and friendship and about rising above the past emotional baggage to become the best version of yourself .

Kusum Kataria is an investment banker par excellence who lives every moment of her life on her own terms. An epitome of a self made woman, Kusum has one major Achilles heel in her life - cooking! Kusum hates to cook and will not venture into the kitchen even if her life depended on it .

Ramesh Rajan is the only son of super successful chartered accountants Vaidehi and Sundararajan and the proverbial underachiever in a family of hyper achievers. Ramesh is passionate about cooking and owns Ranganayaki caterers, a leading catering and cloud kitchen business. While the business is successful, Ramesh’s parents are very unhappy with his career choice. But he couldn't care less, for he also believes in living his life on his own terms!

What happens when Kusum and Ramesh’s paths cross? Read on to find out!

I thoroughly enjoyed creating the characters of Kusum and Ramesh. Our world is full of Kusums and Rameshs - people who work towards carving an identity that is very different from what the family or the society expects of them - the kind of people that succeed purely on the basis of their hard work and conviction. To be honest, I think that the character of Ramesh has parts of me, so does the character of Kusum. Broadly speaking, Kusum and Ramesh exist in all of us! This tale is special to me as it is my first ever fiction novella. Kusum and Ramesh will stay with me forever and I hope that they stay with my readers too, right through!  

Spoiler alert - My current work in progress , Thus she rose , is a tale about the power of one person to make a difference. They say that myths are created in human likeness, for it is a way to stay motivated to reach the aspirational self. Zooni Majid, the main protagonist of the tale , rises above challenging circumstances, like a phoenix rising from its ashes, to make a difference. Set in a backdrop of the picturesque but turbulent Kashmir valley, Thus she rose is a tale of a quest, a journey and a victory propelled by the conviction to make a difference . " 

            Our best wishes are with you Aditi, may you become a successful writer! In the meantime, do read her debut novella and encourage our budding writer. With You, Right Through is available on Kindle and Kindle App on Android and Apple devices. You can get it HERE

                   

Autism World - Answering The Unanswered

 

Answering the unanswered - From Non-speaking to the voice of many is an awesome book written by an young Autistic, Navneet Kulkarni. This is the first book of its kind in India and kudos to his mom, Neha and the team of Segen cure for bringing out this book. They first conducted the webinars where Navneet answered the questions and clarified doubts of many parents of special needs children and later on compiled all that into a book. 

His writing is beautiful, eloquent and thought provoking to say the least. He encourages the parents to understand their child's behaviour and respect and accept their child as they are. He exhorts parents to stop seeing their child always through the Autistic lens and instead try to understand that every child has unique hobbies and interests. Navneet has achieved a lot in a short span of time. This is his second book, his autobiography was published in the Autism Parenting Magazine and The Autism Voice magazine. He writes many soul stirring poems and quotes; many of them were published both internationally and within India. In this book, the questions are organized by topics in separate chapters and include Autism and social anxiety, tantrums, parenthood, bonding with family and relatives, sensory system, spirituality, communication, Autistic mind, emotions, dealing with Autism and other questions.

Allow me to share a few of his quotes from the book :

"Non verbal is not a right word to label it for non-speakers. many children know how to speak but don't know how to communicate, do you all call them Non-communicator? Then how can you judge non-speakers as non verbal?"

" Hope always on abilities, you will see always opportunities

Disability is elimination of hope, so eliminate this label in your life."

" There may be many reasons for getting angry. Finding the reason behind it is very important. Keep your bonding strong with your child with more love and affection so that child can share their emotions with you. Use the language of love for communication."

Do read the book and I am sure you will love it as much as I did. You can purchase it on Amazon India

Autism World - Traveler's Tales: My Journey With Autism

 

                                             

Traveler's Tales: My Journey With Autism is written by Chandima Rajapatirana, a non-speaking Autistic, who is a poet, writer, an activist and co-founder of EASE Foundation ( Educate, Advocate, Support, Empower) in Sri Lanka. He struggled with communication during the first eighteen years of his life. He finally broke through the shackles and learnt to communicate by typing, thus paving the way for an incredible journey that is portrayed in this book.

The book is a collection of his writings and presentations for various events. It brings to life his initial journey from an emergent communicator to an eloquent communicator, a journey that is equally heart breaking and inspiring at the same time. We see him grow and becoming more and more confident through his writings. He doesn't just strive to achieve his goal of college education, but along the way, he becomes a strong advocate for the non-speaking autistics. 

The chapters/essays I really loved are:

Making everyday life happen - he shares his thoughts on how most of the life of people with disabilities is spent waiting to fulfil their dream of leading a life of freedom; it is instead spent waiting for support and understanding.

Life, laughter and FC - he communicates with a panel by using facilitated communication and  I was really bowled over by his quirky and insightful responses to their questions.

To join, feel and not hide? My life with Anxiety/Autism - an essay that depicts his struggles with exposure anxiety.

Another beautiful essay is - A world where we belong, wherein, Chammi, describes the mission he aims to accomplish through his EASE foundation. I pray that his dream comes true as it will pave the way for a world where people with different abilities lead a respectful life. God Bless You, Chammi!!

You can purchase this book on Amazon India

 

Helping You To Identify And Understand Autism Masking

 

                                                     

Helping you to identify and understand Autism masking - The truth behind the mask is an excellent book written by Emma Kendall. The author is an Autistic who is also a qualified therapist;, her child  is autistic and has several family members who are on the spectrum. This book uses lived experience to shed the light on a very important but often overlooked aspect - Autism masking. What better way to celebrate Autism awareness month than by spreading the word about this essential aspect!

So what is Autism masking and how do we identify it? Masking can be seen in a variety of behaviours such as imitating the popular kid/friend to blend in school, dressing up like peers and copying their body language, expressions, hobbies and interests - all done to avoid standing out in a crowd. Other examples are rehearsing a social script, constantly forcing themselves to maintain eye contact  and act interested in a social situation/conversation even when they are overwhelmed! Avoiding stims to fit in , hiding your true self and projecting a social personality!  A classic example is that of an Autistic child who is well behaved in school and has a  meltdown as soon as he reaches home; he/she has spent so much energy masking that they can no longer control. All these are examples are some of the ways speaking Autistic individuals mask.  The sad part is that many of these are actively taught/encouraged in Autistic children!!!             

Just imagine yourself doing all of the above ; everyday of your life without a break! Wouldn't you be frustrated and overwhelmed.  Many Autistic individuals face burn out and a disconnect from their persona because of masking for a long time. This can lead to mental health problems such as depression, eating disorders,  and many more serious health issues! 

I can understand that as parents we are encouraging these behaviours to help our children, but isn't their happiness and mental health more important? Think about it!! Read this book as this will guide you to identify the ways your child may be masking and offer ways to support them. This book is must-read for every parent and therapist! 

You can purchase the book on Amazon India

Leaders Around Me: Autobiographies Of Autistics Who Type, Point And Spell To Communicate

 

                                              

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

Autism World - Dear Umar

 

                                                    

Dear Umar - A father's journey in discovering and dealing with Autism; is written by Tauseef Patel and chronicles his family's experiences of raising an Autistic child. The author and his wife are blessed with a beautiful boy, Umar. The book offers a few glimpses of their journey from wondering if their son is Autistic to diagnosis to coming to term with the diagnosis to charting a new path and the amazing progress made by Umar. Every parent of an Autistic child will identify with the emotions and difficult moments narrated by the author. Their struggle in the early days before diagnosis, when Umar would have meltdowns is something we all have gone through. The difficult days of the diagnosis and the days after that when we rechart our life path and progress on a new journey is beautifully narrated by the author. Each chapter ends with a positive message; a wonderful way to look at life!

We get to know Umar from being non speaking in the early childhood to a young child who can communicate verbally and how he gradually learns various skills. The most heart touching aspect of this journey is the amazing emotional and physical support this family gets from their extended family and friends.  They cherish Umar and are there whenever needed.  The author shares in a chapter how his brother-in-law supported Umar during a difficult transition. Umar was used to being picked up by his mom after school. She had to go back to work and their brother-in-law stepped in to help by picking up Umar. As soon as Umar realized that his mom was not coming to pick him up, he had a meltdown and no amount of consoling, cajoling or bribing with toys and treats helped. But the brother-in-law patiently continued to pick him up from school, in spite of meltdowns; not for a  week or a month but for two whole years, such was his love for Umar!

Surround your child with people who accept and understand Autism and cherish him. That will give him/her the launchpad to take on the challenges of Autism. God Bless you Umar!

You can purchase the book on Amazon India

Life Without A Script : Living With Asperger's Syndrome/ High Functioning Autism

 

                                              

Life without a script : living with Asperger's syndrome/High functioning Autism is written by Ian Anderson McDougal, who shares his 'lived' experiences with us in this amazing book. 

The author takes us through his early childhood through adulthood, sharing various glimpses from his life, but what truly mesmerized me was his profound thinking that is deep, full of empathy, positive outlook and an innate understanding of his strengths and weaknesses. He is a young man, who is interested in a myriad of subjects; such as social sciences, economics, philosophy, psychology and history. Let me  share why I loved this book so much. The author shares about his school days, where he was bullied and traumatized as he was 'different'  and didn't know how to fit in with others. That is, unfortunately, a common problem faced by many on the Autism spectrum as well as by many neurotypical kids. But the author shows great understanding by trying to understand the perspective of the ones who bullied him! I don't know many people who are mature enough to try to understand people who tormented us. Sometimes, when I read books written by adult Autistics, I often wonder about the  validity of 'lack of theory of mind'; that is described as one of the main characteristics of Autism!!

The author also stresses the importance of finding a job/employment that is built on one of the strengths of the individuals on the spectrum. He shares the feed back he got from his coworkers; they describe him as' lazy' and 'dumb' when he does work that he does not find interesting and compares it to the ' talented' and 'dedicated' responses he gets when he is emotionally involved in the work that he finds interesting. 

God Bless you Ian and may you prosper and shine in whatever career you pursue. Our best wishes are with you!

The book is available only as a Kindle edition and is very pocket friendly as it costs Rs 49/- only.  You can purchase it on Amazon India

Life With An Autistic Son

 

                                                        

Life with an Autistic son - a father's story is written by an anonymous author who introduces himself as B's dad. He is an avid blogger, who shares an weekly post on his popular blog and writes about life with an Autistic son, with all the blessings and trying moments! This book chronicles his journey from when B is around two years and his early school years. 

More often than not, when I am reading a book by a parent, I find myself nodding along, identifying the emotional journey; but it's a rare book like this one that made me nod, laugh, shed a tear and at times being overwhelmed by all the memories from our Autism journey so far. The author presents a candid picture of the myriad emotions from being unable to bond with his son to learning of his diagnosis to finding new ways to connect with him to difficulties in school to his worries about his son's future and many more. The best thing is that the author doesn't shy away from narrating the bad days, that are an inevitable part of our life. The days when we are not our best and say or do things that we regret. It is during those times that we should remember that we are doing our best to help our kid and one bad day/moment doesn't change the fact that we are a good parent. 

Before signing off, I would like to add some lessons from our journey. With the constant worry about Autism and schooling, special education and therapies and financial planning; we often forget to relax and enjoy the life. I agree life has changed a lot as an Autism/special needs parent, but still try to find ways to be happy and grateful for the small blessings in our lives. Another thing I wanted to add is that try not to worry too much about how your family and extended family and friends fail to understand your journey. Family is where bonds are from the heart and there is no judgement and tons of encouragement. If you're able to find this in your family, good but if you're not able to get this support from them, don't worry. This journey will help you to meet and connect with new parents and some wonderful therapists who will be your new family!!

You can purchase this book from Amazon India

The Autistic Mind Finally Speaks

 

                                               

The Autistic mind finally speaks : Letterboard thoughts, is written by Gregory Tino. He is a non speaking Autistic who uses Spell to Communicate (S2C) by pointing to letters on the letterboard. He spent a majority of his life, till he was 24 years old,  locked in silence as he was not able to speak and people believed that he had an immature mind. Then he learned to spell and his world became beautiful and interesting as he could communicate. Allow me to share his first communication. He was told a story about an Astronaut and asked if wanted to be one, he replied, "No, thanks. My world is right here." 

He writes amazing poetry that bares his beautiful soul. He shares many stories from his life, both from before and after he learned to communicate and they are truly eye openers. Some of them include sensory issues, apraxia, because of which his body doesn't listen to his mind, his compulsions, his hobbies, his family and their prominence in his life, his friends, his goals , his empathy and last but not least, his girlfriend, a fellow letter border.  His poems are accompanied by really amazing paintings by Autistics and we are introduced to them at the end. 

He repeatedly emphasizes how learning to communicate is the key and encourages parents to find any form of communication that works for their child. One interesting super skill of Gregory is that he can focus on two conversations at the same time, listen to You tube videos and news at the same, listen to music and learn simultaneously, etc. That's a pretty cool super skill, isn't it?

Gregory, I pray and hope that all your dreams will come true. God bless you! Looking forward to reading your next book.

You can purchase this book on Amazon India

Autism All-Stars

 

                       

Autism All-Stars : How we use our Asperger Traits to shine in life is a complication of essays written by Autistic people and edited by Josie Santomauro.  

The chapters in the book are grouped into five parts. Let's take a look.

Education - Three essays the reflect the true lived experiences of people as they faced the numerous challenges and bullying and other behaviour problems and social difficulties.

Careers - One of the five essays in this section is written by favourite, Temple Grandin and true to her style she delivers words of wisdom on how to make a career out of a hobby and some precious suggestion how to survive and flourish in the job. The other contributors also share many valuable life lessons.

Relationships - There are three wonderful essays in this section written by Wendy Lawson, who talks about the importance of friends; Stephen Shore shares his experiences about how he learned to navigate the relationships in his life and when we meet them half the way, we can build a beautiful relationship; Deborah Lipsky shares how her intimate relationship with nature and animals have made her a more social person. I loved all the essays.

Creativity - This section has five essays written by artists on the spectrum. It was interesting to read the one written by Jeanette Purkis an artist as she narrates her journey and the struggles she faced as she tried to paint the faces of people and her Aspie traits made it very difficult for her to accomplish that accurately. There are essays written by Donna Williams and Peter Myers. If your kiddo is an artist, don't miss this section, its an eye-opener!

Special Interests - This part has three essays that reveal how the author's special interests help them to cope and survive in this world. I particularly liked the one written by Will Hadcroft. It helped me understand how watching the same shows/movies repeatedly helped him. It always used to intrigue me when I read about kids/adults on the spectrum having this special liking for a movie they would watch innumerable times, were they doing it because it was predictable outcome in this chaotic world or did it serve a deeper purpose? It has a very special purpose and helps them to connect to their deeper selves and these characters in the movie become friends who help and guide them through tough times!

You can purchase this book on Amazon India

Autism World - Boy Alone

 

Dear Reader, this is officially my first negative review for a book. Over the past eight years of blogging, I have reviewed over 200 books and chose not to review books that didn't meet my expectations. I wanted to do the same with this book too. In the end, I decided to review it so that no one else starts reading this book without a fair idea, especially the neurotypical sibling to your Autistic child. I have immense respect and admiration for Autistic siblings as they adapt to a tough life and are mature beyond their years.  When life is tough, you either become bitter or better by developing a mature and spiritual outlook. I always say that my son has made me a better person. This author, unfortunately, chose the bitter path. 

This book - 'Boy Alone' is written by Karl Taro Greenfeld, brother of Noah, a profoundly Autistic individual. Noah was  born in the 70's, rightly called as the 'era of despair' . It was the time when the concept of 'refrigerator mother' was widely followed and it was also the time of Ivar Lovaas and his behaviour techniques where pinching, hitting, refusing food and water for days, spraying cold water and administering electric shocks was the norm!! Karl describes the early childhood in detail, his experience of growing up with a severely Autistic brother, his insecurities and diminished parental love as his parents always focused on Noah. In spite of their best efforts, Noah, doesn't progress much and is sent to a residential setup when he is a teenager. There he is abused and denied food. They bring him back home and set him up in their old house with a caregiver. These experiences account for nearly half of the book.

The next half of the book, let's divide it into two parts. In part one, Noah's life takes a U turn. He thrives in a deaf school, learns sign language, graduates to using AAC and finally after years of continuous efforts, is able to speak and communicate. He gets a part time job as a copy editor for a newspaper and learns to thrive with minimal help. He wants to have a social life and goes out to movies and attends functions. He also expresses a desire to go on a date and have a girlfriend. He succeeds in this endeavor with the help of his brother and finds an Autistic girlfriend. They are happy together and eventually plan to marry. You must be wondering, when everything works out eventually for Noah, why the negative review? right? Read on..

In the second part, the author clarifies that the above rosy description is his wishful thinking!! The truth is that Noah is not at home, but is living in group home or institutions where he is repeatedly raped, beaten, fights for food and has become increasingly violent. I can understand the author's apathy as a teenager when he has no power to change his brother's life, but to become increasing apathetic as he grows and enters his middle age, is beyond my realm of understanding. To say, that, he can do nothing to help his profoundly autistic brother who is repeatedly abused, is just----- ( fill in the space with an appropriate adjective, my limited vocabulary has no right word for this).

This concludes my first and hopefully last negative review. Sorry for the long post!

Autism World - Teaching Myself To See

 

Teaching Myself To see is the latest book written by one of my favourite authors - Tito Rajrishi Mukhopadhyay. This book is not strictly autobiographical, but provides a window in to the beautiful mind and how he processes the world around him. I have always loved Tito's poems, but in this book, even the text is poetic! The book takes you in to a magical poetic world and wraps you in deep philosophical thoughts and a unique way of seeing the world. It's like he is asking us to see the world through his eyes and his senses and understand how rich, beautiful and deep it is!

Tito talks about how his vision can be both hyper visual by narrating how he processes art and hypo - visual too. He loves shadows and I particularly loved his thought where he stated that 'in a shadow, all men and women are equal, irrespective of their skin colour, social status, and how neurotypical or atypical they are. Shadows don't judge and treat a king and a pauper equally!'

He also talks about his Synesthesia ( where senses blend together and interact leading to unique experience like ability to taste colour and so on). He also shares a few snippets about his childhood in India and seamlessly blends it with his life in USA; like his experience with water and how it shapes his thought process even now.

If you ever wonder, like I do, about what your child is thinking and experiencing when he/she is involved in the rituals or stims; read this book. It will open your eyes.

I just finished reading this book by Tito and I am already looking forward to reading his next book. God Bless You Tito, keep writing books and enlightening us!

You can purchase this book on Amazon India