Books with autistic characters 📚 #autismacceptancemonth2022

Hello fellow bookworms ❤ It’s April, which means that it’s #autismacceptancemonth and I really wanted to talk about and highlight books with autistic characters on my blog (the covers link back to Goodreads, so you can check them out)! 🥰I did a similar book last year, where I talked about books with autism representation that were on my TBR and that I wanted to make an effort to read. This year, I’ll be recommending some of my favorite books that have autistic characters (to my knowledge all are written by actually autistic authors). Check out my previous post as well, as I included some helpful links about great recommendations for books with autistic representation! This time, I’m sharing some new links (on general activism and learning more about autism) 😊

Helpful Resources

➽ Autistic Self-Advocacy Network (ASAN) has many great resources for learning more about autism! They are an American “nonprofit organization run by and for autistic people”.

➽ C.G. (author of The Boy Who Steals Houses) recommended some books with autistic characters on her Instagram!

➽ Meeghan @ meeghanreads did a post on Own voices books about autism with many great books featured!

➽ The Ability toolbox has a great post titled “15 Awesome Autism Books Written by Actually Autistic Authors“, which I choose because it recommends memoirs and other nonfiction books!

➽ I found some great illustrations on Instagram by autistic creators: Autism Allyship by @marierzsebet & Guide to Autism Acceptance Month by @autisticvintage

➽ Lily has shared a video on how to be a better autism ally and generally has done many great videos for Autism Acceptance Month!

🌷 Books with autistic characters 🌷

 

Queens of Geek (Jen Wilde) ➽ This is one of my favorite books! It follows three teen friends – Tay, Charlie & Jamie – as they attend the convention of their dreams (SupaCon), before going to college.  Tay was my favorite character in the entire book because she was the most relatable. She is on the autism spectrum and also struggles with anxiety. Tay fears change and is afraid that in the future her friends will stop hanging out with her, too busy with other things.  Of course, I’m not 100% like her, but there were so many things that I could see in myself as well. What I loved was Tay’s character development and how she began to accept herself and see that there was nothing wrong with the way she was.

Act Your Age, Eve Brown (Talia Hibbert) ➽ This is my favorite Brown Sisters book!! It follows Eve Brown, the youngest sister who is still living at home and struggling to choose a career. When Eve has yet another career failure and a big fight with her parents, she sets out on her own and comes across a B&B searching for a cook. Eve is such a ray of sunshine, so you cannot help but love her 🥰 Then there’s Jacob Wayne, B&B owner, and certified grump! Jacob is autistic and often struggles a bit with certain social scripts. He is also allergic to anything too sunshiny, yet he desperately needs a cook for his B&B! Enter Eve, who he initially doesn’t want to hire, who kind of runs him over with a car and yet gets the job 😂

The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester (Maya MacGregor) ➽ Sam Sylvester is a nonbinary autistic teen seeking a fresh start after the traumatic experiences they went through at the last high school. I really liked their perspective, it was authentic and highlighted the struggles of being autistic in a neurotypical world that doesn’t understand you. Sam is used to having to explain themselves and stay under the radar, but at their new school they find much more support than anticipated. They also get involved in a 30-year-old cold case about a young boy called Billy who happened to have died in their new room. I appreciate how the author delved into all these themes, it was done with much care and nuance

Please Don’t Hug Me (Kay Kerr) ➽ Told entirely in letters Erin sends to her brother, this was such a touching and emotional story! Erin’s character voice is so strong and really carried the book 💕 She’s autistic and navigating high school, friendships, a (toxic) relationship, and complicated family dynamics. She has a best friend, who is often there for her when no one else is. She has difficulties dealing with existing in a neurotypical world that often doesn’t get her and confronts her with a lot of ableism. I’m glad that Erin built up other support systems like the new girl at her job in the mall who encourages her to be herself!

A Girl Like Her (Talia Hibbert) ➽ I’m loving Talia Hibbert’s Ravenswood series! A Girl Like Her is about Ruth Kabbah, an autistic woman who is an outcast in her small town. She immediately had my heart, as Ruth is an honest, loyal person that is misunderstood because of her autism and the lies her abuser spread about her after she escaped the relationship. Things start to change when Evan moves in next door. Evan is new to Ravenswood and a gentle Giant you cannot help but love. The chemistry between them was so good and I loved that Evan was so supportive! I was proud that Ruth also grew a lot and decided to go after what she wants!

The KC Warlock Weekly: Accused (M.N. Jolley) ➽ I was having such a good time with this book! The KC Warlock Weekly is about a young, autistic journalist who is trying to put together a newspaper for magical folk and accidentally gets involved in a murder mystery. Levi is having issues with his business, still, he’s not giving up and investigating interesting stories, which is how he ends up accused of murder and on the run from the Wizard’s council. The story is told in two timelines that eventually cross: Levi being held by the police and how he got to this point, which makes this such an intriguing mystery 👀

🌷 Recent Releases (2021/22) on my TBR 🌷

 

• The Boy Who Steals Houses (C.G. Drews)
• Social Queue (Kay Kerr)
• Show Us Who You Are (Elle McNicoll)

• Hell Followed With Us (Andrew Joseph White)
• Ellen Outside the Lines (A.J. Sass)

Have you read any books on my list or are any of them on your TBR? Do you have recommendations for books with autistic characters? 📚

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