“This book is absolutely required reading for parents, educators, and caregivers who interact with anyone on the autism spectrum.”
—Library Journal, Starred Review
“Anybody who thinks differently, and anybody who loves someone who thinks differently, will find this collection invaluable.”
—Hannah Gadsby, writer and comedian
“An essential anthology edited and written by Autistic people . . . I can’t wait to share and recommend this book—what a gift.”
—Alice Wong, editor of Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century
Foreword
Jess Wilson
Letter from the Editors
Early Memories, Childhood, and Education
1
Acknowledge Vulnerability; Presume Competence
B. Martin Allen
2
It’s Us Against the World, Kid
Brigid Rankowski
3
What Autistic Girls Wish Their Parents Knew About Friendship
Jane Strauss
4
What Your Daughter Deserves: Love, Safety, and the Truth
Kassiane Asasumasu
5
What I Wish You Knew
Katie Levin
6
Change the World, Not Your Child
Lei Wiley-Mydske
7
Empathy and Non-Verbal Cues
Dusya Lyubovskaya
8
The First Time I Heard of Autism
Anonymous
9
What I Wish My Parents Knew About Being Their Autistic Daughter
Heidi Wangelin
10
A Particular Way of Being
Karen Lean
Acceptance and Adaptation
11
A Daughter’s Journey: Lessons, Honesty, and Love
Jennifer St. Jude
12
Still Your Child
Ondrea Marisa Robinson
13
Perfect in an Imperfect World
Haley Moss
14
Who Gets to Be Diagnosed? And Who Does It Serve?
Victoria M. Rodríguez-Roldán
15
Unconventional
Amythest Schaber
16
I Wish I Wasn’t So Hard on Myself Back Then
Kayla Smith
17
Ten Things I Wish My Parents Had Known When I Was Growing Up
Amelia “Mel” Evelyn Voicy Baggs
18
I Am an Autistic Woman
Amy Sequenzia
19
The View from Outside the Window
HW
20
Finding Me: The Journey to Acceptance
Morénike Giwa Onaiwu
21
Autism, Self-Acceptance, and Hope
Lynne Soraya
Intersectional Identity and Finding Community
22
Keep Her Safe; Let Her Fly Free
Maxfield Sparrow
23
Tell Me I’m Autistic
Anonymous
24
Autism, Sensory Experiences, and Family Culture
Mallory Cruz
25
Safe Harbors in a Difficult World
Kayla Rodriguez
26
Give Your Daughters Autistic Community
Jean Winegardner
27
A Parents’ Guide to Being Transgender and Autistic
Alexandra Forshaw
28
On Surviving Loneliness and Isolation, and Learning to Live with Loss
Lydia X. Z. Brown
29
There’s a Place
Emily Paige Ballou
Conclusion
Beth Ryan
About the Editors
Contributors
Acknowledgments
Notes
