The Asperkid's (Secret) Book of Social Rules: The Handbook of Not-So-Obvious Social Guidelines for Tweens and Teens with Asperger Syndrome
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- Create Date：2021-11-06 06:54:10
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Jennifer Cook O'Toole
- ISBN：1849059152
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Summary
Being a teen or tween isn't easy for anyone but it can be especially tough for Asperkids。 Jennifer O'Toole knows; she was one！ This book is a top secret guide to all of the hidden social rules in life that often seem strange and confusing to young people with Asperger syndrome。
The Asperkid's （Secret） Book of Social Rules offers witty and wise insights into baffling social codes such as making and keeping friends， blending in versus standing out from the crowd， and common conversation pitfalls。 Chock full of illustrations， logical explanations， and comic strip practice sessions， this is the handbook that every adult Aspie wishes they'd had growing up。
Ideal for all 10-17 year olds with Asperger syndrome， this book provides inside information on over thirty social rules in bite-sized chunks that older children will enjoy， understand， and most importantly use daily to navigate the mysterious world around them。
The Asperkid's （Secret） Book of Social Rules offers witty and wise insights into baffling social codes such as making and keeping friends， blending in versus standing out from the crowd， and common conversation pitfalls。 Chock full of illustrations， logical explanations， and comic strip practice sessions， this is the handbook that every adult Aspie wishes they'd had growing up。
Ideal for all 10-17 year olds with Asperger syndrome， this book provides inside information on over thirty social rules in bite-sized chunks that older children will enjoy， understand， and most importantly use daily to navigate the mysterious world around them。
Reviews
Stella
，
Makes some excellent points and has some helpful cartoons sprinkled throughout。 But very rule based。 Not everyone wants long lists of does and don'ts。 Won't work for every kid with Aspergers。 Makes some excellent points and has some helpful cartoons sprinkled throughout。 But very rule based。 Not everyone wants long lists of does and don'ts。 Won't work for every kid with Aspergers。 。。。more
SIMH
，
🌈♾️This book was a mixed bag。 At the beginning of this book it talks about why it is needed。 It is misleading because it says we the readers do not have to read this but and then goes on to list all the things autistics will not get with out it。 I wish the author would just say what she means。 It comes across like she doesn't think it's a good idea to not read this book but is trying to act like she understands why we wouldn't， all while convincing us to read it。 If you want us to read it just s 🌈♾️This book was a mixed bag。 At the beginning of this book it talks about why it is needed。 It is misleading because it says we the readers do not have to read this but and then goes on to list all the things autistics will not get with out it。 I wish the author would just say what she means。 It comes across like she doesn't think it's a good idea to not read this book but is trying to act like she understands why we wouldn't， all while convincing us to read it。 If you want us to read it just say that， be truthful。 The list of things she claims we can't get without learning social rules I also have a problem with。 Here is the list and the parts I have a problem with: Career- If an employer does not hire someone because they don't have good social etiquette and they don't have good etiquette because of autism， then that is ableism。 I believe we shouldn't just learn social rules with out thinking about them but instead question them and decide if the rule is ethical。 Not every autistic is going to be able to be taught social rules or be able to learn them even when they do have a teacher。 According to NPR in an article called Young Adults With Autism More Likely To Be Unemployed， Isolated 2/3 of people with autism are unemployed after high school。 （ The article dose say it doesn't know what causes this so it might have nothing to do with social rules but this book claims not knowing social rules will lead to not getting a job。） Without money people can't get food， shelter， or water。 This is why I believe we shouldn't try to teach autistics social rules to get a job but instead teach employers not to put so much wait on manners and people skills。 There are lots of social rule programs and books but still 2/3s are unemployed。 A lot of autistics are not diagnosed until adulthood so they wouldn't be using these resources anyways。 A lot of autistics will have burn out and be too tried to remember and act on these rules， that doesn't mean they should be fired。 A date- The author herself says she married some one with autism and doesn't always use the rules at home。 This could happen to one of the readers。 She also admits that learning these rules is a lot of work and there is a lot of explaining with NTs， with that in mind would a relationship that requires social rules that makes you want to give up on learning them a good idea？ I guess what I'm trying to say is losing a date because of not knowing these rules might not be bad。 Invitation- I don't have a problem with this one。 Getting along with NTs in your family- I don't think it is a good idea to try to understand family members from a book because I think it takes away communication。 Instead of trying to memorize an entire book worth of rules why doesn't the person just ask why a NT is feeling or doing something。 This will also let the NT I know they can ask the autistic person things when they are confused。 This could help bonding and learning each other's personalities。 According to themomvirse。com in an article called 10 Positive family communication rules for your home， people should not assume people's thoughts， feelings， or next actions。 It also says to ask for clarification。I don't know how to feel about the part where she talks about bullying。 She says it's not people's fault they are bullied but then says they could prevent it by learning social rules。 （ If someone chooses not to read this then is it there fault？ She is also saying the victims are the cause even if she also says it's not their fault。） I don't know why people would assume that someone is being snobby instead of giving them the benefit of the doubt because they are not in that person's head。 Even if someone was being snobby it doesn't mean they should be bullied。 I don't know why someone would think to go to autistics to help them prevent being bullied when they could put that energy into talking to the bullies about kindness and communication。 I think she should join an anti bullying group instead of writing a social rules book if that's why she is doing it。 She says that social rules will change and even NTs get confused。 To me that means we should put less importance on theses rules and stop judging people when they break them。 Social rules are starting to look pointless and harmful。 I don't think all the rules are bad and their are some I agree with， like hold the pillow。 （ Taking criticism and accepting being wrong）。 I also think this is coming from a good place and that the author wants to help autistic kids。 O'Toole seems like a nice person even when I disagree with things。 It's also great she is on the spectrum herself！ 💜 That's not something I have seen in other self help for autism books， she brings up autistic struggles that other books don't consider。 She also has a lot of self love messages。 There are so many "need to knows" it feels overwhelming and makes me anxious， she doesn't say how to memorize them。 For the most part they seem to give good advice and I think I might I will use some of it。As I flipped though this book I noticed some great things like how everyone fails and it's ok not to be perfect。 Playful teasing - I like how she lets the readers know they can tell someone if they were hurt even when the person didn't mean to。 I don't know how to feel about the advice to make sure you aren't taking yourself too seriously， one one hand it's great advice to be able to laugh at our selves， on the other hand wouldn't someone just laugh in the first place if the situation wasn't important to them？ That's just a minor detail though， I like the message that it's ok to laugh at yourself and it's ok to be hurt。 I didn't understand why it was a problem that her kids where not listening to each other， I understand that not listening makes someone feel uncared about， but in the specific case with her kids the way she describes it they were all happy。 Also my friends used to talk in a way that meant they did most of the conversation， they would talk and I would listen。 I never minded， I just thought what they were saying was interesting， and it was an easier way of hanging out for me。 I think it just really depends on the person you are speaking to。 Also the way the author words the section on conversation comes across very judgemental。 "and we won't impress anybody。 Or get people to like us" （That's not true。 If someone infodumped on me I would be impressed and delighted。） "I know that I know what I know。 Everyone else doesn't need to know it， too" （ Well some might like to know。） I liked the section where she talks about emotional temperature and the tips on preventing a meltdown。 The tips sound good， I've never used them myself （ I don't meltdown often） so I can't say how successful they are。 Body odor - There is nothing wrong with telling kids to practice hygiene， but I do have a problem with telling kids to practice hygiene because if they don't people won't like them。 According to marketwatch。com in an article called 2 Million Americans Don't Have Access to Running Water and Plumbing， as you can tell from the title many Americans don't have water。 In the article it says it makes it hard to go to school。 Some people won't always come to school smelling like a rose。 That doesn't mean they deserve to be lonely。 When we tell people in order to get people to like them they must have proper hygiene we also tell them it's okay to reject someone who doesn't， just because they smell。 I once had a friend who did have some BO， she was a very nice person， I think this social rule is petty。Also the author tries to claim that people need to fix unibrows but then says this is all to look clean to look neat， even though hair has nothing to do with being clean。 She also implies acne makes someone look dirty， but what if they just haven't found the right face wash yet？ People say DON'T judge a book by it's cover for a reason， because it's mean， petty， and not logical。 Why is she saying not only is it ok but people should give in and try to look a certain way that will make people judge them a certain way？ Here's the part really burns me up， she says how people need to look neat for job interviews because it is NTs who will be doing the hiring。 Again if someone is denied a job （ and therefore money and therefore food， shelter， water） for breaking a social rule when they are autistic that is ableism。 It's also ableist that only NTs are in the position to be the ones hiring。 Also having an iron， access to water， dress clothes， makeup， this book， and other things cost money。 It cost money to get a job。 That's pretty unjust but she never mentions it， she doesn't encourage people to question the ethics of the social rules in this book。 She also writes like every one has access to these things and can control the situation by following these rules， but with a world this messed up that simply isn't true。 There are a lot more rules to follow in a job interview that are not mentioned in this book， firm hand shake， eye contact， no fidgeting。 Those are all things autistics and others struggle with， if you don't get a job it's not because of you， it's because these rules are unjust。 The loveliest curve and an open door- Telling people to not cuss seems petty， I had a friend who cussed a lot， she warned me before to see if it would make me uncomfortable， she was never angry when she cussed。 She was thoughtful and always told great stories， I don't know why cussing should effect how we view people。 The advice go for beautiful over hot really bothers me because people should be allowed to do what they want。 If you want to look sexually attractive then do so， that does not make you any less worthy of love and respect than someone who doesn't。 If someone thinks you are insecure and desperate that's on THEM because THEY are judging a book by it's cover。 Some advice to men on how to treat women didn't make the most sense。 Like， walk beside her not behind her， even though that would make it more difficult to get out of the way of someone walking towards you two。 I also did not appreciate how she would talk to the girls and then the guys because I feel it leaves out non binary people。 It's also pretty heteronormative。 For example who walks closest to the street if both are men or one person is non binary？ Most of the advice is good though because the gestures will most likely seem sweet to anyone regardless of gender。 I mostly talked about what I didn't like in this book but I left out the parts I thought were good because I didn't want this to be any longer than it is。 I would get this book but be aware it is not perfect and question things as you go。 Most of it seems pretty good。I think the question "should autistics learn social rules and change how they act？" is a complex one。 Comments and discussion of my review would be most welcome！ 。。。more
Natalie
，
Something for everyone， not just people with aspergers。
Sheila
，
I don’t have autism， but I work with people with autism and always desire to understand them better。This book helps me appreciate the unique qualities that people with autism have and the unique challenges that people with autism face。Good advice and insights for me too， not just Asperkids！
Teo Asinari
，
Marking as read， but can definitely see this one as a reference for quite a while to come
Corinne Morier
，
HOLY F*** THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING！！ I learned a ton from this， and I'm a 29 year old Aspie who thought she knew everything about the "rules" of the mysterious neurotypicals！！！ EVERY SINGLE ASPERKID NEEDS THIS BOOK IN THEIR LIFE！！！！ TIME TO PULL OUT MY FAVORITE GIF OF ALL TIME！！！ARE YOU AN ASPERKID？ READ THIS BOOK！ARE YOU THE PARENT OF AN ASPERKID？？ GET THEM THIS BOOK！！ARE YOU A TEACHER WHO WORKS WITH ASPERKIDS？？ GET THIS BOOK FOR YOUR CLASSROOM！！DO YOU KNOW A PARENT OR A TEACHER OF AN ASPERKID？？ B HOLY F*** THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING！！ I learned a ton from this， and I'm a 29 year old Aspie who thought she knew everything about the "rules" of the mysterious neurotypicals！！！ EVERY SINGLE ASPERKID NEEDS THIS BOOK IN THEIR LIFE！！！！ TIME TO PULL OUT MY FAVORITE GIF OF ALL TIME！！！ARE YOU AN ASPERKID？ READ THIS BOOK！ARE YOU THE PARENT OF AN ASPERKID？？ GET THEM THIS BOOK！！ARE YOU A TEACHER WHO WORKS WITH ASPERKIDS？？ GET THIS BOOK FOR YOUR CLASSROOM！！DO YOU KNOW A PARENT OR A TEACHER OF AN ASPERKID？？ BUY THIS BOOK FOR THEM！！I WISH THIS BOOK HAD EXISTED WHEN I WAS A TEENAGER AND I WANT ALL BABY AUTISTICS TO HAVE THIS BOOK AND THE KNOWLEDGE I HAD TO LEARN THE HARD WAY！！！ 。。。more
Christine
，
Even though the title states the book's target audience is tweens and teens， autistics of all ages may benefit from reading this book。 My library even has it shelved in the adult nonfiction section。 I appreciated that this book was written for autistics by an autistic woman raising three autistic children。 After taking copious notes about invisible boundaries and self-advocacy， I decided to purchase this book so I could refer back to as needed。This book is eight years old and could benefit from Even though the title states the book's target audience is tweens and teens， autistics of all ages may benefit from reading this book。 My library even has it shelved in the adult nonfiction section。 I appreciated that this book was written for autistics by an autistic woman raising three autistic children。 After taking copious notes about invisible boundaries and self-advocacy， I decided to purchase this book so I could refer back to as needed。This book is eight years old and could benefit from an update。 I mean， Asperger Syndrome is no longer a diagnosis given by the DSM。 The book also focuses solely on heteronormativity and the gender binary。 Gender and sexual identity are more varied in autistics than in the general population， so the book should do more to address this。 Lastly， the book talked a lot about identifying friends vs。 acquaintances， but expected the reader to have full trust in authority figures。 Trusting authority has nuance to it， just like deciding whether to trust a friend does。 。。。more
Corinne Yee
，
Overall， there is a lot of good advice in here to help further understanding of social situations。 However， there are some instances where it seems O'Toole is actually encouraging masking， which is extremely draining and hides your authentic self。 Overall， there is a lot of good advice in here to help further understanding of social situations。 However， there are some instances where it seems O'Toole is actually encouraging masking， which is extremely draining and hides your authentic self。 。。。more
Lily
，
I liked this one。 Wish I could remember what drew me to finding and reading it。 It was in the young people's section of my library， but many of its suggestions remind me of what you get when you open one of those google selections that come up with your browser on how to be successful at this， that or some other thing。Sort of an Emily Post of etiquette （nice behavior towards others） for our informal， digital， reality tv driven world -- how to be a decent， socially acceptable human being with a g I liked this one。 Wish I could remember what drew me to finding and reading it。 It was in the young people's section of my library， but many of its suggestions remind me of what you get when you open one of those google selections that come up with your browser on how to be successful at this， that or some other thing。Sort of an Emily Post of etiquette （nice behavior towards others） for our informal， digital， reality tv driven world -- how to be a decent， socially acceptable human being with a good dose of empathy and willingness to attempt to understand the other people among whom we have to live， work， play。 Reminds me of reading Hugh Prather's How to Live in the World and Still Be Happy。 Not every "rule" might appear to make sense when reading， but in the real world of people and relationships， it probably does。 But use your judgement， which may be different if you start as so-called normal or if you have been told you have some set of characteristics to which a name has been applied， such as "Asperger Syndrome"。 （So far as I know， I qualify as "normal"？）Another book did manage to read during Covid self-isolation。 。。。more
Aaron Exists
，
Not much to explain。 It’s a great book that helped a lot but it was not outstanding。 It also had a few logically invalid parts， some of which are:Stickie 50- if a conversation is one on one， does that mean there should be no talking a third of the time？Practice Session 1- that person overreacted A TON。 At least Asperpeople overreact for logically valid reasons， not a slightly unnecessary correction。
Nicole Cattin
，
So helpful！
Amalie
，
My experience and opinion of this book is quite mixed - hence the 3 star rating。 Some parts， I found to be absolutely fantastic， while others less so。 I would still highly recommend it though， as long as you go into it knowing that everything will most likely not resonate with you， nor that all it preaches will be the ultimate or "best" truth， for you。 I'm glad I picked this up， although I wouldn't have， if it hadn't been recommended to me。 Why？ 1） I'm against the term Asperger's Syndrome and th My experience and opinion of this book is quite mixed - hence the 3 star rating。 Some parts， I found to be absolutely fantastic， while others less so。 I would still highly recommend it though， as long as you go into it knowing that everything will most likely not resonate with you， nor that all it preaches will be the ultimate or "best" truth， for you。 I'm glad I picked this up， although I wouldn't have， if it hadn't been recommended to me。 Why？ 1） I'm against the term Asperger's Syndrome and the use of "aspie" or in this case "asperkid" （huh？）。 It'd take too long to explain why， but this book obviously has both in its title and on the cover。2） It's targeted towards teenagers。 I'm not a teenager。 Well， I'm 21， so I'm still young， but it's still written for a much younger group。 The person who recommended it， was a grown woman， also on the spectrum， said it was still useful and overall made it sound promising， which made me want to try it。3） I'd sort of given up on autistic media because it's disappointed me in the past and just left me feeling even more lost and hopeless。 I read some books on the topic， most of which I didn't like， because they either stated objective information that I already knew， or took at more subjective route， making it feel almost like a biography， but still communicated as if this person's personal experience was universal for autistic people。 I didn't find that interesting or helpful。 No use to compare one self。Regarding concern #1， it was irrelevant in the grand scheme of things。 The only thing is that yeah， this book is meant for people who have the capacities to actively work on adjusting their behaviour and self-reflection。And regarding concern #2， I agree that it can still be a valuable for autistic people past the intended age group。 The language isn't childish or oversimplified at all。 It tries to be lighthearted and entertaining， but that just adds to making it a more uplifting experience， which I found very refreshing。 Also the random age-intended stuff is easy to either look past or adjust to your own life。 At last， regarding concern #3， it has a fair bit of that subjective-pretending-to-be-objective thing going on， which I don't enjoy。 In every chapter， the author tells a story from her personal life， which I didn't mind because they worked well as examples and in making it more human， but she does seem to believe that every "aspie" is more or less like her， which I know is far from the truth。 I could tell that she has strengths， I'm not blessed with， but also weaknesses， I'm blessed with not having。 Though as long as you take whatever resonates and don't take what doesn't personally， it's no major issue。 At least she follows up on her subjective experiences， or characteristics， with objective explanations。 However， it also relates to one thing I didn't appreciate， which is that the topics， and order of such， seem pretty random。 In the end， she does touch on a lot， but in my opinion， not quite enough。 Maybe doing that would make it too long， but that's also why I'm wary on books on autism。 It can be hard to present people with all the/only adequate information。 Thats honestly scares me。 It's so important。 One example of inadequate or - in my opinion - outright inappropriate information， is the consistent heteronormativity of it， and advice based on traditional gender roles。 Another is how she encourages to never talk about politics， etc。 and act obedient towards people of authority。 I mean， if you don't want to get into trouble， which I guess is a social skill of its own， then yes， definitely。 But that doesn't mean it's always the morally "right" thing to do。 She also encourages not caring about being liked by everyone and staying true to yourself。 Why not when it comes to beliefs， then？ It's a choice， but still。 Oh， and insensitive advice such as "just get an education and work hard！" （in the context of how to appear more attractive as a woman）。 Highly problematic and downright stupid。My favourite thing about this book was probably how kind it tried to be。 The author almost took on a motherly role （or was that just me？）。 It made me， as a reader， feel rather comfortable and cared for。 She made a big deal out of convincing you that you're "good enough" as you are， and talked about self-love in a way that I， as an autistic person， found relevant， understandable and really empowering。 Oh， how I wish I'd read this， when I was younger！ I can totally see that part being of utmost importance to a kid。 Not just an autistic kid， but any kid。 Unfortunately， "self-love" is rarely taught。It's something I haven't read or heard much about within the topic of autism。 I suppose people don't think it's relevant？ They couldn't be more wrong。 Most kids， people， of any misunderstood and/or mistreated minority， are in dire need of it。 。。。more
Connie
，
This is a book of social rules for kids and teens with Asperger syndrome。 The interesting thing about this one is that is written by a woman who has Asperger syndrome。 I found her writing style to be engaging， open， and honest。 She is able to really speak to the heart of the issues without talking down to her audience。She starts out with 139 rules （the only reason I know is because I counted since they are not numbered）。 I thought that was overwhelming， but each chapter takes on much more than j This is a book of social rules for kids and teens with Asperger syndrome。 The interesting thing about this one is that is written by a woman who has Asperger syndrome。 I found her writing style to be engaging， open， and honest。 She is able to really speak to the heart of the issues without talking down to her audience。She starts out with 139 rules （the only reason I know is because I counted since they are not numbered）。 I thought that was overwhelming， but each chapter takes on much more than just one as she clumps together related rules。 The formatting is logical and genuinely involves the reader。 She takes the time to explain the reasoning behind the rules and gives great examples to help the reader understand。I think this book could serve a wider audience than only people with Asperger’s。 Everyone from high-functioning autistic to quirky introvert could find something to relate to themselves。 I know I did。 :） 。。。more
Mary
，
Well written， humorous and very insightful。 The author knows her target audience well and meets them exactly where they are -- the Aspergian world of Tweens and Teens。
Deanna Dreher
，
Loved reading this with my autistic kids。 They love the conversational tone， and feeling that someone else really “gets“ them。 One chapter in， and my 10-year-old was begging me to buy him his own copy。
Marie
，
I recommend this book to people with Asperger’s or those who know someone with it。 It helped me understand how to go about interactions with others。 I now understand the different levels of friendships， how to respectfully give feedback， and many other social rules that I have， until recently， struggled to pick up on。 I believe that people without Asperger’s would benefit from understanding the struggles of someone with Asperger’s。 Maybe even gaining an understanding of social rules they use sub I recommend this book to people with Asperger’s or those who know someone with it。 It helped me understand how to go about interactions with others。 I now understand the different levels of friendships， how to respectfully give feedback， and many other social rules that I have， until recently， struggled to pick up on。 I believe that people without Asperger’s would benefit from understanding the struggles of someone with Asperger’s。 Maybe even gaining an understanding of social rules they use subconsciously。 。。。more
Kelly
，
Highly recommend， even for adults。 I need to buy a copy。
RedGhost
，
I want to believe that life would be so much easier that I've read this when I was a teen， or even 10 years later。 I can't know， but I do know that it was easy read， with moments similar of those when you get friendly hug of understanding that brings peace。 It's never too late to bring more peace in life :）Around decade or so ago I've read Unwritten Rules of Social Relationships: Decoding Social Mysteries Through Autism's Unique Perspectives and although it was a revelation and I could recognize I want to believe that life would be so much easier that I've read this when I was a teen， or even 10 years later。 I can't know， but I do know that it was easy read， with moments similar of those when you get friendly hug of understanding that brings peace。 It's never too late to bring more peace in life :）Around decade or so ago I've read Unwritten Rules of Social Relationships: Decoding Social Mysteries Through Autism's Unique Perspectives and although it was a revelation and I could recognize myself in many things it just wasn't so easy read like this one。 If this book existed then and I've read it then， I believe it would leave better impact on younger me - I could relate better and probably directly use advice I've found here。I would highly recommend it to all aspie and half-aspie people （those who share some， but not most of the traits） no matter how old they are。 I can bet that its refreshing tone will leave you in a better mood than before you started reading it :）I will definitely keep it in mind and recommend to everyone if Asperger topics comes to the table。Would NTs get something useful from here？ I would say yes - this book gives good inside on how we could feel in some situations even though we're bad with words to express at the moment when it happens。 。。。more
Sue Tremblay
，
Although the book is directed to kids/teens there is plenty of good advice for anyone。 It is written by a women who is an Aspie， married to an Aspie and has 3 Aspie kids。
Erin
，
My son really like this book and found it very helpful。
Annie
，
lifesaving stuff
Michelle Peach
，
I bought this book several years ago before my son was old enough to read it。 It's actually autographed by Jennifer when I met her along with Temple Grandin。 I read it then and only recently handed to my son。 As a teenager， he is now facing more and more social situations which he frustrate him and this book is one resource he can go to to seek an answer。 I bought this book several years ago before my son was old enough to read it。 It's actually autographed by Jennifer when I met her along with Temple Grandin。 I read it then and only recently handed to my son。 As a teenager， he is now facing more and more social situations which he frustrate him and this book is one resource he can go to to seek an answer。 。。。more
Misty
，
Definitely a good read for anyone to see what people with Asperger's might need to think about， also works with kids who don't have Asperger's but have social challenges。 Definitely a good read for anyone to see what people with Asperger's might need to think about， also works with kids who don't have Asperger's but have social challenges。 。。。more
Carol
，
Bought this one for the 13-year old after careful consideration of several different options。 There's a lot that I really like about this book。 First and foremost， it's written by someone on the spectrum for kids on the spectrum。 It's not meant to be for parents or teachers or adults （although seriously， there are several pages I'd like to print and frame and hang around my office）; it's written for tweens and teens， which is great。 I like how logically it's laid out， how easy to read， and how n Bought this one for the 13-year old after careful consideration of several different options。 There's a lot that I really like about this book。 First and foremost， it's written by someone on the spectrum for kids on the spectrum。 It's not meant to be for parents or teachers or adults （although seriously， there are several pages I'd like to print and frame and hang around my office）; it's written for tweens and teens， which is great。 I like how logically it's laid out， how easy to read， and how non-judgmental the advice is。 It walks through， step-by-step， in an orderly fashion， really important issues like when and how to say "thanks" and "I'm sorry" and how to tell if someone is really your friend。 There are even helpful practice sessions in the back。 These are life-lessons that I （and I assume most people） had to learn the hard way， through trial and error， and it's lovely that someone thought to write it down in such a readable， useful format。 My three complaints: 1） I dislike the term "Aspie" and she uses it。 A lot。 All the time。 Always。 2） The "I like someone" section is geared exclusively for heterosexually oriented people。 3） There is much reference to getting help from trusted adults， but not a good discussion about how to determine whether or not an adult is， in fact， trust-worthy。 All in all， this seems like a great resource。 I'm eager to see what my kiddo thinks of it。 。。。more
Helen
，
This is a fantastic book for tweens， teens， and adults with Asperger Syndrome。 It's also good for other kids who want to understand American social rules better！ This is a fantastic book for tweens， teens， and adults with Asperger Syndrome。 It's also good for other kids who want to understand American social rules better！ 。。。more
Teresa
，
I read most of this and encouraged my Aspie son to read it one chapter at a time。 A book like this would have been helpful for me when I was in high school。 Good， encouraging guidelines are offered for every day living and relating to others around the Asper-kid。
Jenny
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Excellent！ A must for tweens and teens with ASD 。One Aspie to another。
Wendy Tavares
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I bought this for Matthew。 He read it 3 times the day he got it。 He said he loved that it was written by someone on the spectrum who "talks like I do。" He keeps it nearby。 High praise from him for something that doesn't involve video games！ I bought this for Matthew。 He read it 3 times the day he got it。 He said he loved that it was written by someone on the spectrum who "talks like I do。" He keeps it nearby。 High praise from him for something that doesn't involve video games！ 。。。more
Alice Lemon
，