Aspergirls: Empowering Females with Asperger Syndrome
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- Create Date：2021-05-01 10:56:35
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Rudy Simone
- ISBN：1849058261
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Summary
Girls with Asperger's Syndrome are less frequently diagnosed than boys， & even once symptoms have been recognized， help is often not readily available。 The image of coping well presented by AS females can often mask difficulties， deficits， challenges， & loneliness。
Reviews
Carolyn A
，
“Aspergirls” is a mixed bag。The beginning half or so of “Aspergirls” is mostly helpful。 It paints a clear picture of common experiences shared by women on the spectrum。 It’s the sort of clarity that makes an “Aspergirl” feel seen， as they say。 However， even in this first half， glimpses of Simone’s subjectivity peek through。 She suggests that some Aspergers Syndrome （now ASD） women are psychic， that the challenges accompanying ASD might just be a misalignment of one’s chakras， and that ASD sensor “Aspergirls” is a mixed bag。The beginning half or so of “Aspergirls” is mostly helpful。 It paints a clear picture of common experiences shared by women on the spectrum。 It’s the sort of clarity that makes an “Aspergirl” feel seen， as they say。 However， even in this first half， glimpses of Simone’s subjectivity peek through。 She suggests that some Aspergers Syndrome （now ASD） women are psychic， that the challenges accompanying ASD might just be a misalignment of one’s chakras， and that ASD sensory aversions to certain products and foods might be protections against the non-holistic poisons nobody else can detect （never mind that these aversions have many ASD people eating nothing but junk）。The second half of the work is far less helpful than the first。 It’s more than sprinkled with pseudoscience。 Simone undulates between treating ASD as a fine thing—just a difference—and a negative effect of digestive issues that boil down to toxin retention。 Don’t worry though。 She says it can be treated by routine reiki or yoga。 Simone makes nearly no attempt to back her dietary， psychological， or other claims with any information of substance， but offers plenty of them anyway。 Snake oils and eastern religions will apparently fix whatever ails you。 And that includes ASD。 Oh—except it’s not a bad thing。 Different is cool！ Ahem。 In conclusion， the mixed messaging， many odd （and some harmful） recommendations， and other issues sadly eclipse the great worth I saw in some thoughtfully written early sections。 Please find descriptions of the female ASD experience in another source。 I wanted to love this book， but it seems to have gone way out of its way to avoid that。 。。。more
Ester
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Painfully one sided views presented as common truths combined with internalised misogyny and pseudoscience。 Aspergirls are apparently psychic， shouldn't eat chemicals （all food is made of chemicals my friend） or processed foods。 Also very dated on the way Simone presents gender and sexuality， assuming hetero cis as the norm while uncomfortably insinuating that many aspies reject gender norms only because They Are Not Like Other Girls， who are vapid and boring for liking 'girly things'。 There is Painfully one sided views presented as common truths combined with internalised misogyny and pseudoscience。 Aspergirls are apparently psychic， shouldn't eat chemicals （all food is made of chemicals my friend） or processed foods。 Also very dated on the way Simone presents gender and sexuality， assuming hetero cis as the norm while uncomfortably insinuating that many aspies reject gender norms only because They Are Not Like Other Girls， who are vapid and boring for liking 'girly things'。 There is some helpful information nestled among the nonsense， but honestly， not worth the ache of rolling your eyes at every other paragraph trying to sell the right supplements to alleviate the symptoms of autism。 。。。more
Lari
，
Relied more on stereotypes than I would have expected， particularly gender stereotypes， so it's hard to trust how accurate the information and advice is。 Also divided the world into strictly Aspie or neurotypical， which isn't correct。 Relied more on stereotypes than I would have expected， particularly gender stereotypes， so it's hard to trust how accurate the information and advice is。 Also divided the world into strictly Aspie or neurotypical， which isn't correct。 。。。more
Enola Holmes， Esq。
，
It was good to read and I would recommend it to young women and girls。 I felt it wasn't written for my age group and not very information-dense。 It is more of a look into how girls and women have experienced autism。 It was good to read and I would recommend it to young women and girls。 I felt it wasn't written for my age group and not very information-dense。 It is more of a look into how girls and women have experienced autism。 。。。more
Maja Minnaert
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I recommend everyone who ever even briefly meets an aspergirl to read this book。 There is a 99 % chance that this includes everyone who ever ends up reading this， since plenty of us are book nerds。
Karolina
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W O N D E R F U L。Very inspiring， made me reflect on many things about myself。
Cara
，
A wonderful read， I feel like I relate to a lot of the things there。 It was eye-opening to learn that Asperger's syndrome is not always a glaring condition but rather subtle at times。 There might be a couple of autistic people among my family and I am very happy to learn about the spectrum folks' life experiences。 I did have some questionable recommendations， so I would advise taking everything there with a pinch of salt。 A wonderful read， I feel like I relate to a lot of the things there。 It was eye-opening to learn that Asperger's syndrome is not always a glaring condition but rather subtle at times。 There might be a couple of autistic people among my family and I am very happy to learn about the spectrum folks' life experiences。 I did have some questionable recommendations， so I would advise taking everything there with a pinch of salt。 。。。more
Ashley Newberg
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Started reading because my 8-year-old is likely on the spectrum， and in the process of reading， ended up self-diagnosing her， myself， and my husband！ Such a helpful book， and so validating to see our experiences echoed in the stories of others。
Minna
，
I read most of the book 5 years ago， and just now got around to finish it。 It’s a really good book for those who recently realised that they’re autistic， because it spans over many areas， and every chapter has several quotes from other aspergirls as well。
Frrobins
，
If you know one person with autism， you know one person with autism。 As a woman on the spectrum who is the parent to a son and daughter both 10 and under and both diagnosed with ASD， I did not relate to a lot of this book， especially since the author really seemed to fixate and focus on her experience of autism， which appears to be rather different from mine。 It is normal to filter things through our own perspective and experience and at first I was mildly disappointed that it did not resonate m If you know one person with autism， you know one person with autism。 As a woman on the spectrum who is the parent to a son and daughter both 10 and under and both diagnosed with ASD， I did not relate to a lot of this book， especially since the author really seemed to fixate and focus on her experience of autism， which appears to be rather different from mine。 It is normal to filter things through our own perspective and experience and at first I was mildly disappointed that it did not resonate much with me。 But what started to disturb me the longer I read was that I did not like her portrayal of autism and felt a lot of it was insulting and belittling。 Further， there was a good deal of pseudoscience and misinformation。I nearly stopped reading after the chapter on having children， where the author states， "We'll be expected to be caretakers; to be mature adults who make mature decisions， to be selfless; all the things we might struggle with。" Um， no。 As one of those hyper responsible Hermione Granger types who went into and has excelled in a caretaking profession， no。 Those are not things I struggle with as a parent at all。 And in fact the autistic women who identify with Hermione Granger were not really seen much in this book。I got tired of the portrayal of autistic women as great innocents who are naivete and childlike。 While there is some truth to it， the reality is much more complicated， and I felt the author greatly exaggerated this and it felt patronizing after awhile。 I also got frustrated by the depictions of autistic women as genderless or androgynous。 While some autistic women are， this is one of those views of autistic women that I believe gets taken and run with thanks to the echo effect of the internet to the point where people think all autistic women are this way when I suspect that autistic women who experience what I did tend to stay quiet because we so rigidly identified with being women that many of us were the ultimate girly girls growing up。 But none of us want to brag about that on the internet because we either feel embarrassed by it or it is met with scorn， so we tend to stay quiet， and the narrative that we're all genderless takes over。 How Tony Attwood articulated how autistic girls express their gender identity is a lot more relatable to me。 And as the mother to a autistic daughter， I just have to say， when she sees me going into the kitchen to cook， she begs me to let her help。 And if she sees a recipe while I'm Facebook scrolling that catches her interest， she begs me to make it （she also likes to build and fix things， what can I say， it's much more complicated than what this book makes it out to be）。This book is also geared more towards people who don't know much about autism/Asperger's or women on the spectrum， which is not true for me。 I could overlook that， but the longer I read the worse the book got。 As other reviewers have noted there is a bit of pseudoscience， talk about autistic women having psychic powers， and debunked ideas such as leaky gut theory as a cause for autism。 Between that and the negative portrayal of autism I started skimming the further I got into it。 There are a few good chapters and some things I related to， such as the feelings of being misunderstood and there is some good advice。 So while there are a few gold nuggets， but I feel like people who want to learn more about this topic would be better served by a different book。 Skip。 。。。more
Fleur
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Hoewel het is geschreven voor Amerikaanse tienermeisjes en hun ouders （ik ben geen van beiden） en ik me vaak ergerde aan de overdreven generalisering， vond ik het een interessant en leerzaam boek。
Hazel
，
Great book！ Definitely recommended for newly diagnosed individuals with ASD。 One problem I have with the book is that it mentions a correlation between consuming processed foods and rising autism cases。 This is conjecture at best until further research has been done。 Correlation does not equal causation。 There are many other factors that need to be considered for rises in ASD diagnoses。 Certainly the more the DSM has widened it's criteria， the more people fit that criteria。 We're in a fairly ear Great book！ Definitely recommended for newly diagnosed individuals with ASD。 One problem I have with the book is that it mentions a correlation between consuming processed foods and rising autism cases。 This is conjecture at best until further research has been done。 Correlation does not equal causation。 There are many other factors that need to be considered for rises in ASD diagnoses。 Certainly the more the DSM has widened it's criteria， the more people fit that criteria。 We're in a fairly early scientific phase in our understanding of ASD。 。。。more
Nicole Field
，
This book was an incredibly empowering book， with portions of tough love interspersed， that is aimed at not only the girl who has ASD， but also at the family surrounding her。 It is completed with a bunch of excerpts from other girls and women with ASD that speak of wider experiences with regards to the following struggles:- Unusual interests and skills- Schooling- Sensory overload- Stimming and happiness- Blame and guilt- Gender roles and identity- Puberty- Sex and romantic relationships- Friend This book was an incredibly empowering book， with portions of tough love interspersed， that is aimed at not only the girl who has ASD， but also at the family surrounding her。 It is completed with a bunch of excerpts from other girls and women with ASD that speak of wider experiences with regards to the following struggles:- Unusual interests and skills- Schooling- Sensory overload- Stimming and happiness- Blame and guilt- Gender roles and identity- Puberty- Sex and romantic relationships- Friendships - Higher learning- Employment- Marriage and children- Ritual and routines- Diagnosis and medication- Meltdowns- Getting older on the spectrumIn a lot of the chapters is the continuing need for control and the differing ways that it commonly manifests。 The things that make us feel powerful， as well as the things that take away from that power （such as social and financial difficulties）。 Also the various co-morbid issues that are common with a diagnosis of ASD。 The parts that I found particularly empowering were not just in the strategies that were offered， and the reminder that sometimes one just has to employ the tools to the best of their ability and get on with life， but also the validation of having a whole book dedicated to this topic in such great detail。 Not all of the observations applied to me， of course， but even those ones were illuminating in their own ways。~Similar to: Funny， You Don't Look Autistic Autism in Heels 。。。more
Anni
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As an autistic person， I hated this book it’s way too ableist and full of prejudices。 Wouldn’t recommend。
Paula Marais
，
Interesting focus on disparities between boys and girls on the spectrum。 Some common sense advice for parents， caregivers and girls themselves。
Kat Skarbek
，
I have a daughter with Aspergers and some of what I learned in the early part of the book was quite insightful。 Like a lot of other readers though， the second half was full of assumptions based on popular gut health and pseudo-science speak。 It didn’t have much to say about how to help aspie-teens， especially those who have other co-morbid conditions and it sort of dissipated the strong first half information into stuff that wasn’t relevant for many female aspies。 I got three quarters of the way I have a daughter with Aspergers and some of what I learned in the early part of the book was quite insightful。 Like a lot of other readers though， the second half was full of assumptions based on popular gut health and pseudo-science speak。 It didn’t have much to say about how to help aspie-teens， especially those who have other co-morbid conditions and it sort of dissipated the strong first half information into stuff that wasn’t relevant for many female aspies。 I got three quarters of the way through the book a d completely lost interest。 I do believe that gut health the is important but if doesn’t cure aspergers and the book would have better served it’s audience with more information or discussion around potential supports for girls of all ages， especially those going through puberty and around adult relationships， especially for those not identifying as straight。 。。。more
Lis Carey
，
This is a very interesting and in some ways very useful book about high-functioning autism--or， as was still the officially accepted but already challenged label at the time of original publication， Asperger's syndrome--in girls and women。There's a lot here about how under-diagnosed autism has been and still is in girls， compared to boys。 It's very much grounded in Simone's personal experience， and her interviews with an unknown number of women and girls with Asperger's diagnoses。 It's interesti This is a very interesting and in some ways very useful book about high-functioning autism--or， as was still the officially accepted but already challenged label at the time of original publication， Asperger's syndrome--in girls and women。There's a lot here about how under-diagnosed autism has been and still is in girls， compared to boys。 It's very much grounded in Simone's personal experience， and her interviews with an unknown number of women and girls with Asperger's diagnoses。 It's interesting and informative， in terms of how high-functioning autism can be both a genuinely different experience for females than males， and also less recognized in females because of different expectations that society has for women and girls vs。 men and boys。Yet， the anecdotal approach has real limitations， too。 Rudy Simone doesn't have the scientific orientation of Dr。 Camilla Pang， another autistic woman who has written about autism， and one consequence is that this book does not have the broader and deeper grounding of Pang's Explaining Humans: What Science Can Teach Us about Life， Love and Relationships Simone doesn't seem to have looked at the experiences of women and girls who aren't a great deal like her， making this book， to use a term that I honestly never anticipated using in a book review， extremely cisheteronormative。 （Not because there's anything wrong with the term; just because I'm a white cis woman in my sixties for whom many of the terminology that comes from greater awareness of intersectionality and its importance feel strange and alien to me， even though the ideas they express feel very right。） Most of the discussion of relationships in this book did not even in passing consider that some autistic/Asperger's women might not be white， might not be straight， might possibly be transgender。 That last omission might be due to the original publication date， in 2010， when there was less open discussion of transgender issues--or the belief that there was less discussion of transgender issues may be a sign of the bubble I was living in on that subject， ten years ago。 In 2020， though， it really stands out as a blind spot。There is a lot of good， sensible advice here for teens and tweens and their parents dealing with these issues。 That's the area where it's most helpful and valuable。 It's less useful for adults， although the encouragement to pursue a diagnosis and meaningful help， if it seems appropriate， even in later life， is good。Yet Simone seems to generalize far too much from her own personal experience， and not check in with the science and the data nearly enough。Moreover， there's a distressing amount of what I call woo-woo。 Simone believes that autistics may have psychic powers。 No， seriously。 Much of the anecdotal evidence she cites sounds to me a lot more like survival-based learning to read body language in other people， whether consciously or not。 She's also quite taken with the idea that autism may be caused by digestive system problems。 She conducts her own tiny （ten people）， uncontrolled "study" with a food supplement for which the makers claim near-miraculous effects。It's an interesting book， but a very mixed bag。 I did really enjoy the first half of it or so， up to about chapter seven， but after that it seems to go off the deep end。Still， it was an interesting listen， and there is good， practical advice for teens and tweens， and their parents。I bought this audiobook。 。。。more
Amanda Jackson
，
Informative Okay， my therapist recommended this book after my diagnosis。 I have issues with some of the heteronormative language that she uses。 Some of the information didn't feel very helpful， but the spots that were bang on gave me some perspective。 The beginning of the book made me feel like this diagnosis is the worst and that in order to help women with ASD you must start as children。 I wish there was more about being an adult and getting a late diagnosis。 Informative Okay， my therapist recommended this book after my diagnosis。 I have issues with some of the heteronormative language that she uses。 Some of the information didn't feel very helpful， but the spots that were bang on gave me some perspective。 The beginning of the book made me feel like this diagnosis is the worst and that in order to help women with ASD you must start as children。 I wish there was more about being an adult and getting a late diagnosis。 。。。more
Abby
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As an Autistic woman， I’m grateful for Simone for bringing doing the work that went into this book and compiling the experiences of women who identify as aspergic。 In fact， any book or media that broadens the understanding of autism， in my book， is a step in the right direction。 That being said， this book is the opposite of the DSM-5， which is both its downfall and saving grace。 There is no clinical prose， which is refreshing and makes it accessible。 There are an abundance of personal anecdotes， As an Autistic woman， I’m grateful for Simone for bringing doing the work that went into this book and compiling the experiences of women who identify as aspergic。 In fact， any book or media that broadens the understanding of autism， in my book， is a step in the right direction。 That being said， this book is the opposite of the DSM-5， which is both its downfall and saving grace。 There is no clinical prose， which is refreshing and makes it accessible。 There are an abundance of personal anecdotes， which are sometimes helpful but do hold a bit of bias。 There is very little empirical evidence or data， but， to the author’s credit， very little of that exists anyway。 The second half of the book is much less engaging and at points the reach of the claims distracting。 Simone posits that autism could come from gut issues and can be fixed by diet。 A single study is cited for this proposition。 This book is not the be all end all guide to being a woman on the spectrum， which is what it seems it was intended to be。 It is however a comprehensive view of Simone’s experience as a woman on the spectrum。 。。。more
Sara
，
I was recently diagnosed Autistic。 Aspergirls was my first completed book on Autism Spectrum Disorder（s）， and I'd say it's 60/40 informative and also， possibly， useless to some readers。。。To me， it felt like the author went primarily on her experience， and did little research。 There are few citations in the text to work outside of her own books—it reminded me of when I first started blogging and building my online presence; when I would intentionally refer back to my own work to keep people on my I was recently diagnosed Autistic。 Aspergirls was my first completed book on Autism Spectrum Disorder（s）， and I'd say it's 60/40 informative and also， possibly， useless to some readers。。。To me， it felt like the author went primarily on her experience， and did little research。 There are few citations in the text to work outside of her own books—it reminded me of when I first started blogging and building my online presence; when I would intentionally refer back to my own work to keep people on my site and "build trust，" as if trust is built on looking like you know everything about your topic。。。 Eight years later， I believe that expertise is revealed through sharing the spotlight。 Information is so vast and easily accessible nowadays—to self-promote in such a way only reveals someone to be self-important， or simply the opposite of an "expert。"But I won't rag on the author over this。 What actually bothered me the most was the language used。 There is a good deal of pseudoscience， which is okay to even mildly interesting; but the language around the pseudoscience was matter-of-fact more often than it offered a precursor of "according to [insert person and/or text here];” and some of the interview community input was hollow or didn't offer any viable "evidence" to the claim either。For example， there's a subsection within Sensory Overload where the author covers Psychic Sensitivity （p。 40）。 As far back as I can remember， I've felt attuned to specific "wavelengths，" I guess you could call them。 One personal example: As a late teen， I woke with an empty yet heavy feeling a little past midnight on 1 November 2005; and with a sense of peace for the first time in three-and-a-half years just ten~ minutes before my father bursted into my room， face red and wet and long， to tell me my mother died。 I already knew she was gone。 I dreamt it （probably what woke me）。 Do I attribute this to Autism？ I'm not sure。。。 Yet the author claims that there's a link， and that she dreamt of 9/11 hours before it happened， and that she had a vision of the 2004 tsunami when she was in Thailand。She does state that psychic sensitivity [in Autistic folks？] hasn't been proven by science yet， but most of the language / phrasing she uses is matter-of-fact。There are more pseudoscience and opinions given as facts， like us females don't care about femininity; that we （women） become less attractive as we get older， so there's less pressure to maintain our appearance （p。 206）; that Autism could be linked to not being breastfed， our mother's had poor diets of processed foods， sugars， etc。 （p。 199）The list goes on。。。There were a few other bits that offended me a bit， but those are my problem and not the author's; however， I believe had there been a proper editor （sorry if there was one！） that these issues would have been caught， and the author would have had a more defined and refined scope to go back and fix things。 But if there was an editor who caught these things， and the author decided to go through with it anyhow， that would be saddening to me。（This reads very much so like a self-published book。）3/5I found enough information to relate to， and feel more aware of my behaviors after reading this book。 That's what I wanted， and it delivered mostly。 I enjoyed that this is written simply and not clinically。 I started reading Tony Attwood's The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome first， and found it's clinical distance difficult to get through; but I'll still try to finish it。 （Heck， this book took me nearly a month to get through。。。） I hope you found this review helpful。 Thanks for reading， Sara 。。。more
Samantha
，
A really great collection of experiences of various women with ASD， which highlights how different it can be from person to person。 In contrast to this， much of the input from the author comes stated as if it were facts， saying that “Aspergirls are ____。” Some of these statements are directly contradicted by the experiences by individuals that are featured。 This trend of absolute language carries on into advice sections， saying “you have to。。。” and “your partner must。。。” as if all women with ASD A really great collection of experiences of various women with ASD， which highlights how different it can be from person to person。 In contrast to this， much of the input from the author comes stated as if it were facts， saying that “Aspergirls are ____。” Some of these statements are directly contradicted by the experiences by individuals that are featured。 This trend of absolute language carries on into advice sections， saying “you have to。。。” and “your partner must。。。” as if all women with ASD have the exact same needs。 It is also very distressing that the author touches on curing ASD with diet。 While I understand some may have this point of view， it is no longer language regarding ASD that is appreciated by many of us。 One additional thing that disturbed me while reading this book （as an adult woman with ASD） is the passive jabs at neurotypical women。 There is a sense of superiority over any woman who is content with typical gender norms。 Perhaps more concerning is the language about men in general， painting them to be disrespectful and even predatory。 In general I would say this book is worth reading， simply to gain some insight on various experiences of women with ASD。 However， this book would be much more enjoyable if the author had written it in a way that did not feel like an instruction manual。 。。。more
Ariel Pritchard
，
This was a really interesting and informative read。 I don't agree with 100% of what is discussed， but it is a very accessible， and honestly life-changing read。 I highly recommend this for anybody on the spectrum or with loved ones who are or suspected of being on the spectrum。 This was a really interesting and informative read。 I don't agree with 100% of what is discussed， but it is a very accessible， and honestly life-changing read。 I highly recommend this for anybody on the spectrum or with loved ones who are or suspected of being on the spectrum。 。。。more
Pearl
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I'm sorry but this book commits three fatal errors:1。 Decides to follow the line that processed food causes autism。 "most of the world's top autism researchers and doctors now believe that。。。 autism is initially caused by a compromised digestive system" （Aspergirls kindle edition， 85%） - never mind that a there is a large body of research to show that autism is often， in fact， genetic， and that these "top autism researchers" are never named nor referenced in any way in this book。 Simone continue I'm sorry but this book commits three fatal errors:1。 Decides to follow the line that processed food causes autism。 "most of the world's top autism researchers and doctors now believe that。。。 autism is initially caused by a compromised digestive system" （Aspergirls kindle edition， 85%） - never mind that a there is a large body of research to show that autism is often， in fact， genetic， and that these "top autism researchers" are never named nor referenced in any way in this book。 Simone continues that "Nature did not intend。。。 for you to eat food from a can or a tube。 Most people in America and other western countries don't even known what real foods taste like， they only know when extreme amounts of sugar or salt or other things hit their mouth and their bloodstream and this problem has spread throughout the globe， along with the autism epidemic。" （87%） and that we should "eat as humans were intended to eat" （87%）。 She also uses this chapter to push the idea of supplements without any discussion of the risks of taking them （including St。 John's Wort） or any information on scientific studies to support their use。 The fact that there is a large body of research to show that autism is often， in fact， genetic， is completely ignored。2。 Decides that "depression exists because there's a problem in your life"（Aspergirls kindle edition 75%） and that we can save ourselves from falling into deep depression through "wise choices" （75%） which will "prevent the circumstances that would push us over the edge。" This is frankly insulting to anyone who experiences depression， especially those of us with organic depression not caused by external factors。 The whole chapter around depression is extremely anti-medication and anti-doctor which does NOT help vulnerable people reading this book。 The text literally point blank tells you the meds won't work long term。 It is utterly impossible for the author to claim this to be true for everyone。3。 All this information about autism is provided。。。 but very few references to any study or scientific literature are given to justify the claims。 It seems that all of Simone's information is based entirely on her experiences and the experiences of the people she happens to be in contact with， which is inevitably going to be a biased sample。 The book does not make this clear and Simone chooses to present herself as the authority on women with Aspergers without any scientific evidence to back up her claims in this book。 While I believe - and recognise in myself as an autistic woman - most of what she has said， it makes it impossible to work out what is officially recognised as autistic behaviour and what is her own personal opinion。 There is a list of resources provided at the back of the book but few of the texts are scientific studies into autism and one of them is actually Szasz's "Psychiatry: The Science of Lies"。--Apart from those issues， this book in general places a lot of assumed blame on the parents of people with autism and assumes that they have caused issues for autistic women as they grew up。 I was hoping to show my parents this book as a summary of what being an autistic woman is like for me， as there is good information in here， but even to me it reads as an attack in multiple places to the extent that I can't give this book to them。 The author also really likes describing autistic women as naïve。 She used the word （or forms of it） seven separate times in the book。 I don't think this is universally accurate or a particularly positive word to use。There are useful parts to this book， and I have quite a few highlights of the common features of autism that were explained well。 But I couldn't forgive the misrepresentation of the key issues above and would not recommend this book to anyone。 。。。more
Luna
，
Excellent book。 I found it very informative and empowering - hands down the best book about Asperger's that I have read so far。 What I liked best about it is that it is full of useful， practical advice on how to survive and thrive as an Aspergirl。 I would highly recommend this book to anyone who identifies as female and is on the spectrum， as well as to people close to an Aspergirl who want to understand her better。 Excellent book。 I found it very informative and empowering - hands down the best book about Asperger's that I have read so far。 What I liked best about it is that it is full of useful， practical advice on how to survive and thrive as an Aspergirl。 I would highly recommend this book to anyone who identifies as female and is on the spectrum， as well as to people close to an Aspergirl who want to understand her better。 。。。more
Annette
，
Ik las dit boek voor de tweede keer omdat ik niet meer goed wist wat er in stond en omdat ik ben gegroeid als mens én autist in de laatste 6/7 jaar sinds ik het las。 Het boek staat boordevol onwetenschappelijke zaken en vooringenomen aannames。 Het is gericht op cishet vrouwen， ook al is er zelfs een hoofdstuk aan de 'androgyne' identiteit van Aspergirls gewijd （haar woorden）。 Er wordt gedweept met de talenten en gaven van autistische meisjes en dat werkt echt op de zenuwen。 Ook de 'wij-vorm' voe Ik las dit boek voor de tweede keer omdat ik niet meer goed wist wat er in stond en omdat ik ben gegroeid als mens én autist in de laatste 6/7 jaar sinds ik het las。 Het boek staat boordevol onwetenschappelijke zaken en vooringenomen aannames。 Het is gericht op cishet vrouwen， ook al is er zelfs een hoofdstuk aan de 'androgyne' identiteit van Aspergirls gewijd （haar woorden）。 Er wordt gedweept met de talenten en gaven van autistische meisjes en dat werkt echt op de zenuwen。 Ook de 'wij-vorm' voelt vreselijk overtrokken， alsof elke autistische vrouw hetzelfde denkt。 Waarom dan toch twee sterren？Omdat ik het goed vind dat er andere autistische vrouwen aan het woord worden gelaten en er na elk hoofdstuk een stuk gericht is aan ouders。 Ik denk dat die stukjes wel nuttig kunnen zijn als aanknopingspunt voor een gesprek tussen ouders en autistisch kind。 。。。more
Marissa Pineda
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Highly anecdotal， but I felt very seen。
Ani
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I could not finish it。 If you are not white， if you are physically disabled， if you are or grew up poor， if you are queer， this book could be quite upsetting and/or simply just not fit in with your life experiences。 I know there is diet stuff later in the book too， so look out for that。 I got more out of just reading a 4 page list of traits， tbh。
Katie
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It was a good intro。 I dont really know enough about aspergers to give a proper judgement though。
Sara Rocha
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I loved it until half of the book。 Then I read “Temper meltdowns”。 Meltdowns are not temper， they are an overload of the sensory sensitivity。 We are nos on PMS， and There is no statistic that indicates women have more meltdowns。 Then it got to the digestive system chapter and I found almost funny how completely unscientific it was。 Although I think a good and healthy diet is important， no one will cure Autism with supplements， and it sounded product placement。 If you get this book， just take awa I loved it until half of the book。 Then I read “Temper meltdowns”。 Meltdowns are not temper， they are an overload of the sensory sensitivity。 We are nos on PMS， and There is no statistic that indicates women have more meltdowns。 Then it got to the digestive system chapter and I found almost funny how completely unscientific it was。 Although I think a good and healthy diet is important， no one will cure Autism with supplements， and it sounded product placement。 If you get this book， just take away the good things， and please Ignore the rest。 Read other books and aspiegirls experiences。 。。。more
Kelly
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