Specific Disabilities Books

My mother suffered a brain injury when the family house burned down and my father and brother died. She was left in a coma. We are grateful to still have her but some times it has been hard. this book had helped us understand better. Thanks for your book.

This young woman's struggle to recover from devastating head injuries is compounded by her problems with the law and lawyers. The way she recovers from both difficult situations is a fabulous read.

When I first bought this book, I thought I would never be able to finish it until I read the introduction and I couldn't put it down. I passed it on to my sister. Debbie's story is heartbreaking and her recovery miraculas. I can't wait for Ms. Quinn's next book.

Deborah Quinn details a nightmare of personal, financial, legal and medical entanglements. Her story is one relatively few brain injury victims experience. The lifestyle she describes is an exclusive one and the rehabilitation resouces available to her are not generally accessible to any but the very well funded.

She reveals strategies and priorities of the legal and insurance world in an interesting way as well as her means of arriving at decisions during the process.

Many survivors do not reach the level of insurance disputes or legal representation she generated because they are not as lucrative a subject as Ms. Quinn. This does not diminish the anguish she endured, her sense of loss or the difficulty of her journey. That is a part of each person's recovery and no amount of money can spare that.

I am a brain injury surviver just like Deborah is. I was in an automobile accident in January of 1998, but my injuries weren't as bad as Deborah's and my recovery time was much less. I thought the description of the legal battles was too long and boring, but the emotional aspects kept my interest. I sat crying while reading this, remembering my similar experiences and pain. This book is great for anyone who has suffered from a brain injury and also for their family members. I would definitely recommend this!

Parents of kids newly diagnosed as having autism are often concerned bout how to interact with their child for maximum effectiveness. Playing, Laughing and Learning with Children on the Autism Spectrum is more than just a book about how to play with such a child: it shows how to break down activities into manageable stages, gain a child's attention, and build on play-oriented achievements for broader impact. Any parent with an autistic child will find this a winning guide, as will educators working with special education kids.

there are a few good ideas in this book, not exactly for me, but perhaps for others. I always find that it seems that they reach to hard to try and fill these types of books with activities, just take the concepts here and apply to each individual child is what I say!

There was some good info in this book, but mostly common sense. I am a early childhood teacher with a child with autism, and most of this is common practice in early childhood. It does give you a reason for the skill difficulty in children with autism, then gives you some ideas. not bad.

I thought that this was a great book. it really focuses on younger children, most other books that I have read are geared towards older kids. There were a lot of practical ideas and simple things that you could do with your child.

I found this book to be a great resource. It's a very gentle, child-centered way to promote interactive play with children on the spectrum. The examples are creative and easy to follow and most of the materials you can make yourself. Highly recommended!

My son was recently diagnosed with NVLD and this book was very enlightening. It helped to have some "aha" moments of things going on with him and how to make life easier for us all. A very quick read and very positive over all.

This book was ok. It was the first book I have read specific to non-verbal learning disability, but the information wasn't anything that new. A lot of it I had read before in investigating sensory integration disorder and dyspraxia. A quick read and ok if you haven't already covered a lot of ground on neurological based developmental disorders. If you are a closet expert I wouldn't spend the money or time.

Excellent informative resource for parents with NLD's. Recommend this book for everyone who has children with NLD or is working with children.
LB camamo island

There is embarrassingly little available for parents of children with NLD, and this book is not great but is better than most books. (The only one better is "NLD at school" by Tanguay.) This book at least does cover some of the basic issues that come up for children with NLD, but there is too much focus on how the author solved her own child's issues rather than providing a selection of ideas.

This book is jam packed with information about NLD. It's a page turner for those of you who need this very important information about your NLD child. Marcia has delved into areas of this difficult disability with a vengence, and has come up with some wonderfully positive solutions. I learned so much about NLD, that I highly recommend it to anyone that needs to learn more about the problems and solutions for a child with this frustrating disability.

As a positive psychologistEnchanted Self: A Positive Therapy (New Directions in Therapeutic Intervention , Vol 1) I am always on the look out for inspirational writings. All the better if they are truly the story of a person's efforts to make the most of her life. That's what we find in The Revelation of a Star's Endless Shine...We really get to see how day after day after day a person can struggle and succeed against what seem to be terrible odds. I actually had a chance to 'meet' Shirley in a teleclass we mutually took. I was so impressed with her actual being, not just her writings. She is very special and has a message for all of us: Don't give up! You have purpose and there is a way. I always try to give my clients that same message in some fashion or other, whether I try to infuse hope by my words, or share via my books, such as my new book,The Truth, I'm a girl, (I'm smart and I know everything)where I try to re-invest adults with the courage and fire they had as kids and at the same time help kids keep the fire.

Even though this book is long, I still highly recommend it. You may want to randomly even open a page for a new dose of 'fairy dust' giving you encouragement to make the most of your life!

As a life and personal coach, I encourage my clients to read about people who face challenges and tragedies and manage not only to survive, but to thrive. Shirley Cheng's biography, "The Revelation of a Star's Endless Shine," is such a book.

Shirley's life could have turned out very differently had she and her mother been cowed by the appalling behavior of doctors, teachers, landlords, social services employees, lawyers and even friends. Instead, their courage and willingness to confront rather than accept ill treatment, led Shirley, a blind, disabled woman, to create a life filled with meaning and singularly lacking in self-pity or bitterness.

Reading of Shirley's physical pain, her increasingly weakening body, the slipshod way she was handled by school aids who were supposed to be helping her, the legal wranglings over her care, would make anyone scream in frustration. Even worse was the way Shirley was treated by an endless list of so-called professionals. Hardly anyone listened to Shirley or her mother regarding her pain, her intelligence or her thirst for education. The indictment of so many people who should have been on Shirley's side, is a sad commentary on our medical, social service and educational systems. In addition, Shirley's father evidently was a manipulator and a cruel man who refused to use his money for the benefit of his daughter. The hardships she and her mother faced feel unendurable. Yet they were endured. And despite poor medical care, despite teachers who seemed uninterested in helping this talented student, despite unfeeling "friends," in two countries, this mother and daughter fought and won many more battles than they lost.

Unlike Shirley, few of us seem to have the innate ability to face every day and everyone with a smile regardless of our own painful circumstances. Yet we can read her story with an open heart and choose to integrate her positive outlook and determination into our own lives in a way that will serve us and those around us. After all, this is the reason Shirley wrote the book. She hoped that her story would inspire others to treat everyone with respect, to stand up for what we believe in and to reach out to those less fortunate.

"She was running toward a glistening stream with fish of all colors flying out of the water. With laughter escaping her lips, she chased a white butterfly amidst the green field of wildflowers. Her black hair glowed with a halo of brightness, with sunrays dancing about her. The blue sky was accentuated by a shimmering rainbow..." ~pg. 116

Shirley Cheng is the author of Dance with Your Heart: Tales and Poems That the Heart Tells. She is a highly imaginative writer who has access to beautiful inner worlds where she creates mythological tales and beautiful stories.

In "The Revelation of a Star's Endless Shine" we are able to access an extremely detailed portrait of 700 pages explaining Shirley Cheng's life and how she became a writer. As if observing her life as an angelic protecting presence, she writes of her life's struggles and challenges she faces due to many people in her life seeming to show a general insensitivity to her condition.

As a child she is diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, but this is only the beginning of a long journey filled with therapies and medications, not to mention medical complications due to medication side effects. As Shirley Cheng seeks to make sense of why certain medical problems keep occurring, she faces life with a refreshingly honest and hopeful approach.

"Picking up a book, Shirley began to enter into a different world, a world that she could escape to from her surroundings. After the first quarter, she had begun to increase her reading and writing volume. She read three books a day, averaging five to six hundred pages." ~pg. 375

After spending the entire morning reading Shirley's work out on my deck in the sun, I can recommend anyone to do the same. This is a world where you can not only view the outer struggles of the poet's life, the inner world is also revealed in creative flourishes I started to look forward to finding throughout the writing:

"The strong wind whirled, bringing dancing flakes in its invisible arms, equally distributing a thin layer of snow to other places of the frozen land. Small spheres of shimmering, crystalline flowers alighted upon the earth from their silvery home above, while the sun slept peacefully below the horizon..."~ pg. 6

~The Rebecca Review

Reviewed by Ellen Hogan for Reader Views (3/06)


This book is about the young life of Shirley Cheng, but really it is the story of two remarkable women, Shirley and her mother Juliet. It tells of the trials, tribulations and obstacles that they had to overcome. Shirley was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis when she was 11 months old. Juliet then started her quest to find treatment for her daughter. Shirley's childhood was spent between America and China, looking for new
medicines and treatments. Several times Juliet had to fight for custody of her daughter when doctors wanted to do things she did not approve of.

The first goal in Shirley's life was to get an education, this did not go smoothly either. Between school administrators that would not listen to them, and aides that were very cruel, Shirley persevered and gained her GED diploma. She was also asked to speak at the graduation, an honor she embraced. Besides the arthritis, Shirley also suffers from several other diseases including heart problems, severe constipation, multiple allergies, asthma and blindness. It is through faith and sheer determination that Shirley has been successful.

What will Shirley accomplish in the rest of her life? She has proven that she can do anything she puts her mind to. The love and joy that mother and daughter derive from each other is a precious thing to behold.

This is a complex story written in an easy to read, conversational fashion that is disarming, yet sometimes astounding in its micro-details (ie., telephone conversations you get word-for-word); Shirley Cheng seems to have the memory of a titan. Nevertheless, at times you feel some information is missing--must be missing, because why else the poor treatment by one person after another, one agency after another, one doctor after another, one medical aide after another? But then it hits you--these people, these agencies, these medical "professionals" are really, in many cases, THAT awful! The truth is that American medicine, American government schools and American government agencies all too often think they are GOD. But they're not.

In fact, this book poignantly shows how the enormity of the misuse of power, such as trying to take an ill and hurting child away from its primary source of love and security--its mother--in the name of doing what's "best" for that child, is downright horrifying. And rightly so. The medical establishment is one of the biggest offenders in Shirley's life, and we can probably all relate. (No one is saying, incidentally, that there aren't good people to be found in these arenas of public service, and thankfully, Shirley and her mom find some good people, too.)

If nothing else, Shirley's story is triumphant in that her mother rejects what she knows to be wrong for her child, fights the nightmarish resistance of said "establishment" and wins in the end. But the book is also more than that; it is the tale of a sensitive, intelligent, and observant girl who happens to be painfully disabled; she suffers enormously but has the extraordinary gift of a mother who is sold out for her well-being, hook, line and sinker.

Did the mother make mistakes? Of course. She trusted the wrong people, particularly a relative who was no less than criminal, it seems to me, in her actions. But Juliet Cheng's gift of love to her daughter is something that many able-bodied people never get. She is the epitome of the selfless mother/caretaker extraordinaire, shining the light on the lives of quiet, exhausting devotion that mothers like her live daily.

Overall, the author does an amazing job of keeping the reader's interest; I think the book could be shorter, but I honestly cannot say it was ever boring. When you finish the book you will feel an affinity to this Shirley Cheng and her mother, Juliet. You will admire them both, and hopefully, thank the Lord that your "trials and tribulations" have not been as devastating. If you are interested in a story of hardship and happiness, of personal triumph against horrendous disadvantages, of the experience of being female, Chinese, disabled and blind and yet achieving your dreams in an adopted country--then read this book. The level of success that Shirley achieves is remarkable and inspiring--no less than her achievement in writing this book. Her work and courage alone get five stars in my book.

Shirley Cheng is a talented and bright-hearted young woman who is by no means finished achieving. I look forward to her next accomplishments!

Linore R. Burkard
www.LinoreRoseBurkard.com
Inspirational Romance for Today's Woman of Faith

I haven't finished the book yet, but I have found it very helpful. I have 3 children with ADHD and I thought that I knew quite a bit about it already. This book is very helpful to parents for a variety of reasons. First of all, the medication over view is great and guidelines for giving the medications is very helpful. Secondly, it reminds us of what it is like for our children to live with this difference and how it effects every part of their daily lives and our lives as well.

This is a great resource for parents of teens with ADD/ADHD. It explains the disorder in great detail, including the different types of attention deficits. There are many ideas for dealing with both the teen and the school. If you feel like you don't know what to do next to help your child, read this book. You will be armed with knowledge and ideas to move forward through the school years.
The only "down" I can give this book is that it is a bit repetitive. Many topics are covered in multiple sections of the book. Overall, a definate must have resource for parents of teens with ADD/ADHD.

This is the best overall informative book on ADD and ADHD I've read. I wish I had purchased as soon as it was published! It is like the bible on ADD and ADHD. From the families perspective to listing every available medication (with the Pro's and Con's), it answered our question's completely. I highly recommend it!!

This book packs in alot of information. I have a teenage daughter with add and found I just had too many questions about how to handle her new independence and escalating middle school issues. I found all the answers and more. All middle, high school and parents of adhd teens should have this book to further understand their children. This book gives hope to their future.

I have a small collection of ADHD books.....but this text seemed repetitive with not a lot of new information and not presented with much creativity. I returned it. If it is your first book, it's fine.

This is an excellent recounting of the events of a life, but it is largely unemotional. The horrors of the primary school are not fully documented, leaving the reader with the impression that it must not have been all THAT bad - it was horrific, of course, but we don't see enough examples to really feel sympathy. Additionally, we never learn many personal things about the author, such as how she feels about her deafness (although this probably results from her stunted emotional growth) and why she felt compelled to write the book.

It is a good book, however, and if it were not so difficult to track down I would recommend it to anyone interested in the subject matter. But because of the controversy surrounding its first printing, "I Was #87" is expensive and hard to find. Upon finally obtaining it, some readers may feel as I did - that the effort was greater than the book warranted.

I am not a fan of reading books, but the title of this book caught my attention. I could not put this book down once I started reading it and finished it over a weekend. I recommended this book to my entire family and I hope everyone gets a chance to read it. I was so moved on how Anne survived through all of the horrible obstactles she faced. It is sad to think that all of her "supposeable friends" during that time in her life took advantage of her the way they did when she needed them the most. I feel like I know her and forever I will think of Anne. I wish her the best and I hope the future for her is the most rewarding, for she has earned it!!

I was so touched when I read Anne's book. She went through so much and I cannot tell you how brave I think she is. I wish her all the best. Thank-you Anne. Carole

I was #87 is a true story, neither my daughter or I could put this book down until we finished it. It is about a little girl who was severely abused and also diagnosed as being retarded when she was actually deaf and of above average intelligence. The determination and survival of this child is so riviting and also inspiring at the same time. It makes you thankful for what we do have in this life. You will realize that the day to day things we might think of as obstacles or problems are so trivial. I would reccomend this book to everyone. There is a limied supply since it is out of print but it is available through the library also.

Anne Bolander suffered from congenital hearing loss which her paternal grandmother attributed to prenatal exposure to a certain medication. Anne and her twin brother, Peter, born in 1954 become part of a large family. Sadly, their mother dies in 1957 and Anne has trouble navigating in the hearing world. Unable to remain in preschool because of her hyperactive behavior and inability to hear directions, her father, stepmother and paternal grandparents are ill-equipped to meet her needs.

Misdiagnosed as retarded in October 1959 at Johns Hopkins, Anne then serves a five-year sentence at the Stoutamyre School. The "school" sounds like a medieval torture chamber; the children are not educated in academics nor taught self-care. Margie Stoutamyre, the school's director made, in the words of Anne's co-author, Adair N. Renning, Nurse Wretched Ratched of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" infamy look like Mary Poppins. Dickensian workhouses pale in comparison to this place.

Children were beaten by Margie at the drop of a hat; if one so much as looked at someone else being beaten, they, too received a beating. Belts, whips and a board with holes were used; children could only use the bathroom three times a day and even then Margie allotted them a certain amount of time which she monitored with a stopwatch. Illnesses did not exempt one from beatings. In one memorable passage, Anne was forced to eat another child's vomit simply because she saw him vomit at the table.

In addition to the beatings, children were locked in the root cellar for days; kept in a windowless seclusion room and even strapped to a chair. Anne Bolander literally survived in hell. Mealtimes were rigid affairs where one had to eat in a certain way and keep a straight spine at all times. Failure to do so resulted in beatings. Anne describes how some children were literally beaten to death and she even recounts how she saw a boy being pounded to death simply because he had diarrhea.

Her grandmother was the only person who was kind to her. In 1964 she takes Anne out of Stoutamyre for a few days to enjoy the World's Fair. By 1965 Anne's father and stepmother have her discharged. Anne, in her words has exchanged one Margie for another. Pat, her stepmother treated her in the same brutal and erratic fashion that Margie did. The only girl in a houseful of brothers, Anne concluded that being male was the way to survive and that "love" meant "being beaten" because she had been told by Pat how much Margie "loved" her.

The one bright spot in her life during that period was the 1965-1966 school year she spent at St. Mary's. Kind, loving nuns nurtured her and helped heal much of the harm that had been inflicted upon her. Sadly, she is forced to leave the place because her father has been transferred to another state.

Anne's secondary and adult years are marked by social unawareness. She is easily mislead by those who are not well meaning and this pattern of gullible trusting follows her into the workplace. She thinks the nickname "Retard" is an honor because she wanted a nickname "like the other kids," not realizing the stigma attached. She steals gifts so as to gain popularity and is willing to do anything to have people like her. While understandable, the results are no less devastating.

Anne graduates from high school in 1974 at the age of 20. She spends a summer in a hospital training program at a college in N.Y., but finds that the adjustment was more than she was then able to make. Anne exceeds her father's low expectations of her by not only graduating, but buying her own car and paying for the insurance herself after taking driving lessons. She spends the next number of years living in her own mobile home and with friends, some of whom use her.

Luckily, Anne meets angels, such as Ruth and Glenn, who help her navigate tricky social terrain. Ruth encourages her to fix herself up; Glenn tells her what certain obscenities mean so she will no longer fall prey to the rude and mean spirited jokes her co-workers play. In time, Anne learns these things.

Setbacks occur, such as when Anne is raped by her father in 1979. She spends December of 1980 in a hospital, sorting out the problems in her life, starting with Stoutamyre. By the time she is released in early 1981, Anne is ready to put her life together. She moves out of one bad household where she was being monetarily exploited; becomes active in the deaf community and reconnects with her youngest brother. In March of 1984, her father remarries and Anne has by then realized that with the exception of her youngest brother, she has to cut her losses where her family is concerned. The final blow was when her father and stepmother argued over her brother's surgery when her father said he was not going to spend any money on his son as he was no longer a child.

A hard, intense and much needed book, Anne is the voice of inspiration. She has survived in hell and, like the phoenix risen up out of the ashes. This book makes me think of the passage from Scripture and related song, "On Eagles' Wings."

Ben Polis set out to write a book that would help parents understand their ADHD children. In that regard, I feel he succeeded admirably. It certainly provides a lot of insight into the mind of kid who just can't control himself.

I would absolutely recomment this book to parents who have a child that has, or may have, ADD/ADHD. I would also consider it a must-read for teachers and students aspiring to be teachers. The classroom is a really rough place for kids with ADD and there are too many teachers who'd rather ignore a trouble-maker than actually put the effort into helping them. I think this book might give them what they need to be more compassionate with children who need the attention.

There are a lot of good ideas in this book for staving off temper-tantrums and explaining to the child how he is misbehaving.

I addition to the advice and insight, it's a really touching story. You really get a sense of the sadness and confusion Ben went through, as well as the horror his parents felt on more than one occasion.

The book would probably be great for someone in their teens or older who is living with ADD and wants to feel that they are not alone, or could benefit from his coping strategies.

I do have a couple criticisms. First, it should be noted that while Ben grew up with ADHD, he is not an expert on the subject. His advice comes from personal experience, not research. His techniques, while probably very helpful, will not apply in all cases. There are also times in the book where he simply does not undertand what it is that he's talking about. He tries to talk about stuff that is beyond his own experience, and in a few cases he is not correct, or, for example, displays that he doesn't actually know what the word "symptom" means. The average person will probably not catch these mistakes, but they are there, and it should be remembered that he is not an expert.

The other problem I had was that it was very male-centric. When giving advice he always refers to "your son". The book probably has little to offer parent of daughters with ADHD unless the daughter follows a pattern of symptoms more typical of a boy.

Overall, the book really is excellent. It's a good read and I expect very helpful. But keep in mind, especially if you are a parent of a child with ADHD, that he not an authority.

This book is ok, but I found it hard to focus on Ben's story and experiences. I felt like I had ADHD (which I don't anymore)- with his disjointed story line and how it skips around, like reading a story written by a parrot on crystal meth. It was good though, and he is a pretty good author - I hardly found any spelling mistakes and it was over 100 pages.

All round good book helpful for those seeking support through all of the issues ADHD sufferers experience. Good Work Ben!

A long awaited book.My son is the same age as Ben and it's taken a long time for this condition to be recognised. At last a book that helps parents with school age children. A book that made me laugh and cry yet reassured me as a parent I'm not the only one going through this. I take my hat off to Ben for being able to write such a book to help others. Once I started reading I could not stop, in fact stayed up until 4.00am to read it all. A brilliant book with really good advice.

I was at school with Ben Polis. He was a very naughty boy. We had lots of naughty boys at our school. When boys were naughty, us good boys would put them in a big blue junk jinker. Ben spent alot of time in the junk jinker. He behaved himself inside the junk jinker. That's how we triumphed over ADHD.

I really thought that this book is brilliant. My younger sister Isabelle, she is 9, has A.D.H.D and I never quite understood her. I have at many times told her that she was stupid and that I wished she was never born. She has put a large burden on our family in many ways, yet when I read this book it opended my eyes. It has taught me how to deal with Isabelle in a way that works best for her. I have tried to read books written by doctors and experts on the subject but those made me feel like she was even more "less normal" than I thought, and that I would never understand her. I am so thankful for this book and the opportunities it has opened up for Isabelle and me. I can finally see one of her crazy fits for what it really is, an expression of love.

This is a great book for parents of childen just diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome. Very informative and gave me the tools I needed!

This book has lots of good info for people struggling to find answers about TS. Not much else to say.

I initially checked out this book from the library to learn more about the disability we suspected our son has. Because I was so impressed with it, I bought the book. It is an excellent source of information on TS (Tourette Syndrome), along with other related conditions, both for parents of children who have been diagnosed with TS or parents who simply suspect their child may have TS. She educates parents on how to go about getting an accurate and comprehensive evaluation for their child, information on dealing with the challenges of TS, and being an advocate for the child with TS.

This book is an excellent resource for parents whose child has Tourette's. It explains the disease, treatment, interventions, resources, and so forth. Excellent and easy to read. Great resource also for those with ADHD, especially since ADHD and Tourette Syndrome sometimes go hand in hand. I highly recommend it both as a grandparent of a child with both Tourette's and ADHD, and as a health professional!

My son has Tourettes. This was the first book that I bought when he was diagnosed and I found it to be invaluable. It is a great resource for the parents of the newly diagnosed or even those who have been dealing with it for some time. The book lets you know what to expect and how to cope. A must have for anyone dealing with a special needs child with this disorder.

If you are contemplating a career in special education or have a child or friend with learning disabilities I highly recommend you read this book. You have first hand accounts of what it is like dealing with the day to day difficulties, frustrations and emotions faced by individuals with various types of disabilities. These are their own personal stories told with their unique insight. Very good read.

This book was recommended by an instructor for a class this semester. What a book! The editors present a series of essays from individuals who have various learning disabilities and how they have approached a hostile world, and how they have handled their journey. If you want to know how a child feels this is the book to read. You will walk away with a different viewpoint of people who are differently abled.

This seller delivered exactly what they promised: a great quality book that arrived quickly.

I didn't even need it by the time I received it. It took that long...

Learning Disabilities and Life Stories is a landmark work. It is one of the few books that provides the 'insider's' perspective on the complex, controversial problem of learning disabilities. Thirteen college students vividly recount how LD affected their academic, social and emotional lives, and how they overcame these problems. Some of the students also suffered from ADHD, emotional problems (i.e. anxiety), and social problems (i.e. stigma). Although these students are probably not representative of the entire population of LD students, their stories make a wonderful contribution to the understanding of LD.

This is a must-read book for educators, parents, and LD students. It is especially helpful for LD students. They will likely find a particular author that they relate to. The 13 authors have a variety of life experiences, learning problems (i.e. dyslexia, auditory processing difficulties, etc.), and perspectives on LD. Each story is inspirational in its own way. As each author attended college, the book is especially suited to inspired other LD students to consider pursuing higher education.

Also read: The Pretenders by Barbara Guyer. She is a teacher who vividly describes the lives of adults with LD.

New Ways of Looking at Learning Disabilities is an excellent book for educators.

I guess Kathy Hoopmann quite specifically tells you the following characteristics of Asperger syndrome(AS):
1. People with AS easily get confused when things change without notice.
2. They take everything literally, but don't understand the implications.
3. They are really into their own interests, especially net surfing and playing alone.
4. They aren't good enough to understand social cues, other people's feelings, unwritten rules, and non-verbal communication.
5. They may hurt others even unless they intend to.

This story is not only for Aspies(People with AS) but parents, teachers, friends, bosses,and colleagues who often deal with Aspies. As long as NT(=neuro-typical) people understand the 5 characteristics above, they will find it easier to interact with Aspies.
Particularly, No.5 is extremely important for educating and parenting AS kids. Ben gave Zeke what his family members needed because Ben thought Zeke wanted them. "How would you feel if we gave your computer away to a man we just met because he said he wanted one?" - I felt Sue hit the nail right on the head! This is exactly what you must keep in mind. Ben certainly didn't mean to upset their family and wanted to please Zeke, but he got into trouble after his family found it. So I bet the story tells us how to learn from mistakes and stop making the same mistakes again.
Prof. Tony Attwood said in the interview with Dr. Michelle Garnett , "When you deal with the people with Asperger's syndrome, it's a treasure." This book reminded me of the interview, which encouraged me to deepen my understanding on both the pros and cons of AS. Therefore, as an adult Aspie, please don't alienate Aspies just because they are different from other people! And I would like you to know that they have talents to improve their potentials especially like No.3.
Finally, don't label the story 'childish' just because it's for AS kids!

I didn't much care for the "way out" concept of an alien adventure, but this book wasn't written for me. It was written for an 8-year-old child whose hopes and alien dreams haven't been squashed by the aging process of time and daily drudgery. Everybody doesn't like something, but my son loved meeting his friends Ben and Andy again in Of Mice and Aliens. He is new to his condition, and he is very excited to finally "meet" a character whose thoughts he understands and who would very likely understand my son's thoughts.

Hey, Kathy, how about this: Ben and Andy go on a beach vacation and end up having a pirate adventure next! LOL! Just trying to help you get the ball rolling for your next book; we just finished Lisa and the Lacemaker today, and my son is very impatient for the next installment!

P.S.
Lisa and the Lacemaker is the first book that we have ever read that has had my son literally SQUEALING with delight and anticipation for the next chapter. It's kind of funny (in a healthy respectful fun way) to see an Aspie flailing his hands over an Aspie book!

That's what you really need to be to decide to publish books of this low caliber. I know it's a niche market so there aren't that many authors writing for AI kids. Still, they should be more interesting than this. My son thought it was boring and completely missed the AI aspect. Nice try, but too simplistic.

My 8 year old son has AS. As with the other books by Kathy Hoopmann, the family is embracing Asperger as just being a unique genius situation, that is mostly enviable, as opposed to tabood. My son attributes his smarts and intellect to AS, he does not consider the "negative" behavior important. Which is ok, because you need to build to positive self esteem in those kids.

I highly recommend these books...

This book was a really good book about a boy with Asperger's and an Asperger's adventure. I am a 10 year old boy with Asperger's and this was a great book with a great title. It was kind of an adventure and a mystery. I think parents with kids with Asperger's should read these 2 books, because they help explain how a kid with Asperger's thinks.