Can You See Me? Autism in Books

Not since the phenomenon that was The Curious Tale of the Dog in The Night Time by Mark Haddon has a book grabbed me in quite the same way.

Can you see me? by Libby Scott and Rebecca Westcott tells the story about an autistic girl who is just starting secondary school, and how she fits, and doesn’t fit in with her family, school friends, and teachers.

Nicky Chapman has explained to me that the majority of autism research is carried out on males who display autistic traits more obviously than females, so many girls and women have slipped under the net. Which is in part due to their incredible talent of masking and blending in, so females get coined as lazy, daydreamers, people pleasers, gullible, and easily manipulated – Charming!

Some professionals have even gone as far as saying that females cannot be autistic, which is ludicrous, and untrue. As with many things in life males and females deal with the situation/condition differently, and both are equally valid. If you or a young girl in your life is on the spectrum let her know that she genuinely isn’t alone,

I highly recommend this book for people with autistic children, their siblings, friends and teachers, and of course the children themselves…

Here are two interviews with the authors in question – be inspired!

Mark Haddon BBC Interview

Libby Scott BBC Interview