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Different Brains, Brilliant Stories: Celebrating Neurodivergency
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items The books I'm reviewing this month are all about neurodivergent characters, and honestly, these are some of the most beautifully strange, heartbreakingly funny, and deeply humane books I’ve ever read. The list has nine books with nine brilliant persp...
Sections
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Memoirs of An Imaginary Friend by Matthew Dicks
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
The Maid by Nita Prose
Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green
The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon
Memoirs of An Imaginary Friend by Matthew Dicks
What if your imaginary friend could see everything — but couldn't save you? Budo has been Max's constant companion since the day Max imagined him into existence. But Budo knows something terrifying: the day Max no longer needs him is the day Budo dis...
Ever wondered what loyalty looks like through the eyes of an imaginary friend? Max has autism; Budo is the friend he invented who just… never left. Their bond turns into a rescue mission, and yes, you’ll cry (in that good, cathartic way that leaves y...
Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend Book Review
Similar to Memoirs of An Imaginary Friend
After a freak accident and a very unusual childhood, Alex—an awkward, hyper-rational teen—ends up on a road trip with an elderly man and an urn of ashes. It’s quirky, voicey, and deeply humane, with a neurodivergent-feeling protagonist trying to make...
After a freak accident and a very unusual childhood, Alex—an awkward, hyper-rational teen—ends up on a road trip with an elderly man and an urn of ashes. It’s quirky, voicey, and deeply humane, with a neurodivergent-feeling protagonist trying to make...
The Universe Versus Alex Woods
Similar to Memoirs of An Imaginary Friend
When a reclusive novelist’s young son Frank—brilliant, theatrical, and socially unusual—meets the assistant sent to help manage his life, both of them are forced out of their comfort zones. The story leans into found family, caretaking, and the trick...
When a reclusive novelist’s young son Frank—brilliant, theatrical, and socially unusual—meets the assistant sent to help manage his life, both of them are forced out of their comfort zones. The story leans into found family, caretaking, and the trick...
Be Frank With Me: A Novel
Similar to Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend
Two schoolboys believe extra seconds have been added to the year, and an ordinary drive on a foggy day leads to a split-second decision that reshapes a family. Through that lens, the novel explores anxiety, difference, and the long tail of childhood ...
Two schoolboys believe extra seconds have been added to the year, and an ordinary drive on a foggy day leads to a split-second decision that reshapes a family. Through that lens, the novel explores anxiety, difference, and the long tail of childhood ...
Perfect
Similar to Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend
n 1980s New York, a shy, artistic girl grieving her beloved uncle discovers a secret friendship he kept, and the two mourners form a fragile new bond. It’s a tender, coming-of-age story about loss, loneliness, and the fierce, invisible ties that shap...
n 1980s New York, a shy, artistic girl grieving her beloved uncle discovers a secret friendship he kept, and the two mourners form a fragile new bond. It’s a tender, coming-of-age story about loss, loneliness, and the fierce, invisible ties that shap...
Tell the Wolves I'm Home: A Novel
Similar to Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend
Told through the eyes of Christopher, a fifteen-year-old boy on the autism spectrum, this novel follows his obsessive investigation into a neighborhood dog’s death as he navigates sensory overload, strict routines, and a world that doesn’t quite make...
Told through the eyes of Christopher, a fifteen-year-old boy on the autism spectrum, this novel follows his obsessive investigation into a neighborhood dog’s death as he navigates sensory overload, strict routines, and a world that doesn’t quite make...
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Similar to Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend
Kiara, an eighth grader with Asperger’s syndrome, struggles to make friends in the offline world and instead leans heavily on the X-Men universe and her online persona “Rogue” as a kind of imagined alter ego and confidante. Her rich inner world and r...
Kiara, an eighth grader with Asperger’s syndrome, struggles to make friends in the offline world and instead leans heavily on the X-Men universe and her online persona “Rogue” as a kind of imagined alter ego and confidante. Her rich inner world and r...
Rogue
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
Eleanor is not fine—and that’s why she’s unforgettable. Her rigid routines, her painfully awkward social encounters, and her slow unfurling into self-acceptance make the novel a modern classic of neurodivergent representation. If loneliness could tal...
Eleanor is not fine—and that’s why she’s unforgettable. Her rigid routines, her painfully awkward social encounters, and her slow unfurling into self-acceptance make the novel a modern classic of neurodivergent representation. If loneliness could tal...
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine Book Review: Plot Summary, Themes, and Similar Reads
This book is similar to Eleanor Oliphant
A grumpy, isolated widower with strict routines finds his life repeatedly interrupted by noisy new neighbors, slowly pulling him into a messy, unexpected community that challenges his determination to stay alone.
A grumpy, isolated widower with strict routines finds his life repeatedly interrupted by noisy new neighbors, slowly pulling him into a messy, unexpected community that challenges his determination to stay alone.
A Man Called Ove: A Novel
This book is similar to Eleanor Oliphant
Don Tillman, a brilliant but socially awkward genetics professor, creates a scientifically optimized questionnaire to find the perfect wife, only to have his plans upended by a spontaneous, rule-breaking woman who doesn’t fit any of his boxes.
Don Tillman, a brilliant but socially awkward genetics professor, creates a scientifically optimized questionnaire to find the perfect wife, only to have his plans upended by a spontaneous, rule-breaking woman who doesn’t fit any of his boxes.
The Rosie Project: A Novel
This book is similar to Eleanor Oliphant
Keiko, a 36-year-old woman who has spent most of her adult life working at a Tokyo convenience store, clings to the comfort of store rules and scripts as she struggles to understand—and resist—society’s expectations that she “grow up” and fit in.
Keiko, a 36-year-old woman who has spent most of her adult life working at a Tokyo convenience store, clings to the comfort of store rules and scripts as she struggles to understand—and resist—society’s expectations that she “grow up” and fit in.
Convenience Store Woman
This book is similar to Eleanor Oliphant
Andrew’s job is to find the next of kin for people who die alone, but he’s secretly living a lie about his own home life, and a new coworker starts to unravel the carefully constructed story he’s used to keep real intimacy at bay.
Andrew’s job is to find the next of kin for people who die alone, but he’s secretly living a lie about his own home life, and a new coworker starts to unravel the carefully constructed story he’s used to keep real intimacy at bay.
How Not to Die Alone
This book is similar to Eleanor Oliphant
After aging out of the foster system, Victoria uses her deep knowledge of flower symbolism to communicate emotions she can’t easily express, slowly building a fragile life and tentative relationships while haunted by a complicated past.
After aging out of the foster system, Victoria uses her deep knowledge of flower symbolism to communicate emotions she can’t easily express, slowly building a fragile life and tentative relationships while haunted by a complicated past.
The Language of Flowers: A Novel
This book is similar to Eleanor Oliphant
Meredith hasn’t left her Glasgow home in over three years, yet insists she’s doing just fine with her routines, online connections, and puzzles—until new friendships and old memories begin to push against the walls she’s built.
Meredith hasn’t left her Glasgow home in over three years, yet insists she’s doing just fine with her routines, online connections, and puzzles—until new friendships and old memories begin to push against the walls she’s built.
Meredith, Alone
This book is similar to Eleanor Oliphant
Eighty-four-year-old Florence, living in a care home and worried about losing her independence, becomes convinced that a figure from her past has resurfaced, and with the help of her friends, she starts piecing together what’s real and what’s memory.
Eighty-four-year-old Florence, living in a care home and worried about losing her independence, becomes convinced that a figure from her past has resurfaced, and with the help of her friends, she starts piecing together what’s real and what’s memory.
Three Things About Elsie: A Novel
This book is similar to Eleanor Oliphant
Clover, a death doula who’s more comfortable at the bedside of the dying than among the living, starts to realize that her carefully contained life might be its own form of hiding, and that honoring her clients’ regrets may require facing her own.
Clover, a death doula who’s more comfortable at the bedside of the dying than among the living, starts to realize that her carefully contained life might be its own form of hiding, and that honoring her clients’ regrets may require facing her own.
The Collected Regrets of Clover: A Novel
The Maid by Nita Prose
Meet Molly Gray, a hotel maid whose meticulous routines and social misunderstandings make her both lovable and unpredictable. She sees everything—the hidden messes, the misplaced glances—and when a guest turns up dead, her precise attention to detail...
Meet Molly Gray, a hotel maid whose meticulous routines and social misunderstandings make her both lovable and unpredictable. She sees everything—the hidden messes, the misplaced glances—and when a guest turns up dead, her precise attention to detail...
The Maid by Nita Prose | Neurodiversity Month Book Review – Readers With Wrinkles
If you loved The Maid, you'll love this book!
A sharp-tongued, lonely tea-shop owner in San Francisco finds a dead body in her shop and decides she can do a better job than the police at solving the crime. This blends humor, found family, and a warm, quirky amateur sleuth much like Molly.
A sharp-tongued, lonely tea-shop owner in San Francisco finds a dead body in her shop and decides she can do a better job than the police at solving the crime. This blends humor, found family, and a warm, quirky amateur sleuth much like Molly.
Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers
If you loved The Maid you will love this book!
In a posh retirement village, four elderly residents meet weekly to look into cold cases and suddenly find themselves investigating a real murder. The tone is witty and gentle, with an ensemble of endearing oddballs.
In a posh retirement village, four elderly residents meet weekly to look into cold cases and suddenly find themselves investigating a real murder. The tone is witty and gentle, with an ensemble of endearing oddballs.
The Thursday Murder Club: A Novel
If you loved The Maid, you will also enjoy this book!
A socially awkward film editor is hired to work on a true-crime movie on a remote island and discovers the original case may not be solved at all. The heroine’s outsider status and dry humor mirror Molly’s offbeat perspective on those around her.
A socially awkward film editor is hired to work on a true-crime movie on a remote island and discovers the original case may not be solved at all. The heroine’s outsider status and dry humor mirror Molly’s offbeat perspective on those around her.
Pretty as a Picture: A Novel
If you loved The Maid, you will enjoy this one!
A woman witnesses her teenage son stab a stranger, then begins waking up earlier and earlier in time, trying to stop the crime before it happens. While more high-concept than cozy, it shares the propulsive puzzle-box quality and emotional core.
A woman witnesses her teenage son stab a stranger, then begins waking up earlier and earlier in time, trying to stop the crime before it happens. While more high-concept than cozy, it shares the propulsive puzzle-box quality and emotional core.
Wrong Place Wrong Time: A Novel
If you enjoyed The Maid, you will also enjoy this one!
A woman travels to a small English village after her great-aunt is murdered, using old diary entries and village secrets to unravel a decades-old disappearance. Dual timelines, family mysteries, and a slightly whimsical tone will appeal to readers wh...
A woman travels to a small English village after her great-aunt is murdered, using old diary entries and village secrets to unravel a decades-old disappearance. Dual timelines, family mysteries, and a slightly whimsical tone will appeal to readers wh...
How to Solve Your Own Murder: A Novel
If you enjoyed The Maid, you might also like this one!
A seventy-something crossword setter in a sleepy riverside town becomes convinced a death was murder and recruits two very different women to investigate. It offers eccentric characters, gentle humor, and an amateur team of sleuths.
A seventy-something crossword setter in a sleepy riverside town becomes convinced a death was murder and recruits two very different women to investigate. It offers eccentric characters, gentle humor, and an amateur team of sleuths.
The Marlow Murder Club
If you enjoyed The Maid, you will most likely love this one!
In their small Southern town, a mild-mannered librarian and his cat Diesel investigate the murder of a bestselling author. This is classic cozy territory: low gore, character-driven, and focused on community dynamics more than gritty crime.
In their small Southern town, a mild-mannered librarian and his cat Diesel investigate the murder of a bestselling author. This is classic cozy territory: low gore, character-driven, and focused on community dynamics more than gritty crime.
Murder Past Due
If you enjoyed The Maid, you will most likely love this one!
Chief Inspector Gamache investigates a suspicious death in a close-knit Quebec village where everyone knows everyone’s secrets. The mystery is more traditional, but the warm, humane tone and focus on kindness and community resonate with fans of The M...
Chief Inspector Gamache investigates a suspicious death in a close-knit Quebec village where everyone knows everyone’s secrets. The mystery is more traditional, but the warm, humane tone and focus on kindness and community resonate with fans of The M...
Still Life: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel
Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent
Sally is… well, strange. The novel opens with Sally following her father’s unusual instructions for his death, and trust me—once you start, you cannot look away. Sally’s blunt honesty and puzzling sense of morality reveal the weight of trauma and the...
Sally is… well, strange. The novel opens with Sally following her father’s unusual instructions for his death, and trust me—once you start, you cannot look away. Sally’s blunt honesty and puzzling sense of morality reveal the weight of trauma and the...you.It’s darkly funny, deeply disturbing, and oddly tender. Nugent gives us a character who’s not here to perform neurodivergence for your sympathy—she simply is.
Strange Sally Diamond Book Review | Celebrating Neurodiversity
If you enjoyed Strange Sally Diamond, you'll love this book.
When a podcaster befriends a woman who shares her birthday, their “accidental” meeting spirals into an unsettling entanglement as the woman’s past and true motives slowly, creepily come into focus.
When a podcaster befriends a woman who shares her birthday, their “accidental” meeting spirals into an unsettling entanglement as the woman’s past and true motives slowly, creepily come into focus.
None of This Is True: A Novel
If you enjoyed Strange Sally Diamond, you'll love this book.
A “perfect” Dublin family’s carefully curated life begins to rot from the inside after a murder, with the story peeling back obsession, control, and class in Nugent’s signature slow-burn, multi-POV style.
A “perfect” Dublin family’s carefully curated life begins to rot from the inside after a murder, with the story peeling back obsession, control, and class in Nugent’s signature slow-burn, multi-POV style.
Lying in Wait: A Novel
If you enjoyed Strange Sally Diamond, you'll love this book.
Molly, a hotel maid who takes rules and routines very literally, discovers a guest dead in his bed and finds herself at the center of a murder investigation she’s uniquely ill-equipped—but oddly suited—to navigate.
Molly, a hotel maid who takes rules and routines very literally, discovers a guest dead in his bed and finds herself at the center of a murder investigation she’s uniquely ill-equipped—but oddly suited—to navigate.
The Maid
If you enjoyed Strange Sally Diamond, you'll love this book.
Twin sisters Fern and Rose share a tightly wound bond built on secrets; when Fern decides to “repay” Rose for her sacrifices, long-buried truths about their childhood and family loyalties begin to unravel.
Twin sisters Fern and Rose share a tightly wound bond built on secrets; when Fern decides to “repay” Rose for her sacrifices, long-buried truths about their childhood and family loyalties begin to unravel.
The Good Sister: A Novel
If you enjoyed Strange Sally Diamond, you'll love this book.
A neurodivergent woman suddenly gains the ability to time travel through her own life, giving her multiple chances to redo awkward or painful moments and forcing her to question what she’d actually change.
A neurodivergent woman suddenly gains the ability to time travel through her own life, giving her multiple chances to redo awkward or painful moments and forcing her to question what she’d actually change.
Cassandra in Reverse
If you enjoyed Strange Sally Diamond, you'll love this book.
A home health aide takes a job in a crumbling cliffside mansion caring for an elderly woman long suspected of murdering her family, only to uncover disturbing secrets hidden in the decaying house and its legacy.
A home health aide takes a job in a crumbling cliffside mansion caring for an elderly woman long suspected of murdering her family, only to uncover disturbing secrets hidden in the decaying house and its legacy.
The Only One Left: A Novel
If you enjoyed Strange Sally Diamond, you'll love this book.
A woman held captive on a remote English farm plans an excruciatingly careful escape, but the arrival of another victim and a pregnancy raise the stakes in this intense, claustrophobic tale of survival.
A woman held captive on a remote English farm plans an excruciatingly careful escape, but the arrival of another victim and a pregnancy raise the stakes in this intense, claustrophobic tale of survival.
The Last Thing to Burn: A Novel
If you enjoyed Strange Sally Diamond, you'll love this book.
In Paris, an apparently ideal nanny slowly becomes indispensable—and then unnervingly unstable—as simmering resentment, loneliness, and obsession build toward a devastating breaking point.
In Paris, an apparently ideal nanny slowly becomes indispensable—and then unnervingly unstable—as simmering resentment, loneliness, and obsession build toward a devastating breaking point.
The Perfect Nanny: A Novel
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green
We all have thoughts that spiral sometimes—but Aza’s spirals have their own gravity. Her obsessive, intrusive thinking captures OCD with raw honesty and poetic intensity. John Green never romanticizes her struggle; instead, he writes it like truth—me...
We all have thoughts that spiral sometimes—but Aza’s spirals have their own gravity. Her obsessive, intrusive thinking captures OCD with raw honesty and poetic intensity. John Green never romanticizes her struggle; instead, he writes it like truth—me...
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green Review | Mental Health, Friendship & Self-Discovery
Here is a book similar to Turtles All the Way Down that you may enjoy.
A gifted teen checks himself into a psychiatric ward after spiraling into depression, and the story follows his darkly funny, painfully honest journey toward stability and self-acceptance
A gifted teen checks himself into a psychiatric ward after spiraling into depression, and the story follows his darkly funny, painfully honest journey toward stability and self-acceptance
It's Kind of a Funny Story
Here is a book similar to Turtles All the Way Down that you may enjoy. Told in fragmented, surreal scenes that mirror the protagonist’s mind, this novel tracks a boy’s experience with severe mental illness, blending a sea voyage metaphor with his rea...
Challenger Deep
Here is a book similar to Turtles All the Way Down that you may enjoy. Two teens—one living with bipolar disorder, the other grieving her sister—form an intense bond while exploring hidden landmarks in Indiana, even as their internal battles push them toward very different futures.
All the Bright Places
Here is a book similar to Turtles All the Way Down that you may enjoy. Through a series of letters, introverted Charlie chronicles his first year of high school, slowly revealing trauma, depression, and the complicated beauty of friendship, first lov...
The Perks of Being a Wallflower: 20th Anniversary Edition with a New Letter from Charlie
Here is a book similar to Turtles All the Way Down that you may enjoy.An anxious, introverted teen secretly runs a wildly popular webcomic, but when her online and offline worlds collide, she’s forced to confront her mental health and what it means t...
Eliza and Her Monsters
Here is a book similar to Turtles All the Way Down that you may enjoy. A girl with OCD hides her diagnosis while navigating her popular friend group, then discovers a hidden poetry club that helps her question who she wants to be and how much of hers...
Every Last Word
Here is a book similar to Turtles All the Way Down that you may enjoy. An agoraphobic teen who hasn’t left his house in years becomes the subject of a well-meaning classmate’s “project,” leading to an unexpected friendship that challenges both of their assumptions about mental illness and recovery.
Highly Illogical Behavior
Here is a book similar to Turtles All the Way Down that you may enjoy. Two teens meet in group therapy for OCD and begin a romance that’s equal parts messy and moving, as each confronts how their compulsions impact boundaries, trust, and what healthy...
OCD Love Story
The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon
Lou is brilliant, methodical, and autistic—and living in a near-future world where science offers to “cure” him. But should he change? Should he want to? This book doesn’t give easy answers. It asks questions that burrow under your skin: what do we l...
Lou is brilliant, methodical, and autistic—and living in a near-future world where science offers to “cure” him. But should he change? Should he want to? This book doesn’t give easy answers. It asks questions that burrow under your skin: what do we l...
The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon Review | Themes, Ending & Analysis
A Speed of Dark read-alike.
A legal drama about Jacob, an autistic teen obsessed with crime scene analysis who’s accused of murder, this novel digs into family dynamics, prejudice, and how the justice system handles neurodivergent people.
A legal drama about Jacob, an autistic teen obsessed with crime scene analysis who’s accused of murder, this novel digs into family dynamics, prejudice, and how the justice system handles neurodivergent people.
House Rules: A Novel
A Speed of Dark read-alike. Told from the perspective of Ginny, an autistic fourteen-year-old in foster care, this story follows her fierce, sometimes misunderstood determination to reconnect with her past and protect someone she loves.
The Truth According to Ginny Moon
A Speed of Dark read-alike. While not explicitly labeled as autistic, Eleanor’s rigid routines, social struggles, and internal logic mirror many neurodivergent traits, and the novel gently unpacks trauma, loneliness, and the slow, hopeful work of con...
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
A Speed of Dark read-alike.
This literary novel centers on Sunday, an autistic single mother whose life is upended by manipulative new neighbors, exploring ableism, vulnerability, and the quiet strength of a woman the world underestimates.
This literary novel centers on Sunday, an autistic single mother whose life is upended by manipulative new neighbors, exploring ableism, vulnerability, and the quiet strength of a woman the world underestimates.
All the Little Bird-Hearts
A Speed of Dark read-alike.
A luminous blend of sci-fi and fantasy, this book follows a cursed violin teacher, a runaway trans girl, and a starship captain running a donut shop, offering found family, compassion, and a very human emotional core under the speculative setup.
A luminous blend of sci-fi and fantasy, this book follows a cursed violin teacher, a runaway trans girl, and a starship captain running a donut shop, offering found family, compassion, and a very human emotional core under the speculative setup.
Light From Uncommon Stars
A Speed of Dark read-alike.
A slow, tender YA sci-fi about a tough girl, the daughter of an astronaut, and the quiet relationship that grows between them as they listen for signals from space, this one leans hard into character growth, grief, and chosen family.
A slow, tender YA sci-fi about a tough girl, the daughter of an astronaut, and the quiet relationship that grows between them as they listen for signals from space, this one leans hard into character growth, grief, and chosen family.
The Weight of the Stars
A Speed of Dark read-alike.
If you want something more traditionally “sci-fi” but still introspective, this novel follows an ambassador in a vast interstellar empire, blending political intrigue with thoughtful questions about identity, language, and what makes us who we are.
If you want something more traditionally “sci-fi” but still introspective, this novel follows an ambassador in a vast interstellar empire, blending political intrigue with thoughtful questions about identity, language, and what makes us who we are.
A Memory Called Empire
A Speed of Dark read-alike.
Cozy, character-first space opera where a mismatched ship’s crew navigates the galaxy and each other, this story is all about empathy, culture, neurodiversity, and found family rather than flashy tech or nonstop action.
Cozy, character-first space opera where a mismatched ship’s crew navigates the galaxy and each other, this story is all about empathy, culture, neurodiversity, and found family rather than flashy tech or nonstop action.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer
Nine-year-old Oskar is grieving his father, lost in the 9/11 attacks. He’s smart, anxious, and endlessly curious—the kind of kid who turns his pain into puzzles, missions, and maps. Foer’s fragmented storytelling mirrors Oskar’s mind perfectly: chaot...
Nine-year-old Oskar is grieving his father, lost in the 9/11 attacks. He’s smart, anxious, and endlessly curious—the kind of kid who turns his pain into puzzles, missions, and maps. Foer’s fragmented storytelling mirrors Oskar’s mind perfectly: chaot...
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close Book Review – Emotional, Inventive, and Unforgettable
Similar to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.
Told from the perspective of Christopher, a fifteen-year-old boy who sees the world through a very literal, logical lens, this novel follows his investigation into the “murder” of a neighbor’s dog, which slowly unravels deeper family secrets and emot...
Told from the perspective of Christopher, a fifteen-year-old boy who sees the world through a very literal, logical lens, this novel follows his investigation into the “murder” of a neighbor’s dog, which slowly unravels deeper family secrets and emot...
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Similar to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. Narrated by five-year-old Jack, who has spent his entire life in a single room with his mother, this story slowly reveals the horrifying reality of their situation and the staggering courage it takes to...
Room
Similar to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. After his mother becomes seriously ill, thirteen-year-old Conor is visited at night by a towering, ancient monster who demands the truth from him in three stories. This one mixes grief, myth, and illust...
A Monster Calls: Inspired by an idea from Siobhan Dowd
Similar to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. This novel braids together the lives of an elderly man in New York and a teenage girl trying to understand her late father, all orbiting around a mysterious old book that may connect them. It’s full of ...Bookshop.org
The History of Love
Similar to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. Foer’s debut follows a young American man (also named Jonathan Safran Foer) who travels to Ukraine to find the woman who saved his grandfather during the Holocaust, accompanied by an eccentric translato...
Everything Is Illuminated: A Novel
Similar to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. After his wife dies in a mysterious fall from a tree, a grieving husband becomes obsessed with teaching their dog to talk, convinced the animal is the only witness to what really happened. It’s strange,...
The Dogs of Babel
Similar to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. This novel follows two immigrant children in Brooklyn, an aspiring magician and the girl who becomes his assistant, whose lives are separated and then unexpectedly cross again as teens. It’s a story abo...
Vaclav & Lena
Similar to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. Told by ten-year-old Elvis, who is trying to understand her mother’s sudden death while her family spins out in grief, this novel manages to be both whimsical and gut-punchy at once. Think quirky kid na...
Rabbit Cake
Thinking in Pictures by Temple Grandin
If fiction opens windows, memoirs fling open the door. Temple Grandin changed how the world understands autism—especially how the autistic mind processes emotion, empathy, and visual thinking. Her insights combine science and soul. Reading this feels...
If fiction opens windows, memoirs fling open the door. Temple Grandin changed how the world understands autism—especially how the autistic mind processes emotion, empathy, and visual thinking. Her insights combine science and soul. Reading this feels...
Thinking in Pictures Book Review – Temple Grandin on Autism, Visual Thinking, and Neurodiversity
Similar to Thinking in Pictures.
Written by a nonverbal autistic teenager using an alphabet grid, this book answers direct questions about why he does what he does—stimming, bolting, repeating—and offers a remarkably clear, emotional window into his inner world.
Written by a nonverbal autistic teenager using an alphabet grid, this book answers direct questions about why he does what he does—stimming, bolting, repeating—and offers a remarkably clear, emotional window into his inner world.
The Reason I Jump: The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year-Old Boy with Autism
Similar to Thinking in Pictures. f Thinking in Pictures is the inside story, NeuroTribes zooms out to the wide-angle shot, tracing the history of autism diagnosis, the harm of past “cures,” and the rise of the neurodiversity movement in a big, deeply...
Neurotribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity
Similar to Thinking in Pictures. Robison’s memoir covers his childhood, social struggles, and unexpected career in the music and tech worlds, all before he was diagnosed with Asperger’s as an adult, offering another candid, often funny portrait of a ...
Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger's
Similar to Thinking in Pictures. Not about autism, but a foundational disability memoir, Keller’s account of learning to communicate while deafblind mirrors Grandin’s emphasis on alternative ways of perceiving and understanding the world, and the tra...
The Story of My Life
Similar to Thinking in Pictures. A blend of clinical experience and storytelling, this book focuses on understanding autistic behaviors as meaningful communication instead of “symptoms to fix,” making it a great companion if you loved how Grandin re-...
Uniquely Human: Updated and Expanded: A Different Way of Seeing Autism
Similar to Thinking in Pictures. Think of this as a follow-up in the same universe: Grandin revisits her earlier ideas with updated neuroscience, brain imaging, and practical advice for helping autistic people thrive, especially around education and ...
The Autistic Brain: Helping Different Kinds of Minds Succeed
Similar to Thinking in Pictures. Co-written by an autistic advocate and a parent, this book digs into the tensions and misunderstandings between those groups and offers a more collaborative, respectful approach to supporting autistic kids.
I Will Die on This Hill: Autistic Adults, Autism Parents, and the Children Who Deserve a Better World
Similar to Thinking in Pictures. This short, visual book uses photos of cats and simple text to illustrate common autistic traits in a warm, nonjudgmental way—great as a gentle, charming supplement if you want something lighter to pair with Grandin’s...
All Cats Are on the Autism Spectrum: An Affirming Introduction to Autism
Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life by Helen Fisher
Joe’s brain works differently, and that’s exactly what makes him a joy to read. His heart is wise, his perspective refreshingly literal, and his journey through loss and friendship brims with kindness. Fisher writes with tenderness and wit, showing t...
Joe’s brain works differently, and that’s exactly what makes him a joy to read. His heart is wise, his perspective refreshingly literal, and his journey through loss and friendship brims with kindness. Fisher writes with tenderness and wit, showing t...
Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life Book Review – A Tender, Neurodivergent Tribute to Kindness and Grief
If you enjoyed Joe Nuthin, you'll love this book.
Don Tillman, a brilliant but socially awkward genetics professor, decides it’s time to find a wife and designs a detailed questionnaire to weed out “unsuitable” candidates—only to have his careful system upended by Rosie, who fails every test but is ...
Don Tillman, a brilliant but socially awkward genetics professor, decides it’s time to find a wife and designs a detailed questionnaire to weed out “unsuitable” candidates—only to have his careful system upended by Rosie, who fails every test but is ...
The Rosie Project: A Novel
If you enjoyed Joe Nuthin, you'll love this book. Eleanor lives a rigid, solitary life built on habits and routines, convinced she’s perfectly content—until an awkward act of kindness pulls her into unexpected friendships and forces her to confront a...
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
If you enjoyed Joe Nuthin, you'll love this book. Autistic American book editor Jo inherits a crumbling English manor and finds herself tangled up in a local murder investigation, using her sharp, detail-oriented mind to untangle secrets the village ...
The Framed Women of Ardemore House
If you enjoyed Joe Nuthin, you'll love this book. Aza Holmes, a teen living with OCD and anxiety, gets pulled into a mystery involving a missing billionaire while wrestling with intrusive thoughts that threaten to swallow her whole. The book offers a...
Turtles All the Way Down
If you enjoyed Joe Nuthin, you'll love this book. Norman is a socially anxious twelve-year-old who dreams of becoming a stand-up comic with his best friend Jax—until Jax dies and Norman decides to honor him by entering a big comedy competition with t...
The Funny Thing about Norman Foreman
If you enjoyed Joe Nuthin, you'll love this book. Hope, a young woman with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, joins a writing group to work on her autobiography and, in the process, steps tentatively into new friendships, self-advocacy, and a better un...
Hope Nicely's Lessons for Life
If you enjoyed Joe Nuthin, you'll love this book. When Rich, a beloved but eccentric father, dies, his neurodivergent son Ollie and the rest of the family are left to decode the strange “clues” he seemed to leave behind, turning their grief into a te...
This Shining Life: A Novel
If you enjoyed Joe Nuthin, you'll love this book. Frederick, a socially awkward, rules-oriented man, finds his predictable existence disrupted when a bureaucratic mix-up gives him access to another man’s life—and family—leading him to unexpected conn...
The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife: A Novel