I've been looking around, but haven't found an acceptable one to read to my son who has it. He's very high functioning. Maybe I need to write my own??
One called it a birth defect, others focus on the negative more than the positive. I know I could just skip some of those parts, but he is already reading so he'd notice them anyway.
All Cats Have Asperger Syndrome
Kathy Hoopmann
I love this book and used it all the time with my young clients! It's cute and a little silly, but it's wonderful. My husband has Asperger's (diagnosed as an adult) and we keep a copy in our house b/c it made him smile and realize that while there are some quirks that made his life difficult, there are some really wonderful qualities that made him successful!
I have AS, and I haven't seen a children's book about it. Of course, I don't discuss it with my children, because it's me...not them.
With a child with the condition, maybe it would be better just to talk to him from the heart, about what YOU understand about him? Part of the problem with trying to define AS is that it is so varying from one to the next, and I really don't like putting it down like a problem, an issue, a defect, etc. I'm not sure if at that age much needs to be discussed with him. :) AS children, really, are so wonderful! :)
Arthur (the kid's show) had a really great episode on Asperger's. You can probably find it on the PBS website or Netflix. I'm sorry, I don't know what the episode is called.
More kudo's for "All cats have Aspergers Syndrome"
http://www.amazon.com/All-Cats-Have-Asperger-Syndrome/dp/...
I used it for a term paper in a Special Needs child dev class I did. It was also mostly perfect for my nephew, who was diagnosed young and is now 18 years old and graduated with Honors from High School this past June. So many of the things in there were totally "him".
A birth defect? That's not right. Hmph.
My 6 yo old son has autism and is pretty high functioning but is getting to the age where I'm sure he realizes something is different about himself. Other kids have. I will admit to being kind of chicken about it and not telling him. He has celiac disease as well and already feels angry enough about that.
I do struggle with telling his siblings though (his twin and younger sister). Thanks for asking this question. I will look at that book and perhaps maybe write my own. That's a good idea too.
ETA: I just saw this book on Amazon. What It Is Like To Be Me! An Asperger Kid Book by Angela Wine. It looks pretty good!
ditto for All Cats Have Asperger's. Also "Different Like Me: My Book of Autism Heroes" by Jennifer Elder, in which the lives of some noted contemporary and historical figures who either are or are likely to have been on the autism spectrum are described from the point of view of a boy who has Asperger's http://www.amazon.com/Different-Like-Me-Autism-Heroes/dp/...
