My World is not Your World

My World is not Your World
by Alison Hale

This is the first autobiography I have read by someone with an autistic spectrum disorder and I have a deep admiration for all Alison has achieved in being able to so vividly describe her world. It evoked a lot of strong emotions in me as I read about her struggles at school, and how help was not forthcoming as she was unable to describe the problems she was encountering.
 
The book is set out in academic years from playschool through to 1995, when she is 26 years old. This overview style is helpful and the reader can chart her growing insight into her disabilities and see how she developed more sophisticated strategies for coping as she grew older. Her determination to prove that she was intelligent was rewarded by the academic success she achieved in her late teens. As she reaches adulthood she sets out to discover how to interpret her environment in relationship to the world of 'normality' and with the help of an understanding friend they manage to bridge the divide between the two worlds.
 
The author describes her book as 'an easy window into the often hidden and misunderstood disabilities of dyslexia and Asperger syndrome' and 'through her experiences, to help others like herself to be better understood by themselves and by the people around them.' I feel that she gives the reader a great insight into how her distorted senses give her a totally different perspective of life and the type of struggle she faces every day to try and comprehend the world in which we all have to function.
 
I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it. To get a taster of the book visit Alison's web site.
 
Christine Rogers
Mother of an 11 year old boy with Asperger syndrome.
published by the National Autistic Society in 'Communication'