The best books about neurodiversity: our unique and brilliant brains

I found this book while I was researching for my own book and have been recommending it regularly to families ever since. It promotes a positive view of neurodiversity without being ‘PollyAnna-ish’–I would call it positive realism.

It was written over thirteen years ago now, so not all the language will be perfect for everybody by today’s standards. However, the concepts are still very current, and they are expressed sensitively. Clinical conditions such as autism, ADHD, and dyslexia are described in a very accessible way, demonstrating how symptoms are on a continuum, and many of us can relate to at least some features of most of the conditions.

Chapters on depression and anxiety are included, and while these arguably fall under mental health rather than neurodiversity, I was really glad of their inclusion in this book, as the overlaps between mental health conditions and neurodiversity are many, and clinical distinctions aren’t always helpful.

This book brings to life the experience of being ‘differently wired,’ and unusually (for me) it was quite a page-turner for a nonfiction book!

This is arguably the book that brought a modern understanding of autism into the mainstream consciousness. It’s about an autistic young man (although never labelled as such) who is perturbed by a distressing event, and the unfolding of circumstances leading up to it.

There is an oft-quoted statement: ‘If you’ve met one person with autism, you’ve met one person with autism.’ True, for sure, not every person with autism is a maths genius or bothered about certain noises, but the author does not claim this is a book about autism, nor does the author claim to have lived experience of autism.

It does, however, provide a portrayal of many experiences that many autistic people have, and it opened doors to understanding and conversations that, at the time, were quite revelatory–such as sensory overload being an underlying reason for extremely distressed behavior, or "meltdowns."

Christopher’s experiences and reactions to emotions, for example, becoming distressed by things other people wouldn’t even notice; his detail-focused processing detail and application of logic provide a dispassionate yet moving insight into how (some) autistic people engage with their own inner experiences and the world around them. It’s also a jolly good read.

This is a book written by experts in neuroscience and social cognition, with graphics provided by artist Daniel Locke. The graphic format is one big reason why I love this novel. Not everyone loves reading text, and in keeping with the neurodiversity principle that not everyone learns in the same way, illustrated texts can make imbibing knowledge a pleasure rather than a chore.

The authors are world-renowned in their fields and have done a superb job of making learning about the social brain fun and accessible. They cover topics such as how we learn from copying others, free will, empathy, and perspective-taking, to name a few.

Also, if you are a book sniffer like me (you know who you are!) or someone who likes the feel and look of a book, I think you’ll love this book.

This book was written in the nineteenth century before autism was even a diagnosis, but it portrays a character with some potentially neurodiverse traits and immortalises the line "I would prefer not to" (I think we all would prefer not to, sometimes).

Part of the reason I love this book is because it is short and intense. Bartleby is a young man engaged as a scrivener by the narrator, quickly proving himself to be a valuable employee with qualities such as "steadiness, freedom from all dissipation, great stillness, unalterableness of demeanour under all circumstances." He was a creature of habit, following routines and working tirelessly, but he has one "flaw" as an employee, which is a flat refusal to complete certain tasks if he would "prefer not to," which proves problematic at work.

There follows a description of mental health decline and social (in)justice with the characteristic elegance and style of Melville’s prose. Whether or not this short tome was intended to be about neurodiversity and mental health, it is a thought-provoking observation of the challenge society faces when people behave in an unconventional way and provides a historical commentary of "double empathy"–that is, should we expect people to conform to social norms, or should society adapt to accommodate differences? "Ah, Bartleby! Ah, humanity!"

This book is one young person’s story about "growing up feeling different" and describes their experience of being autistic in a very human and humorous way.

I particularly like this book because it strikes a very balanced tone, and it has so many relevant examples of features that are both strengths and challenges, depending on the context. It’s an excellent read for newly diagnosed autistic people or people who perhaps are thinking they might be autistic.

This delightful book is in a graphic novel format, which, as I mentioned above, is one of my favourite modalities for reading. Partly because the illustrations bring the text to life, and partly because the designs and artwork in themselves are so aesthetically appealing. Also, the text in this book is large and, all-round, it’s a very neurodiversity-friendly read!