Rules

By Cynthia Lord,

Book cover of Rules

Book description

This Newbery Honor Book is a heartfelt and witty story about feeling different and finding acceptance -- beyond the rules.

Twelve-year-old Catherine just wants a normal life. Which is near impossible when you have a brother with autism and a family that revolves around his disability. She's spent years tryingā€¦

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Why read it?

2 authors picked Rules as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

12-year-old Catherineā€™s feelings toward her younger, autistic brother are complicated. Sheā€™s protective of him and also appears to be embarrassed by his behaviour. All she wants is a ā€œnormalā€ life. When she becomes friends with a paraplegic boy sheā€™s forced to think about what ā€œnormalā€ really means. This book is hopeful, humourous, thoughtful, and explores what it means to interact with someone who is neurodivergent. The author is the mother of a child with autism and the complex relationships and friendships in the book felt real and captured the mixed-up emotions of middle-graders. 

From Sara's list on neurodivergent characters.

Itā€™s rare for a writer to be able to tackle a serious subject in a way that makes you laugh. Yet, thatā€™s just what Cynthia Lord does in Rules, the story of Catherine and her eight-year-old brother, David, who has autism. Catherine devises rules for David to help family life go more smoothly. These include ā€œDonā€™t sand in front of the TV when other people are watching itā€ and ā€œA boy takes off his shirt to swim but not his shorts.ā€ I love the honesty of this book, which shares Catherineā€™s frustrations while also demonstrating her love for Davidā€¦

From Kathryn's list on bothersome brothers and sisters.

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Boy Underground by Isabelle Marinov,

Boy Underground is a powerful adventure story about Hugo, an autistic boy who decides to go all the way into the Paris underground to find a place where he belongs.

For Hugo, the world can be too loud and bright. He likes the quiet. He likes the dark. And heā€¦

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