Summary:
A fictional story about Melody Brooks, a young girl with Cerebral Palsy who is unable to communicate on her own and dismissed as mentally challenged. Through the use of a Medi-Talker, those around her are able to understand how intelligent she really is.

Is it insightful?  5 Stars 
Good window into Cerebral Palsy and dispels the assumption that just because someone can’t speak it doesn’t mean he/she isn’t smart. Underscores the importance of society to make the effort to better understand someone who cannot communicate.

Is it creative?   5 Stars
Very creatively embeds lessons about Cerebral Palsy into a fictional story, as told from a first-person account as if the reader could read Melody’s mind. The first time the Medi-Talker said “I love you” to Melody’s parents was a great example of how the Medi-Talker opens a window for someone who cannot communicate on his/her own.

Is the well written? 5 Stars
Read in about three hours. Easy, conversational reading style without trying to use big words to dazzle (or confuse) the reader. Author makes good use of chapter hyperlinking in table of contents but would want to see hyperlinking from chapter back to table of contents. Really liked how author used bold font to indicate words that Melody typed on her Medi-Talker or pointed to on her communication board.

Is it a page turner? 3 Stars
An interesting, believable and compelling read through the first ¾ of the book. Without revealing spoilers, the ending, while unexpected, just didn’t seem to fit and was almost as if the author was trying too hard to shock the reader. I would have ended the story with more of an inspirational message and one where there was a more obvious change in some of the characters. I also would have eliminated the event towards the end involving Melody’s sibling. It felt disjointed and didn’t add anything to the story.

Overall Rating:  4 Stars

Summary:
An indepth view of neuroimaging and genetic research, their link to behavior of those both neurotypical and autistic, and how to help those on the autism spectrum better succeed in life.

Is it insightful?  5 Stars 
Deep analysis of how the brains of neurotypical and those on the autism spectrum differ. Book examines cause-effect relationships such as how Grandin’s elongated left ventricle extends into her parietal cortex, which is associated with working memory, which explains her difficulty with short-term memory.

Is it creative?   5 Stars
Great use of stories about both Grandin and others she knows in the autism arena. The stories make for an easier understanding of some very difficult medical and technical concepts. Also very clever use of analogies, such as how Grandin describes parts of the brain using terms like CEO, VPs, and workers.

Is the well written? 5 Stars
Read in about five hours, just because there is so much technical and medical information to absorb. Great balance of facts and data with stories and examples using clear language. Only minor ding is that chapter headings aren’t hyperlinked back to the table of contents.

Is it a page turner? 5 Stars
Great progression of understanding the brain from a physical perspective and how it manifests into behaviors and social issues/stigmas surrounding autism. Grandin’s writing voice is well heard throughout the book, making it almost as if she were sitting with the reader talking about the book.

Overall Rating:  5 Stars

Summary:
Tito Rajarshi Mukhopadhyay, a nonverbal man on the autism spectrum, gives insight into the autistic mind and how he thinks, sees, and reacts to the world.

Is it insightful?  4 Stars 
Provides good insight into how Tito views the world and the unique perspective in which he relates to everyday events. As example, he describes watching basketball and football like watching swarming ants. I wanted more analogies.

Is it creative?   3 Stars
There is poetry interspersed throughout some of the chapters which is meant to help underscore concepts. I found the poetry a distraction and not helpful at all to the book. 

Is the well written? 3 Stars
Read in about three hours. There was no logical progression of the chapters. One chapter he is in India, then he’s in Austin, then later in Hollywood. The author sometimes gave indication of how old he was, sometimes not. The book needed a good editor to scrub it.

Is it a page turner? 3 Stars
The longer I read the more I wanted the book to be over with. It read more like a random string of short stories. Even more disappointing is that it would not have been much work to sequence the chapters and make it read more chronologically.

Overall Rating:  3 Stars

In the TV show Parenthood, one of the characters, Max Braverman, is a child with Asperger Syndrome.  Max displayed many of the classic autism traits, including obsessing over specific topics.  One of his strong areas of interest was pirates.  Max loved to dress up like a pirate and act out his made-up stories.  His TV father, Adam, was struggling to find those connection points with Max that he so desperately longed for, so he decided to dress up like a pirate and enter Max's imaginary pirate world.  The episode ends with Adam and Max running around in their pirate garb having a great time together.  It was truly touching to see them both having fun as father and son.