Adonya's son is named Nicholas, same as my older son. Besides both being on the autism spectrum, they share other similarities as both are not fond of dogs, schooled at home, have artistic talents in drawing, plus received their autism diagnoses from School Psychologists before their fourth birthdays.
In My Mind is how Adonya perceives Nicholas's thoughts on the world around him and based on his actions how the world views him. In My Mind is also a tool for him someday to learn more about himself and autism. I agree about utilizing books to help kids gain insights into their own diagnosis. We had numerous books to guide my son Nicholas into autism awareness. Now he is at the point where he will offer opinions on whether a child at autism daycamp is low, medium or high functioning.
I recall many years ago reading that yellow is a common favorite color of kids on the autism spectrum. I noticed on the pages of In My Mind that yellow stood out on his shirt, scarf, duck and shower curtain. The illustrator really captured the likeness of her son Nicholas within the pages of In My Mind, as noted in this Tulsa article.
In My Mind: The World Through the Eyes of Autism is a book for kids of all ages to see what makes a child happy and how those thoughts are brought to life through a Mother's vision. The dreams, fantasies and motions of one child on the autism spectrum will open the eyes and spark conversation among readers.
This is a great opportunity to start discussions on the autism spectrum within a classroom of students, at a support group with family members and parents. It is also appropriate for one on one with a therapist to initiate a dialogue on the illustrations within In My Mind where a child can share what their hopes and dreams are in the future.
My son Nicholas viewed the fifteen page ebook with me and shared his impression:
It shows nice things that the boy is doing when really all he is doing is nothing but seemingly happy just the same." His favorite pages were nine - having fun on a roller coaster with animals and a cowboy along with page twelve inside the bathtub with the snorkel and his hand up in the air waving.
Excerpt - "In My Mind, I see many colors, bright like a rainbow, shooting about like comets in the night sky. [turn page] What you see is a child staring into nothing."
At the time of the Blog Tour I asked the author the following question:
His hands are always outstretched or doing something within the pages of In My Mind, except for the coloring page - is this based on your son doing the same movements?
Response -
"Yes. Nicholas can often be observed flailing his arms about. It's almost as if he's conducting some music or directing a scene because the flailing is usually coordinated with a song he may be listening to or something he's watching. In my observations, I've learned that his flailing is like his own language because if you pay close attention, you can see when he's "drawing" something in the air or coordinating his hands in such a way that they form letters. It isn't ASL because we never took classes for that, but it sometimes looks like it is."
In My Mind is available on Amazon.
Educational Autism Tips for Families 71 page resourceful ebook for families entering the school system with a recent autism diagnosis. Find out what issues take place over the course of a school day and meet these challenges head on.
