Through the Eyes of Aliens: A Book About Autistic People [Paperback]

Jasmine Lee O'Neill (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1853027103 | ISBN-13: 978-1853027109 | Publication Date: September 15, 1998 | Edition: 1

(Jessica Kingsley) Describes how it feels to be autistic and how friends, family and professionals can be sensitive to their needs. Identifies the reasons for behaviors and offers suggestions of ways in which the 'normal' world can shape itself to work around the behavioral characteristics of autistic people. For the general reader and professional. Softcover.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Jasmine Lee O'Neill, a mute autistic savant, is a poet, writer, illustrator and musician. Of British descent, she lives in Pennsylvania. This is her first book.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Pub; 1 edition (September 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1853027103
• ISBN-13: 978-1853027109
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #393,389 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

55 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars finally, autism seen as beautiful, March 20, 2000

By 

"autelf" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Through the Eyes of Aliens: A Book About Autistic People (Paperback)

Finally, there is a book written which describes autism as positive, as something beautiful. I am autistic, and have been waiting a long time for someone to say, in print, that I am acceptable as who I am. In a world where autism is usually (even by many autistics) considered a "defect", this is highly unusual and highly necessary.

O'Neill explains autism as not meaning that a person is defective, but about being a different kind of person. She says that autistic people should not be forced to appear like non-autistic people, and that we should be respected as our own people. She even states, in her chapter on communication, that autistic people should never be forced to speak. This affected me personally, because speech is very difficult for me, and I had always been told that it was the best and only way to communicate. She talks very poetically about the beauty of living as an autistic, a beauty which I have never before seen so well described in words.

In her epilogue directed toward autistics, she urges autistics to not forget who they are, and to take pride in who they are and in being autistic. This is a very important message, because autistics are told from almost all other sources that there is something wrong with us.

I now carry this book everywhere with me. It is the only concrete object I have which tells me that it is good to be autistic -- good to be myself.

This book is very important, because it says that autistics have a right to be who we are, and a right to be autistic, unobstructed by "therapies" which seek to make us look more normal. It eloquently captures the beauty inherent in autism, like nothing else I have read.

37 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Praise from another author, March 7, 2000

By 

Edgar R. Schneider (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Through the Eyes of Aliens: A Book About Autistic People (Paperback)

As an autistic man myself, with a published autobiography, I should like to take this opportunity to recommend, in the strongest possible terms, this, another book from Jessica Kingsley Publishers. It is "Through the Eyes of Aliens" by Jasmine Lee O'Neill.

I had ordered a copy for myself because, I must admit, the title fascinated me. (It correlated with a major point that I made in my own book.) It turned out to be the most rewarding purchase I have made in I don't know how long.

In reading it, I was, at first, conscious of many differences in the view of autism between her and me. Then, as I read on, I realized that it was a difference only in perception, not in substance. We saw the same thing, but from different standpoints. Yet, although we had written independently (I had never heard of her until I saw her announcement in the catalogue next to mine), my mind boggled at how many of the same observations we made, even, at times, to using the same words.

Our writing styles may be quite different, but I attribute that to the fact that, whereas I am a mathematician, she is a poet. I tend to do a logical development of ideas to get to a point, and I categorize a great deal. I seem to ask, "Where might I be wrong? If so, show me." Her approach is much more intuitive, but she often makes a point (very briefly, through her choice of words) that I go through substantial analysis to make, but she does so in a more vivid manner than I could. A typical response to her might be, "Who couldn't agree with that?" On more than one occasion, my response was the greatest adulation that one writer can give to another: "I would have loved to have written that."

Another difference of note is that my realization of being autistic is something I have come to quite recently, while she seems to have always known of that in herself. I often talk of my discovery as being "liberating". However, that is mostly in finding out why I could never find the right size round hole for myself, and, as a result, at long last, of being able to start digging my own square hole. She obviously experiences a joy in being as she is, in a way that I might not have enough years left to achieve. She also, unlike myself, has been able to develop many specific nuts-and-bolts suggestions on how the non-autistic (especially parents) can and should relate to the autistic, while I mostly deal in overviews and generalities geared to giving insights (which is a specialty of the mathematician), leaving such details to the parents themselves.

A major point that she makes, better than anyone, is that autistic people have the capability of making their lives beautiful, if they are only allowed to be what they are.

I should like to wrap this up by saying a bit more about her approach and about her writing style. First, her book is not autobiographical. Mine had to be, because I related my discovery to previously unexplained things in my past life. Yet, in reading many of the things that she wrote, I was able to increase my insights into myself. In addition, from the feedback that I have gotten from the parents of autistic kids, my book has helped to put their minds at ease about their kids. Her book should put their hearts at ease.

For those involved with autistic people, or those who simply want to know more about this misunderstood disability, Jasmine's book is required reading.

24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must read for all parents and professionals, November 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Through the Eyes of Aliens: A Book About Autistic People (Paperback)

This book has captured beautifully the essence of what life is like for the Autistic person. It explains autism with a clarity and understanding that I have yet to come across and I have done extensive reading on the subject. As a mother of an Autistic son, the author has openned my eyes to so many ideas and thoughts, I guess the main one being love my child for who he is not what he has. This book is excellent for the lay person or the professional. It explains the concept of "AUTISM" in a profoundly simple manner that is both helpful and uplifting. It shows that these children do grow to become happy adults that can contribute significantly to the world and lead full and happy lives. A wonderful book written by a wonderful human being.