Disclaimer alert: I was one of many people who made a donation to support the development of this anthology--and now that I've read it, I think deciding to donate to this project is one of the best decisions I've ever made.
If you are Autistic, or if you have ever known anyone who is, then this is a book you will want to devour and have all your friends read. But I ALSO encourage this book for other people with disabilities and our friends/relatives, even if you're not Autistic, because many of the experiences expressed by Autistic people in this anthology I think will resonate with other disability populations also. I know many do resonate with me as a non-Autistic woman who is Deaf and has attention deficit disorder (ADD). For example, the title of this book ("Loud Hands") was chosen as a defiant response to the command that so many autistic children hear when they are growing up, "Quiet Hands". (To understand more about this history, buy the book! and read the essay in it called "Quiet Hands")
They hear this command so often because the people around them don't understand that they NEED to move and flap their hands as much as they do. For some, it can be a way of expressing themselves--not (necessarily) with literal sign language but they may have a particular flap they use when they are excited and another they use when frustrated or feeling overwhelmed. Moving their hands is as natural as shifting our facial expressions is for the rest of us. Some autistic people also use hand motions to help them process sensory information (because many autistic people have sensory integration issues where sensory input that seems ordinary to the rest of us can seem very confusing and overwhelming for them). So when Autistic people say, "Loud Hands!" this is a way of saying, "We're fine the way we are! It's okay to be Autistic! It's not something shameful and pitiful, it's just a different way of being!" Which is NOT the same thing as declining to grow and change--they DO choose to grow and change, it's just that they do it as an Autistic person.
All this resonates with me as a Deaf woman because Deaf people have our own long history with hearing people trying to forbid us to sign (not me personally, but I've known plenty of Deaf people). At one point in history, Deaf people were afraid to sign in public because of this. So we, too, as a community have needed to reclaim pride in our hands and the way they move, and our RIGHT to move our hands in public.
This volume pulls together into one place many of the classic essays that put into words many of the thoughts and feelings many autistic people share in common (for example, "Don't Mourn for Us" by Jim Sinclair). And it also shares some new voices as well. So, please run, leap, and fly, to Amazon to order your copy.
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Top reviews from other countries
John Lawrence
An important and necessary read for anyone working with individuals classified or identified as disabled/disability
Reviewed in Canada on April 9, 2017
