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jennp28's review against another edition
Wow. This was a crazy look into the mind of an autistic kid. He describes having two selves and the "normal" one just can't assert itself... fascinating.
val_halla's review
4.0
This is a beautiful story from the eyes of a young man with autism - and he was very young when he started writing this book! It is fragmented and lacks coherent narrative, as one would expect from any child's writing, but other than that, it far exceeded my expectations. The first two sections are about the author's early childhood and struggle to communicate, and the last part is a fictional story he created. It's amazing to read something written by someone so young that could easily be interpreted as genius literature.
bajoranjay's review
5.0
The poetry and narrative imagine a natural world of complex relationships, weaving together fiction and reality, with perception that lies somewhere in between.
j_t_tobin's review
5.0
This is a book that will seem very odd to some, very familiar to some, and very educational for others. I fall into all three camps. Often in education, it seems, we strive to discover ways to make children with disabilities more like us - ostensibly so that they can function better in this world. There's nothing wrong with that at all, in a sense. That's very good. But Tito provides us a unique view into what that looks like for him.
Tito proves in a roundabout way that a cold, scientifically-minded approach doesn't always work that well. Instead, what is needed (as I believe he outlines well) is consistency, patience, kindness, and a desire to understand one specific person as an individual.
A lot of what he writes is confirmed in "Fragile X Syndrome: A Guide for Teachers" by Suzanne Saunders. But this is where we see the radical difference between the two perspectives. Suzanne's book shows fragile X syndrome through the lens of medical practice, science, and traditional education techniques. The Mind Tree shows how Tito would have likely responded to these techniques.
As such, I believe this is a must-read for caregivers and teachers.
Tito proves in a roundabout way that a cold, scientifically-minded approach doesn't always work that well. Instead, what is needed (as I believe he outlines well) is consistency, patience, kindness, and a desire to understand one specific person as an individual.
A lot of what he writes is confirmed in "Fragile X Syndrome: A Guide for Teachers" by Suzanne Saunders. But this is where we see the radical difference between the two perspectives. Suzanne's book shows fragile X syndrome through the lens of medical practice, science, and traditional education techniques. The Mind Tree shows how Tito would have likely responded to these techniques.
As such, I believe this is a must-read for caregivers and teachers.
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