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crhogan's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
ethemreal's review
slow-paced
I've heard that the New Millennium edition changes things for the better, but the original is just Bad with its handling of autism. tempted to give half a star simply for Diane Duane's fantastic prose, but whooooo. nope it does not reach escape velocity from the gravity of that mishandling.
erinflight's review
4.0
I've read both versions of this book now, both the millenium version and the original.
I read the original many years ago, when I was actually in the target age range for this group, but I read it many many times.
I liked what she changed. I sort of wish this version, where was there for me when I was a kid. But I think I understand why it wasn't. The narrative of autism being something of yourself worth keeping, and not just some illness, is relatively recent.
But the version of this book I read as a kid, and remembered as a young adult, was still very important to me.
This book was the first clue to 8 year old me that I was autistic.
And that's because, for whatever reason, this book manages to capture the exact way my autism hurts.
Maybe not all of the details, but the feeling, the way Kit's experiences change as he 'catches' autism, the way the world becomes sharper and duller at once. The vast worlds inside of Darryl's mind, big enough to get lost in and sometimes dangerous. How his mind was both his world to shape and his cage.
I don't know if Diane Duane hit on that through research or luckily aligned creativity or what, but it feels important to me.
Autism hurts. Autism is a part of who I am that cannot be removed without also removing me. Both of these things are true.
And now, all these years later, when the sum total of my knowledge about autism consists of a lot more than personal experience and this one children's book, I still feel like there's something of value here. And I'm glad it exists.
I read the original many years ago, when I was actually in the target age range for this group, but I read it many many times.
I liked what she changed. I sort of wish this version, where
Spoiler
the autistic character chooses not to give up his autism, as its a crucial part of himselfBut the version of this book I read as a kid, and remembered as a young adult, was still very important to me.
This book was the first clue to 8 year old me that I was autistic.
And that's because, for whatever reason, this book manages to capture the exact way my autism hurts.
Maybe not all of the details, but the feeling, the way Kit's experiences change as he 'catches' autism, the way the world becomes sharper and duller at once. The vast worlds inside of Darryl's mind, big enough to get lost in and sometimes dangerous. How his mind was both his world to shape and his cage.
I don't know if Diane Duane hit on that through research or luckily aligned creativity or what, but it feels important to me.
Autism hurts. Autism is a part of who I am that cannot be removed without also removing me. Both of these things are true.
And now, all these years later, when the sum total of my knowledge about autism consists of a lot more than personal experience and this one children's book, I still feel like there's something of value here. And I'm glad it exists.
mordiscasrios's review
adventurous
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
booksong's review
5.0
Kit Rodriguez is having a rough time. While he and his wizard partner Nita are more or less reconciled, Nita is still sunk deeply in grief from recent events. Kit is spending more and more time with his unusual dog, Ponch, who has begun to display what appears to be the power to create, enter, and alter universes.
Then Kit is given a very special assignment by his local Senior wizards. A wizard has gone missing on Ordeal, which isn't unusual by itself. But it turns out the young wizard, Darryl, was autistic. And in order to find him and discover what went wrong, Kit and Ponch must use Ponch's newfound abilities to journey inside Darryl's mind, where they will encounter a stunning visual landscape created by Darryl's autism. Meanwhile, Nita is beginning to have lucid dreams told in bizarre metaphor, dreams involving robots, knights in armor, and circus clowns. Do these strange dreams have anything to do with Kit's quest?
With her unique brand of magic and science, Duane creates an amazing sci-fi/fantasy. With references to the world that people with autism might indeed experience within their minds, she follows both Nita and Kit through their individual pathways, so we see each one operating independently, before they finally come together, to face the ultimate battle together.
Then Kit is given a very special assignment by his local Senior wizards. A wizard has gone missing on Ordeal, which isn't unusual by itself. But it turns out the young wizard, Darryl, was autistic. And in order to find him and discover what went wrong, Kit and Ponch must use Ponch's newfound abilities to journey inside Darryl's mind, where they will encounter a stunning visual landscape created by Darryl's autism. Meanwhile, Nita is beginning to have lucid dreams told in bizarre metaphor, dreams involving robots, knights in armor, and circus clowns. Do these strange dreams have anything to do with Kit's quest?
With her unique brand of magic and science, Duane creates an amazing sci-fi/fantasy. With references to the world that people with autism might indeed experience within their minds, she follows both Nita and Kit through their individual pathways, so we see each one operating independently, before they finally come together, to face the ultimate battle together.
grid's review
3.0
I liked this, but less than a lot of the others in the series. Still continuing with the series, reading them to my 8-year old.
This one took place mostly in the mind of a young kid with asperger’s syndrom. This “going into the world of someone’s mind” was a new idea introduced in the last book in the series, and I like it less than a lot of the other wizardry the folks in these books can do. I hope it’s not a continuing trend, frankly.
This one took place mostly in the mind of a young kid with asperger’s syndrom. This “going into the world of someone’s mind” was a new idea introduced in the last book in the series, and I like it less than a lot of the other wizardry the folks in these books can do. I hope it’s not a continuing trend, frankly.
hoosgracie's review against another edition
4.0
Nita and Kit separate and work on separate projects. Nita grieves over her mother's death, while Kit helps a young autistic wizard.