Scan barcode
A review by reviewsbylola
Same But Different: Teen Life on the Autism Express by Ryan Elizabeth Peete, Holly Robinson Peete, Rj Peete
3.0
As the parent of a five year old daughter diagnosed with ASD, this book really appealed to me. Often we parents grapple with the issue of what the future will look like for our children. That is doubly true for parents of ASD children, so I was eager to read the Peetes' perspective on life as a teenager with ASD.
The book is thinly veiled as fiction, with Peete twins RJ and Ryan adopting the names Charlie and Callie. "Charlie" was diagnosed with autism at age three and has had his family staunchly advocating for him, including the person he's closest to, his twin sister "Callie".
I appreciate that this is their story, I really do. But it left me sad. I absolutely don't believe that everything is sunshine and rainbows. Obviously anyone living with ASD or that has a family member with ASD will struggle, and I want to know the bad along with the good. But it seemed like life with Charlie was all bad. :(
As I closed the book, I wasn't sure how I felt. I wanted to love it, but I thought about my kids as teenagers, as Callie and Charlie, and it scared me. Literally every chapter of the book seemed to be about some way that Charlie has a horrible life, and in every chapter it's Callie being annoyed and repressed by living with an autistic brother. I kept trying to remind myself that they're teenagers, that maybe their viewpoints are clouded by teenage angst. Even the way they depicted their parents made me really sad. And the thing is, I don't know the Peetes (obviously), but it seems pretty obvious just by their public personas and projects that they're a supportive, loving family. Unfortunately that didn't shine through.
I have two copies of this book so originally I had put one aside for when my kids are older. But honestly, I'm not sure I want to encourage them to read it. I have always celebrated the differences in my ASD daughter, and I would hate for her to read a book like this and think she is just an irritant to everyone, that we all hate autism and what it's done to her. Because I feel the opposite of that.
Obviously this is a very personal subject for me, and I can't help having that reflected in my review, but I am very appreciative of the Peete family, and especially RJ and Ryan, for sharing their story.
The book is thinly veiled as fiction, with Peete twins RJ and Ryan adopting the names Charlie and Callie. "Charlie" was diagnosed with autism at age three and has had his family staunchly advocating for him, including the person he's closest to, his twin sister "Callie".
I appreciate that this is their story, I really do. But it left me sad. I absolutely don't believe that everything is sunshine and rainbows. Obviously anyone living with ASD or that has a family member with ASD will struggle, and I want to know the bad along with the good. But it seemed like life with Charlie was all bad. :(
As I closed the book, I wasn't sure how I felt. I wanted to love it, but I thought about my kids as teenagers, as Callie and Charlie, and it scared me. Literally every chapter of the book seemed to be about some way that Charlie has a horrible life, and in every chapter it's Callie being annoyed and repressed by living with an autistic brother. I kept trying to remind myself that they're teenagers, that maybe their viewpoints are clouded by teenage angst. Even the way they depicted their parents made me really sad. And the thing is, I don't know the Peetes (obviously), but it seems pretty obvious just by their public personas and projects that they're a supportive, loving family. Unfortunately that didn't shine through.
I have two copies of this book so originally I had put one aside for when my kids are older. But honestly, I'm not sure I want to encourage them to read it. I have always celebrated the differences in my ASD daughter, and I would hate for her to read a book like this and think she is just an irritant to everyone, that we all hate autism and what it's done to her. Because I feel the opposite of that.
Obviously this is a very personal subject for me, and I can't help having that reflected in my review, but I am very appreciative of the Peete family, and especially RJ and Ryan, for sharing their story.