Scan barcode
A review by emtees
Can You See Me? by Libby Scott, Rebecca Westcott
emotional
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This is a great middle-grade book for kids looking to learn more about autism from an autistic perspective. One of the authors is an autistic girl and the story draws heavily on her own experiences. It manages the balance between depicting one person’s specific experience of autism while still providing a lot of general information.
Tally is an eleven-year old girl going through a lot of typical childhood situations - a new school year, trouble with friends, arguments with her parents and sister - but with the added complication of the way her autism impacts her life. One of Tally’s greatest frustrations is that the people around her, including her own family, think they know what autism is and aren’t always interested in her experiences; instead, they are quick to judge her behavior from their own limited understanding. Tally keeps a diary that is half reflection on her daily life, half explanations of autism written at her own level, which she dreams of someday showing to the world so that they will understand autism as an experience, not just a clinical diagnosis. The diary is a great tool within the book, since it provides a way to explain different aspects of Tally’s autism which are then depicted in the narrative part of the story, keeping the whole thing from feeling too preachy.
Tally is a great character; she is complex, flawed and endearing in ways that are both related to her autism and also just specific to her as a person. Probably because of how much she is based on a real person, she feels very much like a real eleven-year old. The story itself is pretty straightforward but enlivened by the intense emotions brought out in Tally.
Tally is an eleven-year old girl going through a lot of typical childhood situations - a new school year, trouble with friends, arguments with her parents and sister - but with the added complication of the way her autism impacts her life. One of Tally’s greatest frustrations is that the people around her, including her own family, think they know what autism is and aren’t always interested in her experiences; instead, they are quick to judge her behavior from their own limited understanding. Tally keeps a diary that is half reflection on her daily life, half explanations of autism written at her own level, which she dreams of someday showing to the world so that they will understand autism as an experience, not just a clinical diagnosis. The diary is a great tool within the book, since it provides a way to explain different aspects of Tally’s autism which are then depicted in the narrative part of the story, keeping the whole thing from feeling too preachy.
Tally is a great character; she is complex, flawed and endearing in ways that are both related to her autism and also just specific to her as a person. Probably because of how much she is based on a real person, she feels very much like a real eleven-year old. The story itself is pretty straightforward but enlivened by the intense emotions brought out in Tally.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying and Ableism
The main character is autistic and experiences ableism and bullying. The narrative condemns these but not every situation is resolved in a way that feels fair.