Freaks, Geeks & Asperger Syndrome:
A User Guide to Adolescence
Luke Jackson
2002, Jessica
Kingsley
ISBN-13: 978 1 84310
098 0
Luke Jackson’s account of
adolescence with Asperger Syndrome, which he wrote at the age of thirteen, is
lively and informal in style. He is self-aware
and writes with a considerable amount of humour about his own condition and the
associated conditions which affect various members of his family. He presents a positive but realistic picture
of Asperger Syndrome: having said that he views it as a gift rather than a disability;
he also acknowledges some of the more challenging aspects which can be
experienced by those with Asperger Syndrome. However, I feel that the book
often concentrates on earlier childhood rather than adolescence, so the
sub-title ‘A User Guide to Adolescence’
might seem a bit misleading in certain chapters. Many of the issues discussed, however, are
important in both childhood and adolescence.
Luke starts off by talking about
Asperger Syndrome, where it fits within the Autism Spectrum and about diagnosis
as a label versus a signpost. I think, in many ways these first few chapters
are the most significant in the book as far as awareness is concerned. He makes
the important point that many young people (or even older people) with Asperger
Syndrome would rather know why they are different to others as this helps them
to develop strategies for addressing the challenges of life and to understand
themselves better. He also has an
excellent discussion about whether young people are likely to exaggerate their
symptoms to fit their diagnosis, which he felt was often a fallacious argument;
something with which I would agree from my own experience.
In the fourth and fifth chapter,
Luke provides excellent discussions of fixations and sensory sensitivity, both
of which seem to me to be balanced and well researched. He generally tries to take into account that
others may have different experiences to him within Asperger Syndrome, but
sometimes the tendency to think that everyone is like him or can be helped by
the same strategies which have helped him comes out (he is not unique in this –
many books written by authors who are not on the Autism Spectrum have a similar
tendency). Chapter six, where he
discusses physiological differences, is a case in point: he majors on allergy
induced autism and the gluten-free and casein-free diet which has helped his
family so much, but it is unclear how common this form of Autistic Spectrum
condition is in reality. (I suspect that if it was very common, the
gluten-free, casein-free diet would now be much more widespread among people
with Asperger Syndrome than it appears to be, but I don’t have good scientific
evidence for or against this so would need to do more research.)
The latter part of the book tends
to focus on topics which are more closely associated with school, and provides
some interesting suggestions for insights and strategies to assist Asperger
students to get the best out of their school life. Many of these can also be
extended into other areas of life with a bit of thought or adaptation although
this is not explicitly addressed in the book.
Some of the suggestions may seem a bit extreme to teachers and other adults
who are trying to assist but in general the solutions suggested are interesting
and reasonable, and those which seem more extreme give an insight into the way
that the brain of (this particular) person with Asperger Syndrome works. For example, Luke is very strongly against
homework and cannot see the point in it as he has a very black and white divide
between school and home. He extends this
strong dislike to all students with Asperger Syndrome, which in my experience
is not the case. Also he does not fully engage with arguments for homework such
as developing independent working.
The book closes with a glossary
of idioms, which Luke uses consciously throughout the book, partly to help his
Asperger readers to appreciate idiom more easily, and a useful appendix of
resources.
The book as a whole is an easy,
fluid read and would be suitable for both young people and adults; it should do
much to raise awareness of the gifts and challenges of Asperger Syndrome. It is enhanced by pertinent drawings
contributed by Luke’s siblings. Although
Luke tries to take into account others’ differing experiences, and to a large extent
succeeds in this, the book is very much a personal account so it is worthwhile
reading other accounts of Asperger Syndrome and Autism Spectrum Conditions to
gain a fuller picture. Several suitable books are listed in the resources
section at the back of the book.
