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katiemonty's review against another edition
3.0
my qualifications for context of my review: I’m autistic and Jewish lol
The dedication started by saying “…and to all the members of my extended family who have learned to cope with and embrace children with special needs. — T.L.W” was a little disappointing, I will not lie. Cope was the main problem I had with the wording, but obviously “special needs” is a term that would be great to minimize.
On the dedication page there is also:
“This story is based on a real “Nathan,” a high functioning autistic child who did blow out his family’s Hanukkah candles. Autism covers a broad spectrum, and Nathan is not meant to be representative of all autistic children. Rather, this book is designed to introduce young children and families to autism and other developmental disorders. Judaism teaches acceptance of every person as a reflection of God’s image, and the importance of both compassion and inclusion in the community.” which is lovely in its use of identity first language. Again, the functioning labels are iffy, but other than that I’m pleased!
The book itself is from the prospective of Nathan’s brother which is interesting because you see him progress from being unintentionally ableist by thinking his brother is annoying to defending him when he is bullied. I think the bully should have been apologized in the end but I like the concept of the book. It felt a little too rushed. The art had some cool details but I didn’t love the facial expressions. Mainly I just like that it combines the topics of Judaism and autism. :)
Autistic Representation:
- vocal stims and repetition
- misunderstanding social cues
The dedication started by saying “…and to all the members of my extended family who have learned to cope with and embrace children with special needs. — T.L.W” was a little disappointing, I will not lie. Cope was the main problem I had with the wording, but obviously “special needs” is a term that would be great to minimize.
On the dedication page there is also:
“This story is based on a real “Nathan,” a high functioning autistic child who did blow out his family’s Hanukkah candles. Autism covers a broad spectrum, and Nathan is not meant to be representative of all autistic children. Rather, this book is designed to introduce young children and families to autism and other developmental disorders. Judaism teaches acceptance of every person as a reflection of God’s image, and the importance of both compassion and inclusion in the community.” which is lovely in its use of identity first language. Again, the functioning labels are iffy, but other than that I’m pleased!
The book itself is from the prospective of Nathan’s brother which is interesting because you see him progress from being unintentionally ableist by thinking his brother is annoying to defending him when he is bullied. I think the bully should have been apologized in the end but I like the concept of the book. It felt a little too rushed. The art had some cool details but I didn’t love the facial expressions. Mainly I just like that it combines the topics of Judaism and autism. :)
Autistic Representation:
- vocal stims and repetition
- misunderstanding social cues
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