A review by aman757
Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8: A Young Man's Voice from the Silence of Autism by Naoki Higashida

hopeful informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

As someone who attempted to find work helping counsel children on the autism spectrum, who struggled to consistently gather the right energy to positively influence these children's lives, Mr. Higashida's book provided me with hope that I may one day be able to attempt to find this type of work again by bettering my understanding of how to relate to neuro-atypical children. While I have read before about autism being best interpreted as more of a permanent aspect of personality, rather than an illness to be remedied, this book greatly furthered my understanding of why that is the case. Higashida illuminates many complex, deeply personal emotions and insights through a series of short reflections, and shows that readers should not write off or box in him or others on the spectrum because of their diagnoses. This style he employs, using short chapters of personal introspection, successfully conveys aspects of Higashida's thought processes related to his diagnosis. However, he also displays great range of thought and creativity through interspersing beautiful poetry and a longer dreamlike short story. This short story, in particular, was one of the most memorable parts of the book for me because, even though it depicted themes specific to those on the autism-spectrum, it also contained messages that would surely resonate with anyone who has reflected on aspects of the human experience that keep all of us more or less contained within our own minds as individuals. Lastly, I personally connected with the way he begins and ends the book with expressing his desire to show gratitude to his mother for all she has done for him throughout his life. Higashida's story is very inspiring, and one I would definitely recommend for those on the autism spectrum in their lives, and anyone who wishes to better their understandings of what connects us all as humans.