This was a well-researched, empathetic, and personal look at autism from a journalist who is himself autistic. Also a third-generation Mexican American, Garcia gave a fantastic primer on the different intersections of identity that come into play with autism, looking at race, gender, sexuality, and more. He talked candidly and with honesty about his own past missteps, even as someone who has autism, offering a model for growth and increased understanding. This growth is even more important to consider as we think about how (relatively) quickly nomenclature and verbiage around disabilities in general and autism in particular change. He interviewed a diverse group of autistic people, all with a range of different support needs, which a lesser journalist/writer (or even more egregiously, someone not in the community themselves) would have found it easy to not do. My one qualm is one that I'm not even sure is one with the book itself, or my mood, but there were some moments where I felt like the writing could have been tightened up a bit.

It was especially poignant to read this as disability rights are in the news in a big way, with one of the most famous pop stars in the world fighting to regain control of her own life after over a decade of having decisions made for her by people who financially benefit from those decisions. I'm so frustrated and angered that this is the current situation, but I'm hopeful that we are moving towards disability justice with books like Garcia's and other texts like Alice Wong's edited Disability Visibility. I would highly recommend for anyone interested in learning more about autism from autistic folks directly.

Thanks to HMH and Netgalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.