The Reason I Jump Lib/E: The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year-Old Boy with Autism

You' ve never read a book like The Reason I Jump. Written by Naoki Higashida, a very smart, very self-aware, and very charming thirteen-year-old boy with autism, it is a one-of-a-kind memoir that demonstrates how an autistic mind thinks, feels, perceives, and responds in ways few of us can imagine. Parents and family members who never thought they could get inside the head of their autistic loved one at last have a way to break through to the curious, subtle, and complex life within. Using an alphabet grid to painstakingly construct words, sentences, and thoughts that he is unable to speak out loud, Naoki answers even the most delicate questions that people want to know. Questions such as: " Why do people with autism talk so loudly and weirdly?" " Why do you line up your toy cars and blocks?" " Why don' t you make eye contact when you' re talking?" and " What' s the reason you jump?" (Naoki' s answer: " When I' m jumping, it' s as if my feelings are going upward to the sky." ) With disarming honesty and a generous heart, Naoki shares his unique point of view on not only autism but life itself. His insights-- into the mystery of words, the wonders of laughter, and the elusiveness of memory-- are so startling, so strange, and so powerful that you will never look at the world the same way again. In his introduction, bestselling novelist David Mitchell writes that Naoki' s words allowed him to feel, for the first time, as if his own autistic child was explaining what was happening in his mind. " It is no exaggeration to say that The Reason I Jump allowed me to round a corner in our relationship." This translation was a labor of love by David and his wife, KA Yoshida, so they' d be able to share that feeling with friends, the wider autism community, and beyond. Naoki' s book, in its beauty, truthfulness, and simplicity, is a gift to be shared.

About the Author :
Naoki Higashida was born in 1992 and was diagnosed with autism at the age of five. He graduated from high school in 2011 and lives in Kimitsu, Japan. He is an advocate, motivational speaker, and the author of several books of fiction and nonfiction. David Mitchell is the award-winning and bestselling author of The Bone Clocks and The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, named a best book of the year by Time, Washington Post, Financial Times, New Yorker, Globe and Mail, and the New York Times. He has been nominated for the Man Booker Prize five times and hailed as "the novelist who's shown us fiction's future" (Washington Post), as well as named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time in 2007. He lives in Ireland with his wife and two children. Tom Picasso is a voice over artist, actor, and singer originally from Kansas City. He is currently the voice of COZI TV, a new cable channel from NBCUniversal that premiered in January 2013 where he records all their ads and tags for the network. He can also be heard on the audiobooks for Hal Clement's Ocean on Top and Ardath Mayhar's YA novel The Door in the Hill. He holds an MFA in Acting from the Case Western University/Cleveland Play House and has appeared in numerous shows off-broadway and regionally.

Review :

"Astonishing. The Reason I Jump builds one of the strongest bridges yet constructed between the world of autism and the neurotypical world...There are many more questions I'd like to ask Naoki, but the first words I'd say to him are 'thank you.'"

"Small but profound...[Higashida's] startling, moving insights offer a rare look inside the autistic mind."

"This book...will stretch your vision of what it is to be human."

"This is the fascinating, frenetic, and emotionally affecting autobiography of a thirteen-year-old Japanese boy on the autistic spectrum. Ably introduced and translated by writer David Mitchell, who himself has a son with autism, it is presented in the form of brief answers to innocuous questions posed by laypersons...This exceptional listen will find an appreciative audience among all individuals affected by autism as it succeeds wildly at creating empathy and understanding.."

"We have our received ideas, we believe they correspond roughly to the way things are, then a book comes along that simply blows all this so-called knowledge out of the water. This is one of them...An entry into another world."

"Wise, beautiful, intimate, and courageous."