How To Be Autistic

Poe's voice is confident, moving and often funny, as she reveals to us a very personal account of autism, mental illness, gender and sexual identity. As we follow Charlotte's journey through school and college, we become as awestruck by her extraordinary passion for life as by the enormous privations that she must undergo to live it. From food and fandom, to body modification and comic conventions, Charlotte's experiences through the torments of schooldays and young adulthood leave us with a riot of conflicting emotions: horror, empathy, despair, laugh-out-loud amusement and, most of all, respect. For Charlotte, autism is a fundamental aspect of her identity and art. She addresses her reader in a voice that is direct, sharply clever and ironic. She witnesses her own behaviour with a wry humour as she sympathises with those who care for her, yet all the while challenging the neurotypical narratives of autism as something to be `fixed'. `I wanted to show the side of autism that you don't find in books and on Facebook. My story is about survival, fear and, finally, hope. There will be parts that make you want to cover your eyes, but I beg you to read on, because if I can change just one person's perceptions, if I can help one person with autism feel like they're less alone, then this will all be worth it.' This is an exuberant, inspiring, life-changing insight into autism from a viewpoint almost entirely missing from public discussion.

About the Author :
Charlotte Amelia Poe is a self-taught artist and writer living in Lowestoft, Suffolk. She also works with video, and won the inaugural Spectrum Art Prize with the film she submitted, `How To Be Autistic'

Review :
"Raw and remarkable" The Guardian; "The most explicit expression of having that condition. I have never heard it quite articulated like that." Turner prize-winner Mark Wallinger, Spectrum Prize judge; "Charlotte shows us both the desperate and bleak angle to autism, as well as the beautiful side." Professor Simon Baron Cohen; ‘A passionate, hugely articulate argument for the acceptance of difference. Every teacher, every parent, every person should read this book.'—Meg Rosoff; 'I hardly ever read non-fiction so this was a little bit out of my comfort zone but Charlotte’s writing style is so raw and true and flows so well that I absolutely raced through it. Autism is so underrepresented, so to read a book written by someone with autism who has experienced so many of the things I’m going through is such a comfort.' Jodie Loves Books; 'The book overall is a fantastic, sometimes harrowing read which does not talk down to you and really feels like Charlotte is there with you, telling you these things. If you are looking for a great, no-nonsense memoir which does not gloss over anything, this is the book for you.' Ambitious about Autism; 'How to be Autistic is a call to action: raw, honest, often deeply frustrating, ultimately hopeful. Poe’s impassioned call to "create something beautiful" is a rare positive message aimed directly at autistic readers who may find aspects of their own experience reflected in these pages, and hope for a future that may not always seem bright. ' Eris Young, The Skinny; 'I blew through this thing in under a week. It’s an incredibly candid, impassioned account that’s as difficult to put down as it was sometimes to read. But it was also funny, hopeful and most of all human.' Turnaround 2019 Nonfiction Staff Picks; 'Sassy, honest and enlightening.' The Bookseller