One of the books that I chose to read was entitled, “look me in the eye” by John Elder Robinson. This story is one of John’s life, his trials and triumphs of living and dealing with Asperger’s. His struggles are seen most predominantly in relation to other people, in trying to fit into a world that simply doesn’t accept him. The book takes us through his life, piece by piece with his memories of what he has gone through. As a young child, John tries to make friends in all the wrong ways, highlighting his struggle with social skills. More than trying to live and deal daily with problems, his home life is more than hard. He learns to be self-reliant with little to no help from family and having no friends.
He deals with abuse and neglect as well as the aftermath, the emotional toll that these actions took on him. He acts out by pulling “pranks” on people because of the hurt and rejection that others had shown him all of his life. But these actions turn into incidents that are more than pranks, they are events that could have gotten him in serious trouble. Other situations that put John in a frustrating predicament is his expression of emotions. He has a hard time controlling his facial expressions and this creates problems for those who do not know him, who think he may be being rude or disrespectful instead of realizing he sees the situations in a different light. His entire life, however more so in school, was marked by being labeled. In his childhood they knew little to nothing about Asperger’s and therefore there was little to no help for him. It is not until the end of high school where he can put his talents and abilities, as he is good with mechanical things, to use in the work force.
He learns through experience, good and bad, trying to find himself and where he belongs in this world. He tries to figure himself out in a sense by learning his abilities, his strengths and weaknesses. But it is a long road for John as he doesn’t learn about himself fully until he is in his 40’s. He is finally diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome. This brings not only relief but a confirmation that he is different and it is ok. He never knew that he had a problem he just assumed that he was different from other children his age. He comes to see that society, in relation to an individual, need to be more accepting, to help those who are different not cast them out. Giving a reason and meaning to his life up until that point, he realizes that his social hardships and the problems with making friends were not really his fault but the result of a neurological disorder. He ultimately find his place in life, right where he is, is right where he belongs, a hard-working loving caring individual with a family who care and love him back.
This book was really interesting. I don’t know if I would read this again or recommend it in relation to the other books I have read, but it offers an interesting insight into a life of not just an individual but an adult with Asperger’s. I do believe that his experience, one that we all hate to see happen, that he was a young child dealing with his undiagnosed Asperger’s with no help from anyone in his life. He was pushed through school and life by not only the people around him but by the choices he made. These choices, whether good or bad, have made him who he is and John is not apologizing for being the man he is today. He owns who he is whether that involves the name Asperger’s or not, he is a strong person who inspired a lot of hope in readers that although life is filled with struggles it is those struggles that help us to appreciate the joyful moments and truly live.
Asperger’s was seen in a unique way in this book, and I believe he was reliving and dealing with his life all over again through the written story. I think this book offers readers familiar or not with Asperger’s a chance to see things from a new perspective, and this enables more people to become understanding promoting education on those who are deemed “different” everyday.
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