“It’s like people have a place in their brain for normal, and they have a place in their brain for something obviously wrong, but they can’t deal with something just a little bit different. And that makes them uncomfortable. And when people are uncomfortable, they act like jerks.”
-Claire LaZebnik, Things I Should Have Known
Chloe knew that her sister was lonely, and the only way to cure her loneliness was to help her make some friends–maybe even set her up on a date. So, she tries to play matchmaker, setting up Ivy (who is on the autism spectrum) with another boy from her special needs class, Ethan. However, Ivy and Ethan refuse to go out on their own, forcing Chloe to interact with Ethan’s brother, David. The four quickly form a bond, making Chloe rethink her own romantic choices and realize it’s okay not to follow everyone else’s expectations.
Portrayals of autistic characters in YA literature is pretty non-existent–in fact, besides this book, I can’t think of a book that has an autistic character off the top of my head. The fact that this book exists does inspire hope for the future, though, and YA fiction is slowly starting to become more inclusive. But that doesn’t mean that it still doesn’t have a long way to go.
LaZebnik’s creates really realistic characters in her novel, and while it would be even more progressive to have the book narrated by the autistic character, she shows the lengths siblings will go to in order to make their own sisters or brothers feel safe. The character that most intrigued me was David, who had two totally different sides depending on the people he was dealing with. He felt incredibly real to me, and once we learn his backstory,
There’s also a twist in the story that adds even more diversity (one of the characters ends up being gay), and is done in a realistic way. Though stories that deal with this many challenges might become bogged down by the negative aspects of the situation, this story still remains funny, endearing, and hopeful, making it even more true to life. This book definitely deserves more hype than it originally got–and I hope more people are able to discover it.
4/5 stars