The second book I decided to review is My Brother Charlie by Holly Robinson Peete, Ryan Elizabeth Peete, and Shane W. Evans. This book teaches kids about autism awareness and treating others with kindness. It describes autism in such a way that both children and adults can understand.

Peete, H. & R. et. al. (2010). My Brother Charlie. Scholastic Press, New York.

This book focuses on a young girl, Callie, and her brother Charlie, who has autism. The story follows Callie as she journeys through her triumphs and trials with Charlie as her brother. Callie explains to the reader that although Charlie’s brain works differently than hers, he is still her brother who she loves and cares for. My Brother Charlie does a fantastic job of outlining the effects of autism on a family, both positive and negative, but ultimately showing that a designation does not determine a person.

I think this book would be a great addition to any elementary classroom, regardless if you have students with designations or not. It is important to educate students on topics like autism because it teaches them about acceptance and normalize discussing topics like diversity and inclusion. A student will be able to find themselves identifying with someone in this story, either the relative, friend, classmate, etc. This book makes it accessible for children to learn about autism in a way that is familiar to them – through the eyes of a girl their age. I know I wasn’t educated enough on this topic when I was younger and it’s about time we changed that for the generations to come.

Critiques: I don’t have much to say other than I want to find many more books like this one. I would be interested to read a book based on Charlie’s perspective and how children with autism see the world around them. Moreover I hope to find many more books that discuss designations in children in such a positive and effective way.

I’ve attached this video from Shelley Moore’s “Five Moore Minutes” YouTube channel where she talks about the importance of inclusion in classrooms:

The Evolution of Inclusion: The past and future of education – YouTube

Youtube “The Evolution of Inclusion: The Past and the Future of Education” by Five Moore Minutes