Starting Sensory Therapy: Fun Activities for the Home and Classroom! by Bonnie Arnwine
This is a great little book that I had the pleasure of receiving a review copy to read. I will be finishing up my full review soon, but wanted to list it here just for keeping track of all my books. 
You may already be familiar with Rachel Cohen-Rottenberg as the blog author of Journeys with Autism. Even if you aren’t, I would highly recommend reading this compelling memoir of her life. I was deeply touched by much of what she shared, probably more than you can imagine, and I found her observations on her own coping strategies and on the nature of autism itself to be extremely insightful.
I have had this book on my wish list for quite a while and am so glad that I finally read it. Although the way the text switches back and forth between the two authors and the editor was a bit disconcerting at times, I did appreciate having the perspectives of these two very different people brought together in one discussion on this important topic. The book is aimed primarily at parents and educators of children with autism, but I believe it could be very helpful to teenagers or adults with autism who are reading it for themselves.
There are ten unwritten rules shared in this book, although the first four words of the first rule (“Rules are not absolute”) give you a hint that this is anything but a black-and-white manual. The most helpful part for me was actually in the beginning of the book, where Temple talks about the difference between social skills and emotional relatedness and encourages adults to focus on teaching their child appropriate social behaviors while recognizing and accepting that he or she may not relate to others emotionally in the same way they do.
I have long been a fan of Joanna Trollope, and this recent novel is no exception. When I saw it being reviewed by Elizabeth at 5 Minutes for Books, I immediately added it to my library list and was lucky enough to get it very quickly!
At its center are Anthony and Rachel Brinkley and how they cope with the changes that come as their youngest son follows in his two older brothers’ footsteps by getting married and starting his own life separate from theirs. Although the road is a bit bumpy, in the end the growth in each character brings them to a stronger and truer place in their lives.
I must admit that I, like Wendy, fell in love with Laura Ingalls and her adventures as a young girl. I have read the entire series of Little House books more times than I can count, as well as many related books. Although I am aware that they are not autobiographical, but were rather written to give future generations a sense of what it was like then, I have never pursued that line of thought very far. I simply enjoy being taken away to another time and place.
It was with a bit of trepidation, therefore, that I began reading this account of Ms. McClure’s own exploration of the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder and her family. In a few cases, my feelings were justified; for example, I had not liked Rose Wilder much before this, and I like her even less now. In terms of the book itself, however, I found it to be extremely enjoyable and fascinating. I greatly appreciated the writing style as much as the content and laughed out loud at least a dozen times during the course of the book. I would definitely recommend this book to any and all Little House book fans.
You can see all the books I’ve finished so far this year on the bookshelf on my Books page or read all of my mini reviews by clicking on the 2011 Reads tag. I am also joining in on the Spring Reading Thing hosted by Callapidder Days, and you can see my list of what I plan to read this spring at my SRT11 post.
I'm a mom with Asperger's raising an amazing son with autism, which means I'm basically the case manager/advocate/cheerleader/chauffeur. The rest of the time, you can usually find me with my nose in a book!
