Autism, My Brother and Me

1 January 2022
Family Life

Hello, my name is Amelie and I am 9 years old. I have always wanted to have a book published, but I didn’t realise I would get to do that so soon! My first book, called Autism, My Brother and Me, was published in September.

Did you know that over 700,000 people in the UK have autism? That includes my little brother, Harry. I decided to write a book to try and help other children (and grown-ups) understand what it is like to live with this condition. Autism, My Brother and Me is designed to help other children and adults understand what autism is and how they can help.

People who have autism can behave differently to other people. For example, sometimes Harry screams or does other odd things. It’s hard for people to understand but you have to try. I feel most comfortable with Harry when we are at home because Harry is most comfortable there. Sometime, when we are out, Harry can get upset or stressed and people stare. I feel a bit embarrassed. I don’t think other people always know why he reacts the way that he does. However, when we are at home, we play together and Harry’s lots of fun. I try to make up games based on what he likes. We sing songs, I read to him and we make each other laugh. Mum and dad say I get into Harry’s world with him!

I wrote my book because I believe that if everyone understood more about autism, the world would be a better place. It took me a while to write as I like writing lots of different things, fiction mostly, but my mum and dad encouraged me to finish it. When it was all written by hand, my mum typed it up (because I’m not very fast at typing). Meanwhile, at school, a friend and I took part in the Fiver Challenge where you raise money for charity. We made book marks and sold them at school. We decided to give the money we raised to autism charity Sparkle Sheffield. When Liesje came in to school to collect the cheque, I also gave her a home-made version of my book. She loved it and passed it on to Dee Dah Publishing who decided to publish it.

I even got to have a book launch for my book at the South Yorkshire Autism Fayre at Magna. It was fun meeting lots of different people there, but the best bit was taking some unicorns for a walk!

We are now selling copies of my book. We’ve even sold two copies to people in America! It’s amazing to think that the book I first wrote in pencil and felt-tip pens is now a real, proper book and is helping people I have never met to understand a bit more about autism.

Autism, My Brother and Me is now for sale on Etsy. https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/720283414/autism-my-brother-and-me?ref=listings_manager_grid priced £5.99