Everything I Know

Excellent book about Mia, who’s autistic, dealing with the challenges of moving to a new city with her parents. Mia likes wearing her headphones because they block the noise, but at her new school she’s not ready to put them on. The day Mia decides to wear them, a teacher takes them away. Mia says nothing and watches kids stare at her. When she does get them back, she tells the secretary I’m autistic. Kids hear and stare and talk about her. Mia is tired of being different and letting her mom down who is always telling her to be brave. Will things get better at school? Will she make a new friend?

Thank you to NetGalley, Rosen Publishing Group, West 44 Books, and Claudia Recinos Seldeen for the opportunity to read Everything I Know in exchange for an honest review. 

From the author of Catch Me if I Fall comes another brilliant novel-in-verse. Everything I Know is about Mia, who shares her perspective on what it is like to be an autistic teen. I will be referring to her as autistic, as opposed to a person with autism, because that is the preferred term for people of that demographic, as is is a part of who they are. There is much debate over the politically correct way or polite way to refer to someone who is autistic, and I want to respect those who are by using their preferred terminology.

Mia loves her dad's description of what it is like to be autistic. Those who are all represent a different color, because their brains are all wired a bit differently, like how the colors of a rainbow are so diverse. Mia points out her own quirks that make her unique, such as counting the number of steps from one place to another, hating the squish of grapes, shaking her hands in excitement when she is full of too much energy, or the need to use headphones to block out the world.

When Mia's dad gets a new job at MIT, she is devastated to leave behind her best friend and her physics club, but she is also excited for her new routine, because it means going with her dad to MIT three times a week to the physics department, her favorite subject in school. She has even read the department head's major non-fiction publication!

Where Mia lived before, everyone knew her and that autism was a part of who she is. They never questioned it or found her weird because they all grew up together in her small town. In her new city, people look at her strangely and find her mannerisms to be a bit off. But she loves who she is, and when she is ready to share that she is autistic, she finds comfort in the true understanding that people can show.

Two things irked me about the characters in this book. As a teacher who thoroughly enjoys working with autistic students, I was furious when one of Mia's teachers took away her headphones. To be fair, the teacher didn't know about Mia being autistic and just how important those headphones are for her to function. I was also annoyed at the mom. The dad was very understanding of his daughter's autism and knew what to do or not to do to make sure she is comfortable and happy. The mom, on the other hand, did seem oblivious at times, though it just seems that Mia maybe preferred sharing things with her dad over her mom, because of that closer understanding connection between them. I find it is very important to understand how one's thinking process works and how that is a part of who they are, especially if they are autistic.

This novel was very fun to read and was a great way to share the perspective of how an autistic teen may think and go about their day. It helps shed light and understanding on these differences and how important it is to be accepting of people for who they are and to find confidence in onself to explore self-expression on an individual level. And absolutely brilliant book I highly recommend for a teen audience, parents, and educators alike.

Another fantastic novel in verse from C.R.S! I love Claudia's writing, especially her use of similes :) The story is well-paced, and I love how there's so many call backs to previous moments as the novel progresses - there are no loose ends, and it seems like every character, great or small, has purpose within the story. Some moments were pretty hard hitting, but handled well by the author. It's awesome to see more autistic representation in novels :) ... Aaaaand I absolutely adore Mia's friendship with Chris 🥰

This is a great book. I love hearing about how the main character manages her differences and learns to cope in new surroundings with different people.