This is my brother. He’s three years younger than me. He is an adorable little brother, with chubby cheeks and eyes so big he sometimes looks silly. But little did I know, when my little brother started primary school, my life would become a disaster. I don’t like it when the bell rings. When I hear the bell, I know trouble is coming. I want to hide so my little brother can never find me.
A little girl dreads recess—the moment her younger brother, who has autism, comes to find her. Set within the rhythms of school, and drawn from the author’s own experience, the book offers an intimate portrait of family bonds. “There wasn’t a single day I didn’t wish for a ‘normal’ little brother,” the author recalls. “I didn’t want to play with him. I pretended I didn’t know him.”
But twenty years later, her perspective has radically shifted. “Even though he could never fit into what society calls ‘normal,’ I think he knows what love is. He can always find joy in the smallest things—counting leaves, arranging stones, gazing into a rainspout for an entire day.” Written for parents, teachers, loved ones of people with special needs, and anybody who has endured silence, this powerful and tender book explores love, shame, and acceptance.