One family's journey through Autism. See how God healed their bodies, changed their minds and awakened their spirits.

This riveting memoir of extreme loss and unimaginable gain recounts the story of a child who, although unable to expressherself, lives fully aware of her limiting circumstances. Robbed of speech and bodily control, and despite her loving parents’ best efforts to help her, Peyton Goddard suffered neglect and ongoing abuse by many who dismissed her as autistic and severely mentally retarded. No one could have imagined that she possessed a brilliant mind in her uncooperative body until her first opportunity to communicate electronically at age 22 when she typed “i am intlgent,” a breakthrough reminiscent of The Miracle Worker. Today Peyton is following through on her vow to be an advocate on behalf of other devalued people. Her inspirational life helps readers transcend stereotypes and join her in the radical notion that, as she says, “All people are vastly valuable. Treasure all because great is each.”

She looked into my eyes and blinked hers slowly and deliberately, like a stroke victim, to show me that although she couldn't speak, she understood what I was saying to her. I stroked her hair softly. 'I know you're in there, honey,' I told her. 'We'll get you out.'" Despite the horror of seeing fifteen-month-old Elizabeth slip away into autism, her mother knew that her bright little girl was still in there. When Elizabeth eventually learned to communicate, first by using a letterboard and later by typing, the poetry she wrote became proof of a glorious, life-affirming victory for this young girl and her family. I Am in Here is the spiritual journey of a mother and daughter who refuse to give up hope, who celebrate their victories, and who keep trying to move forward despite the obstacles. Although she cannot speak, Elizabeth writes poetry that shines a light on the inner world of autism and the world around us. That poetry and her mother's stirring storytelling combine in this inspirational book to proclaim that there is always a reason to take the next step forward--with hope.

A Celebration of Everyone Who Fulfills Their Purpose Through Unexpected Challenges Until two years of age, Craig and Samantha’s son Connor was just like other kids—playful, verbal, and affectionate. Then everything changed. He stopped talking, displayed behavioral problems, and withdrew into his own world. The official diagnosis—autism. Faced with seemingly insurmountable odds, Craig and Samantha refused to believe a meaningful life for Connor was impossible. God confirmed their faith by revealing to Craig that Connor would one day touch the lives of thousands of people around the world. Craig and Samantha held that unlikely promise in their hearts during the agonizing years ahead. Champion is a spellbinding chronicle of the twists and turns of Connor’s journey—guided by his parent’s steadfast hope in God’s promises. Through the unexpected breaking of their spirits, the Holy Spirit was poured out, culminating in a miracle that has launched a global ministry to the disabled.

"This is a book about autism. Specifically, it is about my autism, which is both like and unlike other people's autism. But just as much, it is a story about how I emerged from the darkness of it into the beauty of it." In this elegant and thought-provoking memoir, Dawn Prince-Hughes traces her personal growth from undiagnosed autism to the moment when, as a young woman, she entered the Seattle Zoo and immediately became fascinated with the gorillas. Having suffered from a lifelong inability to relate to people in a meaningful way, Dawn was surprised to find herself irresistibly drawn to these great primates. By observing them and, later, working with them, she was finally able to emerge from her solitude and connect to living beings in a way she had never previously experienced. Songs of the Gorilla Nation is more than a story of autism, it is a paean to all that is important in life. Dawn Prince-Hughes's evocative story will undoubtedly have a lasting impact, forcing us, like the author herself, to rediscover and assess our own understanding of human emotion.

With powerful words and pictures Florida Frenz chronicles her journey figuring out how to read facial expressions, how to make friends, how to juggle all the social cues that make school feel like a complicated maze. Diagnosed with autism as a two-year-old, Florida is now an articulate 15-year-old whose explorations into how kids make friends, what popularity means, how to handle peer pressure will resonate with any preteen. For those wondering what it's like inside an autistic child's head, Florida's book provides amazing insight and understanding. Reading how she learns how to be human makes us all feel a little less alien.

An urgent, funny, shocking, and impassioned memoir by the winner of the Spectrum Art Prize 2018, How To Be Autistic presents the rarely shown point of view of someone living with autism. Poe's voice is confident, moving and often funny, as she reveals to us a very personal account of autism, mental illness, gender and sexual identity. As we follow Charlotte's journey through school and college, we become as awestruck by her extraordinary passion for life as by the enormous privations that she must undergo to live it. From food and fandom, to body modification and comic conventions, Charlotte's experiences through the torments of schooldays and young adulthood leave us with a riot of conflicting emotions: horror, empathy, despair, laugh-out-loud amusement and, most of all, respect.