Ian's Walk: A Story About Autism By Laurie Lears

Lears, Laurie. Ian's Walk: A Story About Autism. Morton Grove, IL: Albert Whitman & Company, 1998.

In "Ian's Walk" by Laurie Lears, a young girl named Julie tells the story of her big sister Tara and her younger brother Ian who has autism. In the story, the narrator describes how her brother is different in many ways such as how he sees, hears, smells, feels, and taste things. For example, Ian does not like the feel of a soft feather tickling his chin but instead prefers the feel of his cheek "pressed against hard stones." During this first part of the book the narrator describes how Ian makes her angry and how she does not want him looking silly in front of other people. However, her attitude changes after she does not pay attention and Ian goes missing in the park. Once Julie and Tara find Ian, Julie decides to walk home with her brother in the way he likes, stopping to press their cheeks against stones and watch the fans in the diner.

I decided to include this book in my collection for a couple of major reasons. First, I believe that the character development within the book is great. the story is clearly about autism but instead of merely giving facts about autism, the characters, namely Julie grow as the story continues. At the beginning of the story Julie is embarrassed by Ian's "weird" behavior but once he becomes lost, Julie learns to appreciate Ian and the differences he brings to the world. Another reason why I chose this book was due to the Note About Autism at the beginning of the story. Carol P. Rolland, Ph.D who is a Chief Psychologist and involved in Developmental Pediatrics and Mary Kay McGuire, M.A. who is the Sibling Program Director at the Illinois Masonic Medical Center have written this note to discuss autism as well as how siblings of persons with autism have extra challenges and responsibilities in their lives. The last reason why I chose this book was due to author Laurie Lears background with these certain issues. She is a kindergarten teacher and has written many children's stories on issues such as epilepsy, autism, and cerebral palsy. Ian's Walk has also won the Dolly Gray Children's Literature Award on Developmental Disabilities. Overall, this picture book is a great starter book for discussing how children are different in many different aspects.