Rules

Lord, C. (2008). Rules. NY: Scholastic Paperbacks.

This book entails the story of a twelve-year-old girl named Catherine living with her autistic brother David. Catherine comes up with a list of rules that according to her will help David survive out in the real world. Catherine is blinded by the ideal of having “normal” friends and a “normal” life where she is not embarrassed by her brother’s behavior. She tries desperately to become Kristi’s friend. However, Kristi and Ryan are rude to her brother and Jason. Therefore, Catherine is torn between having “normal” friends and defending David and Jason. With the help of Jason, Catherine learns to accept a new perspective of what “normal” means, and starts to value her relationships with Jason and her brother. She learns to accept them regardless of their disabilities.

Lord incorporated vivid vocabulary that captivated the reader's attention and facilitated a better understanding of the characters and character relationships. The structure and sequence of the novel is easy to follow and facilitates the reader’s comprehension. This novel exposes several themes such as acceptance, disabilities, compassion, friendship, autism, and diversity. This book offers several topics that world wide audiences can relate to. This book is a great tool to be used to teach acceptance and to raise awareness about issues people with disabilities face.

Similar books:

• The War That Saved My Life by Laura Marsh

• A Girl Like Tilly: Growing up with Autism by Helen Bates

• Ian's Walk: A Story about Autism by Laurie Lears

From the same author:

• Because of the Rabbit

• Book Buddies: Ivy Lost and Found

• A Handful of Stars

Book trailer:

• https://youtu.be/5K6cFgcaaGM