According to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1 in 36 children are diagnosed with autism. Despite the prevalence in society, many of the books published about autism are written by neurotypical authors. But recently, more voices are being added to the conversation.

Through the autistic acceptance movement and the growth of online advocacy like hashtag #ActuallyAutistic and Autistics Speaking Day, people within the community are expressing themselves on their own terms. Instead of just focusing on autism awareness in April, there's a shift toward autism acceptance—validating an identity that’s to be respected and embraced, and empowering children to have pride in and celebrate our individual differences.

For more perspectives about life on the spectrum, browse these books about neurodiversity or featuring neurodivergent characters:

All the Little Bird-Hearts by Vikoria Lloyd-Barlow

Sunday Forrester does things more carefully than most people. On certain days, she must eat only white food; she drinks only carbonated beverages; she avoids clocks. It's 1988, before autism was widely diagnosed. Sunday has an old etiquette handbook that guides her through confusing social situations, and to escape, she turns to her treasury of Sicilian folklore. The one thing very much out of her control is Dolly, her clever, headstrong teenage daughter, now on the cusp of leaving their home in the Lake District of England. When the glamourous Vita and Rollo move in next door, the couple disarm Sunday with their charm, and proceed to deliciously break just about every rule in Sunday's book. Soon they are spending loads of time together, and Sunday feels acknowledged like never before. But underneath Vita and Rollo's allure lies something else, something darker. For Sunday has precisely what Vita has always wanted for herself: A daughter of her own.

Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8: A Young Man's Voice from the Silence of Autism by Naoki Higashida

Naoki Higashida was only 13 when he wrote The Reason I Jump, a revelatory account of autism from the inside by a nonverbal Japanese child. Now, he shares his thoughts and experiences as a young man living each day with autism. In short, powerful chapters, Higashida explores school memories, family relationships, the exhilaration of travel and the difficulties of speech. He allows readers to experience profound moments we take for granted, like the thought-steps necessary for him to register that it’s raining outside. Acutely aware of how strange his behavior can appear to others, he aims throughout to foster a better understanding of autism and to encourage society to see people with disabilities as people, not as problems.

Good Different by Meg Eden Kuyatt

Selah knows her rules for being normal. She always, always sticks to them. This means keeping her feelings locked tightly inside, despite the way they build up inside her as each school day goes on, so that she has to run to the bathroom and hide in the stall until she can calm down. So that she has to tear off her normal-person mask the second she gets home from school, and listen to her favorite pop song on repeat, trying to recharge. Selah feels like a dragon stuck in a world of humans, but she knows how to hide it. Until the day she explodes and hits a fellow student. Selah's friends pull away from her, her school threatens expulsion, and her comfortable, familiar world starts to crumble. But as Selah starts to figure out more about who she is, she comes to understand that different doesn't mean damaged. Can she get her school to understand that, too, before it's too late?

A Day with No Words by Tiffany Hammond

This colorful and engaging picture book for young readers shares what life can look like for families who use nonverbal communication, utilizing tools to embrace their unique method of "speaking." The story highlights the bond between mother and child and follows them on a day where they use a tablet to communicate with others. Written by an autistic mother of two autistic sons and the creator behind the popular @Fidgets.and.Fries social media platform and illustrated by Kate Cosgrove, A Day with No Words successfully normalizes communication methods outside of verbal speech and provides representation of neurodiversity and autism in a way that affirms and celebrates.

Untypical: How the World Isn't Built for Autistic People and What We Should Do About It by Pete Wharmby

It's time to remake the world – the ground-breaking book on what steps we should all be taking for the autistic people in our lives. The modern world is built for neurotypicals: Needless noise, bright flashing lights, small talk, phone calls, unspoken assumptions and unwritten rules – it can be a nightmarish dystopia for the autistic population. In Untypical, Pete Wharmby lays bare the experience of being "different," explaining with wit and warmth just how exhausting it is to fit in to a world not designed for you. But this book is more than an explanation. After a late diagnosis and a lifetime of "masking," Pete is the perfect interlocutor to explain how our two worlds can meet, and what we can do for the many autistic people in our schools, workplaces, and lives. The result: A practical handbook for all of us to make the world a simpler, better place for autistic people to navigate, and a call to arms for anyone who believes in an inclusive society and wants to be part of the solution.

Different Kinds of Minds by Temple Grandin

Do you like puzzles, coding, and taking things apart? Do you write stories, act in plays, slay at Wordle? The things you are good at are clues to how your brain works. Are you good at math? Working with your hands? Are you a neat freak or a big mess?

With her knack for making science easy to understand, Temple Grandin explains different types of thinkers: Verbal thinkers who are good with language, and visual thinkers who think in pictures and patterns. You'll discover all kinds of minds and how we need to work together to create solutions to help solve real-world problems.

Odd Girl Out: My Extraordinary Autistic Life by Laura James

With a touching and searing honesty, Laura challenges everything we think we know about what it means to be autistic. Married with four children and a successful journalist, Laura examines the ways in which autism has shaped her career, her approach to motherhood and her closest relationships. Laura's upbeat, witty writing offers new insight into day-to-day life, as her extreme attention to sensory detail—a common aspect of her autism—is fascinating to observe through her eyes. As Laura grapples with defining her own identity, she also looks at the unique benefits neurodiversity can bring.

Sincerely, Your Autistic Child: What People on the Autism Spectrum Wish Their Parents Knew About Growing Up, Acceptance, and Identity by Emily Paige Ballou

Most resources available for parents come from psychologists, educators and doctors, offering parents a narrow and technical approach to autism. This book represents an authentic resource for parents written by autistic people themselves, tackling the everyday joys and challenges of growing up while honestly addressing the emotional needs, sensitivity and vibrancy of autistic kids, youth and young adults. Contributors reflect on what they have learned while growing up on the autism spectrum and how parents can avoid common mistakes and overcome challenges while raising their child. Part memoir, part guide and part love letter, Sincerely, Your Autistic Child is an indispensable collection that invites parents and allies into the unique and often unheard experiences of autistic children and teens.

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*Title availability varies by library & region.