Neurodiversity Booklist

Recommended reads for children and teens

Updated May 8, 2024
W
Winnipeg Public Library
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Thunder and the noise storms
Ansloos, Jeffrey Paul
A Nov/Dec Loan Stars Jr Top Ten Pick 2021! A Blue Spruce Award nominee 2021! When the world gets too loud and chaotic, a young boy's grandfather helps him listen with wonder instead.    Kids laughing, sneakers squeaking, balls bouncing--for Thunder, the sounds...
Also available as an eBook.
I am a masterpiece! : an empowering story about inclusivity and growing up with Down Syndrome
Armstrong, Mia
Tween actress Mia Armstrong celebrates her fun, funny, beautiful childhood living with Down syndrome in this debut picture book. Mia likes many of the things other people like--going to the beach, the color blue, drawing. But she doesn't like when strangers stare at her because...
Different : a great thing to be!
Avis, Heather
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER . This joyful rhyming book encourages children to value the "different" in all people, leading the way to a kinder world in which the differences in all of us are celebrated and embraced. Macy is a girl who's a lot like you and me, but she's also...
Aaron Slater, illustrator
Beaty, Andrea
Aaron Slater loves listening to stories and dreams of one day writing them himself. But when it comes to reading, the letters just look like squiggles to him, and it soon becomes clear he struggles more than his peers. When his teacher asks each child in the class to write a story, Aaron can't...
A day with no words
Hammond, Tiffany
An instant #1 New York Times bestselling picture book and Dolly Gray Award winner! A Day With No Words invites readers into the life of an Autism Family who communicates just as the child does, without spoken language. The American Library Association Booklist...
I am odd, I am new
Giroux, Benjamin
"I am odd, I am new. I wonder if you are too. I hear voices in the air. I see you don't, and that's not fair." Step into the world of Benjamin Giroux, a 10-year-old boy with autism, as he invites readers to see life from his perspective. In this picture book, Benjamin's poem, which he...
The unstoppable Jamie
Givens, Joy
Inspired by the author's son, the story of a boy with Down syndrome who goes on a superhero's journey to New York City and learns what truly makes him unstoppable. Jamie likes to pretend he's a superhero. With his cape and gadgets, he feels like he can face anything. When his...
Malik's number thoughts : a story about OCD
Rompella, Natalie
A determined boy learns to manage his OCD. Malik's obsessive-compulsive disorder means his brain wants him to do everything on the count of four. When he's invited to a minigolf birthday party, Malik is excited. But he worries about his Number Thoughts. If he has to take four...
Ma maison-tête
Vigg
Lost inside my head
Vigg
★"A celebration of hope, resilience, and the power of ­self-acceptance that will resonate with readers of all ages...A work that depicts ­vividly what the mind of a person with ADHD experiences...Highly recommended." -- School Library Journal How is Vincent supposed to focus...
Bitsy bat, school star
Windness, Kaz
Three starred reviews! A little bat struggles to fit in only to learn to celebrate differences in this "darling book for all children but especially those with autism" (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) from Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor-winning author-illustrator Kaz...
Figure it out, Henri Weldon
Davis, Tanita S.
Tanita S. Davis, author of Partly Cloudy and Serena Says, has written another funny, warm story featuring middle school and family life--all about the complex calculations it takes for everyone to balance the equations of their lives and what it takes to be part of a team while...
The u-nique Lou Fox
Carmichael, Jodi
Award-winning author Jodi Carmichael, who has ADHD herself, affirms and celebrates those who struggle with their uniqueness and triumphantly discover its gifts It isn't easy being Louisa Elizabeth Fitzhenry-O'Shaughnessy--especially with dyslexia. She prefers Lou Fox, the dream name she'll...

Also available as an eBook.

Canadian author.

Fifty-Four Things Wrong with Gwendolyn Rogers
Carter, Caela
From the critically acclaimed author of the ALA Notable and Charlotte Huck Honor Book Forever, or a Long, Long Time comes a moving own-voices story that shines a light on how one girl's learning differences are neither right nor wrong...just perfectly individual. For fans of Alyson Gerber,...
Just roll with it
Durfey-Lavoie, Lee
Starting middle school is hard enough when you don't know anyone; it's even harder when you're shy. A contemporary middle-grade graphic novel for fans of Guts and Real Friends about how dealing with anxiety and OCD can affect everyday life. As long as Maggie rolls...
Good different
Kuyatt, Meg Eden
  A debut novel-in-verse about understanding and celebrating your own difference. Selah knows her rules for being normal. 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...
Also available as an eBook.
Honestly Elliott
McDunn, Gillian
Schneider Family Book Award: Best Middle Grade Honor Book! Highly-acclaimed author of Caterpillar Summer, Gillian McDunn explores boyhood in a funny, big-hearted story about a kid trying to find the best way to be his best self. ...
Growing pangs
Ormsbee, Kathryn.
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY NPR Introducing an irresistibly relatable graphic novel about friendship and growing up, "an excellent companion to Raina Telgemeier's Guts and Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham's Real Friends series."-Booklist, Starred...
Also available as an eBook.
Jude saves the world
Riley, Ronnie
Perfect for fans of Alex Gino, A. J. Sass, and Kyle Lukoff, this is the joyful and heartwarming story of Jude, a nonbinary kid who knows exactly who they are and decides to create a safe space in their community. Twelve-year-old Jude struggles with some things: focusing at school, feeling like...
Canadian author.
Buzzing
Sattin, Samuel
A 2024 ALA Notable Children's Book and New York Public Library Best Book of 2023! ★ "Heartwarming [and] authentic" --Shelf Awareness, starred review  "A sweet story that fans of Raina Telgemeier will enjoy." ―School Library Journal<...
Also available as an eBook.
At the Speed of Gus
Scrimger, Richard
A smartly funny and sympathetic story about being different and finding your way. Meet the compelling, charismatic 13-year-old Augustus Constantine, a boy whose mind (and mouth) operate at a different speed than the rest of society. Gus has ADHD, and he's on medication to help him focus....

Also available as an eBook.

Canadian author.

Wonderfully wired brains
Gooding, Louise
An informative and inclusive children's guide to neurodiversity for those not in the know and to inspire children who are neurodivergent. Our brains are unique in the way they function, work, and think. Neurodiversity is still a relatively 'new' concept that can be tricky to...
The autistic guide to adventure : active pursuits from archery to wild swimming for tweens and teens
Mason, Allie
It's time for a new generation of autistic adventurers! Outdoor adventuring can be life changing - it makes you physically and mentally stronger, takes you to new places and introduces you to new friends, as well as being an exhilarating challenge - but it can be stressful...
Rebel Girls celebrate neurodiversity : 25 tales of creative thinkers
Mallory, Shadae
TRUE STORIES OF NEURODIVERGENT ICONS This collection features 25 inspiring tales of neurodivergent artists, athletes, innovators, and more. Read about how these women and girls thought creatively, achieved their dreams, and advocated for the rights of neurodivergent people...
My brain needs glasses : ADHD explained to kids
Vincent, Annick
I'll tell you a secret about me: ever since I was little, I've had a tendency to get "spaced out." My ideas jump around like popcorn. It 's hard to keep my concentration when my thoughts a re banging a round in my head like bumper cars... Here is the updated edition of this...
Something more
Khalilieh, Jackie
Fifteen-year-old Jessie, a quirky loner obsessed with the nineties, is diagnosed as autistic just weeks before starting high school. Determined to make a fresh start and keep her diagnosis a secret, Jessie creates a list of goals that range from acquiring two distinct eyebrows to getting a magical...

Also available as an eBook.

Canadian author.

The Luis Ortega Survival Club
Reyes, Sonora
From the bestselling author of the National Book Award Finalist The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School comes a revenge story told with nuance, heart, and the possibility of healing. An ideal next read for fans of Laurie Halse Anderson. Ariana Ruiz wants to be noticed. But as an autistic...
I got you babe
Coccia, Paul
This year's fun fair will have a Pride Carnival theme and twelve-year-old Mac couldn't be more excited. Mac convinces his best friend, Amy, to do a Sonny and Cher drag number. He has their outfits all planned out, right down to the bellbottoms and fur vests. And he wants their performance...

Hi-Lo Fiction.

Canadian author.

Racing hearts
Di Lorenzo, Melinda
To honor the death of her best friend, teen Sienna signs up to do a triathlon and finds a connection with an unexpected training partner in this body-positive romance exploring first love, grief, perseverance and trusting in yourself. Five months ago, Sienna Shoring lost her best friend,...

Hi-Lo Fiction.

Canadian author.

Below the surface
Finley, Allison
A thirteen-year-old boy finds a pocket watch linked to a local legend about a lost treasure. Theo is happy spending his summer searching the river for treasure. Even if he mostly just finds empty cans and fishing lures. But when he discovers a pocket watch in the waters beneath a bridge...

Hi-Lo Fiction.

Canadian author.

He who dreams
Florence, Melanie
Juggling soccer, school, friends and family leaves John with little time for anything else. But one day at the local community center, following the sound of drums, he stumbles into an Indigenous dance class. Before he knows what's happening, John finds himself stumbling through beginner classes...

Hi-Lo Fiction.

Also available as an eBook and in DAISY format.

Canadian author.

Dropped!
Kuipers, Alice
Dex is dropped onto a deserted tropical island to be a player in a social media competition. Dex is one of six contestants on Dropped!, an internet reality show. He's glad to escape his real life after being dumped by his girlfriend, Lola, and destroying his social life. He and the other...

Hi-Lo Fiction.

Canadian author.

The crosswood
Prendergast, Gabrielle
In the first book of the Faerie Woods series, Blue must find his way into the magical forest known as the Crosswood and through the dangerous Faerie lands beyond it. Fourteen-year-old Blue Jasper takes his younger siblings, twins Indigo and Violet, out for a hike to give their mother a...

Hi-Lo Fiction.

Also available as an eBook.

Canadian author.


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