Milly’s Mind: A Peak Inside Autism by Colin and Milly Armstrong

Title: Milly’s Mind: A Peak Inside Autism

Author: Colin and Milly Armstrong

Genre: Non-Fiction

Publisher: Little Steps Publishing

Published: 1^st July 2024

Format:  Paperback

Pages: 48

Price: $26.99

Synopsis: Milly’s Mind is a portrait of a real 11-year-old autistic girl called Milly (my daughter), navigating the first eleven and a half years of life with autism, with honesty and humour. It is written from Milly’s perspective and describes how Milly’s autism first appeared, how Milly perceives life, the challenges, the joys and a look to the future. The book is a celebration of autism (referred to as Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC) in the book) and is split into the following 14 sections:

– Hey! (Intro)
– What is ASC?
– Stimming
– I have my fixations
– Making friends is difficult
– Talking is hard
– Eye contact feels weird!
– Ear covering
– Honesty, literally!
– My meltdowns
– People can be mean
– So much to give
– If I wasn’t me…
– Thank you! (Outro)

~*~

Autism is different for everyone living on its spectrum. Interests vary, the things autistic people do vary, and there are many different things that go hand-in-hand for autistic people. Colin Armstrong’s daughter, Milly, has autism spectrum condition, or ASC – the term they use in their book, and Childhood Apraxia of Speech. Colin has helped Milly write her story in verse and in conversation with his daughter to help tell the world what being autistic is like for her, and how she copes with the world. To help guide readers through Milly’s journey and how to understand her world, they have divided the book into fourteen sections that cover several aspects of autism and how it affects Milly – and what she would like people to understand. It’s written in delightful rhyme making it float gently off the page using simple and evocative language that is accessible to everyone reading the book. They have worked together, with Colin putting Milly’s words onto the page and interpreting them for print. In doing so, it feels as though he captured Milly’s voice as they work through what having autism means for Milly – a term they use throughout the book as Milly works out what terms she wants to use for herself.

These days, I am seeing a lot more positive disability representation in children’s books, and whilst this has largely been written by Colin, the parent of an autistic child, the notes at the start explain why, and I think help readers understand Milly a bit more, before delving into her experiences. I could definitely hear two distinct voices, and I loved Milly’s voice and rhyming sections. There were a few things that I could relate to as an autistic person, and seeing these represented on the page is always a powerful thing for disabled people to see. Books like this can help show how a family helps their autistic family member as well. For people like Milly who might need a bit of extra help with their communication, having someone like her father, Colin, help put her story on the page in what I feel is an accessible way, shows the different ways autistic people navigate the world.

It’s still Milly’s voice. Her father is there too, but he asks questions and is, I think, the audience for Milly as she tells her story. In terms of having more autistic and disabled voices in our literature – not just for children, but for all ages, things are getting started. And Milly’s Mind is one of those books that can help people see the world through the eyes of an autistic person. It can be used as a starting point to help people understand autism, and lead readers to #OwnVoices books by autistic authors – several of which I have reviewed on this blog by fantastic Australian authors Kate Foster and Kay Kerr, just to name a few. Read this book, read books by autistic people – combined, they will give you a better understanding of autistic people and how they relate to the world in so many different ways. Milly’s Mind is just one example of how to understand an autistic mind, and one that I found relatable and loved Milly’s joyful voice.