Many parents can tell you that it is very difficult to answer the complex and often emotionally filTo help families with this area of connectedness and to help educators with their ability to increase their students’ understanding and compassion, I wrote two children’s illustrated bilingual autism books: Keisha’s Doors: An Autism Story Book One/ Las Puertas de Keisha: Una Historia de Autismo Libro Uno (ISBN: 1-933319-00-3) and Tacos Anyone? An Autism Story Book Two/ ¿Alquien Quiere Tacos? Una Historia de Autismo Libro Dos (1-933319-02-X).
The stories are written in English and Spanish on the same page as the illustrations, depicting multiculturally diverse characters. Appropriate for pre-k thru 5th grade, these books are highly recommended for elementary schools and public libraries. They help educators, parents and siblings of children with disabilities to understand the dynamics of various communication delays.
Keisha’s Doors & Tacos Anyone? were released in July 2005 by publisher, Speech Kids Texas Press, Inc. Both books received nominations for the 2006 Dolly Gray Children’s Developmental Disabilities Literature Award. Tacos Anyone?/ ¿Alquien Quiere Tacos? received the 2005 Barbara Jordan Media Award (special contribution by an individual). Keisha’s Doors/ Las Puertas de Keisha received the highly prestigious Barbara Jordan Media Award (2005) for an accurate and progressive portrayal of a person with a disability.
It is very important to support books written about children with autism spectrum disorders. Without these types of books, parents and educators are limited to 100+ page manuals and guides that can be overwhelming for anyone learning about ASD for the first time. Encourage your local public libraries and school libraries to have these books as invaluable resources for the community.
