The Reason I Jump By Naoki Higashida (135 pages)

Naoki Higashida was diagnosed with autism when he was 5 years old. At age 13, he used an alphabet grid to put his thoughts into words and in 2007, a book of his thoughts was published in Japan. David Mitchell found the Japanese version and pushed to get an English translation published. Naoki’s words helped Mitchell understand what was going on in his autistic son’s mind.

Written in question and answer form, Naoki shares the reasoning behind common behaviors of autistic people. He makes connections to himself, but manages to provide reasoning about the average autistic kid. “Why do people with autism talk so loudly and weirdly?” “Why don’t you make eye contact when you’re talking?” “What’s the reason you jump?” His explanations are so powerful, you’ll never look at an autistic person the same way again.

I would highly recommend this nonfiction book to anyone who works with autistic people, wants to work with autistic people, or has someone autistic in their life. As noted by a Good Reads reviewer “autism has affected so many families around the world, and many people are trying to understand it better. I think this book will help light the way.”

"Being Generous" By Theodore Roosevelt Malloch (149 pages)

Malloch has one goal for his readers, "Discover what being generous means, and begin living it." The entire book stresses the aspect of giving and generosity. According to Malloch, giving should be your virtue. This nonfiction book talks about the views of giving in different religions; Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Christianity. He focuses most of the book on the views of Christianity. This book isn't meant to tell you how to live, but to tell you the benefits of living in a generous way, "...being generous and giving freely allows one to be measurably happier." If you're need  that extra push to become a better person or you are looking for the meaning behind your generosity, check out this book and you'll definitely find what you're looking for. Not only did this book make me want to be a better person, it also made me realize how I benefit others as well as myself.

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