Imagine, at the age of 30, discovering you're not typical — or rather, not neurotypical. What could have been a scary diagnosis turned out to be very empowering for David Finch. His personal story of coping with Asperger Syndrome and saving his marriage paints a picture of hard-earned possibility. Finch may be at the milder end of the Asperger/autism spectrum, but for a neurotypical like myself, I learned a lot about the life of someone whose brain works very differently from my own. At the same time, I also saw aspects of myself in his behaviors, a reminder that common ground can still be found among our differences.
While not classified as self-help or inspirational, this memoir has qualities of both. Finch recounts discoveries, strategies, successes, failures, persistence and love. From this, I not only learned about life as an Aspie, but I also took away lessons about practicing introspection and open communication in a relationship. As a bonus, Finch's narrative style is laced with humor, making the book both educational and entertaining. More than once I caught the attention of people nearby when I laughed out loud while listening to the audiobook through my earbuds.
This is a great book for anyone interested in Asperger Syndrome, relationships, self-improvement, or memoirs in general. Now I only wish there were a companion memoir sharing his wife's side of the story!