Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Jodie Picoult's image of an adult with Asperger's inaccurate and offensive. I and some other adults with Asperger's I know are not good at understanding what other people are thinking or feeling unless we are told directly. But we have feelings and we care about others, at least as much as neurotypicals [i.e., people without Asperger's]. A character in Picoult's novel says, "lack of empathy simply means someone is cold, heartless, without remorse." This is the definition of Asperger's Picoult uses, and it is central to her plot. But this definition is wrong. What she is talking about here is lack of sympathy: an inability to feel hurt when others are hurt; a lack of desire to help others when they need help. What she is describing is somebody without a conscience: a sociopath. What she is NOT describing, at least not accurately, is somebody with Asperger's. I may not read people correctly and may sometimes act in ways that are inappropriate, but I care about others and try to do good as much as anybody without Asperger's. I just need things explained to me more than others do.