I didn’t expect this book to hit as hard as it did. The author wrote about what it means to be neurodivergent in a world that constantly asks you to prove your worth, to explain your difference, to hide your pain. And he does it with a kind of raw honesty that left me stunned.

From the very first pages, Neilson questions everything. Why is it so hard to be understood? Why is it so easy to be labeled and dismissed? Why do institutions that claim to care end up hurting the most? He doesn’t offer neat answers because there are none, what offers instead is truth. Fragments of memory, childhood moments, hospital visits, painful questions that so many of us have asked ourselves but maybe never said out loud. There’s a whole section that’s just questions; page after page of them. And it’s powerful because it captures exactly what it feels like to live inside a mind that doesn’t always fit the world’s mold. It reminded me of every time I’ve been called weird or too much or not enough. Every time I’ve wondered if people really see me. If they ever could. He also writes as a father, trying to raise a son while still trying to understand himself. That part really got to me because I can relate to it myself.

<i><b> Because how do you teach love and friendship and self-worth when no one taught you those things when the world made you question them every step of the way?? </i></b>

This book also goes deep into how the medical world treats people like him—like us. It’s especially heartbreaking because Neilson isn’t just a patient, he's a doctor. He knows the system from the inside, and he shows just how cruel it can be when it decides who is worthy of care and who isn’t. But here’s the thing—despite all the pain, there’s so much beauty in these pages. The way he writes is poetic, sometimes clinical, sometimes tender, always honest. It’s a book that doesn’t flinch & doesn’t sugarcoat. If you’ve ever felt different and been bullied or silenced or overlooked because of how your mind worked and struggled to explain your feelings or even feel them at all, this book is for you. It’s not an easy read but it’s a necessary one.

And in a world that still doesn’t really know how to talk about neurodivergence with any kind of real care or respect, this book feels like a lifeline.

Read it if you want to feel seen.
Thank you Literary Press Group of Canada for the ARC
pub date: June 15 [it comes out soon get your copies]