The reason I jump: the inner voice of a thirteen-year-old boy with autism

MG+

3

5.8

Higashida, Naoki, 1992-

Higashida, Naoki

Biography

Cary Regional - Biography
Eva H. Perry Regional - Biography
Holly Springs Community - Biography
Middlecreek Community - Biography
North Regional - Biography
Oberlin Regional - Biography
Southeast Regional - Biography

“One of the most remarkable books I’ve ever read. It’s truly moving, eye-opening, incredibly vivid.”—Jon Stewart, The Daily Show
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY
NPR • The Wall Street Journal • Bloomberg Business • Bookish
FINALIST FOR THE BOOKS FOR A BETTER LIFE FIRST BOOK AWARD • NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
You’ve never read a book like The Reason I Jump. Written by Naoki Higashida, a very smart, very self-aware, and very charming thirteen-year-old boy with autism, it is a one-of-a-kind memoir that demonstrates how an autistic mind thinks, feels, perceives, and responds in ways few of us can imagine. Parents and family members who never thought they could get inside the head of their autistic loved one at last have a way to break through to the curious, subtle, and complex life within.
 
Using an alphabet grid to painstakingly construct words, sentences, and thoughts that he is unable to speak out loud, Naoki answers even the most delicate questions that people want to know. Questions such as: “Why do people with autism talk so loudly and weirdly?” “Why do you line up your toy cars and blocks?” “Why don’t you make eye contact when you’re talking?” and “What’s the reason you jump?” (Naoki’s answer: “When I’m jumping, it’s as if my feelings are going upward to the sky.”) With disarming honesty and a generous heart, Naoki shares his unique point of view on not only autism but life itself. His insights—into the mystery of words, the wonders of laughter, and the elusiveness of memory—are so startling, so strange, and so powerful that you will never look at the world the same way again.
 
In his introduction, bestselling novelist David Mitchell writes that Naoki’s words allowed him to feel, for the first time, as if his own autistic child was explaining what was happening in his mind. “It is no exaggeration to say that The Reason I Jump allowed me to round a corner in our relationship.” This translation was a labor of love by David and his wife, KA Yoshida, so they’d be able to share that feeling with friends, the wider autism community, and beyond. Naoki’s book, in its beauty, truthfulness, and simplicity, is a gift to be shared.
Praise for The Reason I Jump
“This is an intimate book, one that brings readers right into an autistic mind.”—Chicago Tribune (Editor’s Choice)
“Amazing times a million.”—Whoopi Goldberg, People
“The Reason I Jump is a Rosetta stone. . . . This book takes about ninety minutes to read, and it will stretch your vision of what it is to be human.”—Andrew Solomon, The Times (U.K.)
“Extraordinary, moving, and jeweled with epiphanies.”—The Boston Globe
 
“Small but profound . . . [Higashida’s] startling, moving insights offer a rare look inside the autistic mind.”—Parade

Book
eAudiobook
eBook

Audio Books
Books
eBook

ae0ad631-160c-1da4-73fd-b11d0ef28042

9780812985153
9780812994865
9780812994872
9781490602912

2025-08-04T14:31:55.180Z

1000

Non Fiction

Non Fiction

B HIGASHID

Wake County Public Libraries

Cary Regional
Eva H. Perry Regional
Holly Springs Community
Middle Creek Community
North Regional
Oberlin Regional
Southeast Regional

9780812994865

2013

Random House
Random House Publishing Group
Recorded Books, Inc.

grouped_work

Autism
Autistic people -- Japan -- Biography
Autistic people -- Psychology
Higashida, Naoki, -- 1992-

The reason I jump : the inner voice of a thirteen-year-old boy with autism

The Reason I Jump The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year-Old Boy with Autism
The reason I jump : the inner voice of a thirteen-year-old boy with autism / Naoki Higashida ; translated by KA Yoshida and David Mitchell

The reason I jump

the inner voice of a thirteen-year-old boy with autism

Autism
Autistic people
Biography & Autobiography
Family & Relationships
Higashida, Naoki
Medical
Nonfiction
Psychology