Wired Differently – 30 Neurodivergent People You Should Know

by Joe Wells, Tim Stringer (Illustrator)

This collection of illustrated portraits celebrates the lives of influential neurodivergent figures who have achieved amazing things in recent times.

Showcasing these 30 incredible people, the extraordinary stories in this book show that the things they've achieved, created and inspired they did not despite being different but because they are different. From politicians, activists and journalists to YouTubers, DJs and poets, this book highlights a wide range of exciting career paths for neurodivergent readers.

Joe Wells is a 16-year-old student who has recently completed his GCSEs. He suffered from OCD from the age of 9, kept it a secret until age 12, and is now able to talk openly about the condition.

Genres: Nonfiction, Psychology, Biography, Disability, Autistic Spectrum Disorder

192 pages, Paperback

Published May 19, 2022

Reviews

[Ali Bird · Rating 5 out of 5]

This seems to be written for teenagers so has a zippy, celebratory style. I thought it was fascinating and made me want to read more

[Emilou · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I picked up this book, I had the preconceived idea that this book would explain the different neurodivergent term in detail as well as when describing each individual, tell how they overcame the struggles they had because they were neurodivergent. Ex: strategies someone with dyslexia might use to help them read. But it didn't. This is basically micro-bibliographies of neurodivergent people without emphasizing too much about this part of them. There is little information about neurodivergent terms, and I even had to look up some words like dyspraxia, which I wasn't hugely familiar with.

I feel that the author's heart was in the right place by making a book that is supposed to educate people about neurodivergent people and inspire those who are neurodivergent that they can overcome their own hardships, but I felt that neither of these goals were accomplished.

It just felt like a book that is trying to fill in a genre gap without putting in too much effort. I think that teens would benefit from reading books like this, but I felt this one wasn't up to snuff. However, the stories in the book made me happy to see so many people doing good in the world.

[Blue · Rating 4 out of 5]

A point is made within the first page of the book, about the phrase 'wired differently', and how the author likes it because it has links with computer systems. I also like it, because unlike other ways of phrasing being autistic, it isn't pejorative, it has no negative connotations, it just means that there is a difference, and no one can deny that someone being autistic means that they work a little differently to other non-autistic people.
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It also goes on to say that the way people talk about someone being autistic, saying 'this person has a diagnosis of autism', it makes it sound like a terrible disease, it uses the same language as when someone is diagnosed with something like cancer. And it makes the point that autistic people typically prefer being referred to as autistic because it makes it sound like a part of them, which it is, rather than something they carry with them.
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I liked that it also defined what neurodiversity actually means, because as the author pointed out, there are a lot of people who use the term incorrectly, or to refer to the incorrect thing.

[Tilly · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a very brief summary of 30 neurodivergent people, and how they have made an impact on the world.

This has so much potential to be a great book, but the execution is not for me. Wells talked more about himself than the person he was meant to be telling you about in some of the chapters. He focused on the bullying that the person had endured for about half of every chapter so it just felt repetitive and quite frankly dull. If you want to talk for that long about the endured bullying, your chapters need to be at least twice as long.

I love the phrase 'wired differently' but I hated the beginning of this book 'No-one in this book is normal'. Change that to neurotypical and maybe we can agree, but since when are neurotypical people normal? Why are we continuing the stereotype that neurodivergent people aren't normal? I have so many problems with how this was done that I can't say I enjoyed it at all.

[Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book contained a couple pages each on what 30 neurodivergent people have accomplished.

This was an enjoyable, short read. The people mentioned in the book were all interesting. I hadn’t heard of most of them. I did get a little bored after like 15 people though. I would’ve liked to learn more about all of the people then we actually found out. It felt all the information was just taken from Wikipedia pages. I would’ve liked to know how the people mentioned felt their neurodivergence affected their lives. It’s hard to go out and further research these people when you’ve just gone through 30 people very quickly. It’s nice to have an idea of what some other neurodivergent people have accomplished though. It’s a good starting point if you’re aiming to learn more about neurodivergent people but that’s about it.

[Kirsty · Rating 1 out of 5]

The opening line of the book instantly rubbed me the wrong way "No one in this book is normal". Many ND individuals get told all their life that they're not normal, that they're abnormal, myself being one of them. The opening line, while I'm sure unintentional, reinforces this. The reality is the only normal there is, is an individual's version of normal. Describing neurodiversity as a superpower is such a tired and harmful stance. It reduces a person down to one aspect of themselves and completely disregards all the other parts of a person that make them, them. It fails to show the nuances of being ND and the individuals featured in the book. To me the book felt very much like inspiration porn.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I really enjoyed the chatty, easy going writing style in this book, which made it conversational & accessible. The open & closing chapters from the author offered some interesting thought provoking insights & quips. The chapters on the neurodiverse where interesting - I learnt a lot - but I also felt that they were lacking, there wasn’t the detail in them that I was hoping for, they were more like executive summaries, so I will need to do more research but definitely worth a read, especially for newly diagnosed older children/teenagers.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would give this book a 3.5 if I could.

I thought this book was informative, well researched (any book that features a bibliography at the end gets a brownie point from me) and was interesting to read. I did find that Wells' style of writing wasn't quite for me, and if I read too much of this book at once I could feel quite bored of reading the same structure over and over again. However, I am grateful for the chance to learn more about neurodivergent people and their achievements.

[Maria Kemplin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a GREAT book with short biographies of neurodivergent people - (dyspraxia, Tourette's, autism, dyslexia, ADHD, etc). Also mentions some of the famous people grew up in foster care and families impacted by addiction. Famous people include athletes, rap artists, You Tubers, and olympic athletes. 7th-9th grade writing level. A must for school libraries.

[Charlotte Biddle · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Great intro to a great range of 30 neuro divergent people. Made me want to learn more about the people I hadn't come across before. Would have liked more interviews with them and felt like half the introductory biographies were largely about the author rather than the person highlighted.

[Karyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally watched the Hannah Gadsby specials, after reading this, and discovered a few new people to follow.

[Rakie Keig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bite-sized biographies of a bunch of cool ND people. As always with these sort of books, it feels like a great jumping-off point for folks to discover people they may not have heard about.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite good book as you seeing alot of differant types of neurodivergent people. Seeing how each person deals with it