None of the books seemed to speak to her.
Bethany Lynn knew she had two amazing children — Noah, 11, and a sweet 6-year-old, Addy. And she knew that the two siblings had a unique and special bond. Noah is on the autism spectrum, and Addy not only adores and idolizes her big brother, but seeks to protect him from bullies as well.
Lynn had hoped to find a book that would reinforce the positivity between them. But she couldn’t find anything that fit.
So she decided to write one herself.
“There weren’t any books out there that spoke on that. Especially with my son being non-verbal, there aren’t very many books about that, especially when it comes to siblings,” she said.
The result is “My Brother is AU-Mazing!” a children’s book released in October. Lynn used her own kids’ experiences to depict the realities of autism, both the challenges that come with it as well as the rewarding moments.
She envisions the book helping families such as hers and the community as a whole better understand autism in general.
“I hope they take away that there is a special bond between siblings, and that autism should be accepted — to end the stigma,” she said. “These kiddos are so loving and kind and talented.”
Even though my son can’t verbally say what he likes and what he likes to do, he’s the happiest kid that I’ve ever met. And his sister adores him, and he adores her.”
Writing children’s books has been a longtime goal for Lynn. She had fostered her love of reading since her childhood, and her head was filled with stories.
It turned out the best story was spun from her own life.
Her oldest child, Noah, was diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum when he was 2. After Addy was born in 2016, she witnessed the loving relationship that formed between them.
She thought that other families would benefit from seeing that depicted in a book.
“I wanted to write something from her perspective, seeing her brother through her eyes that other families could relate to,” she said.
Addy played a major role in helping the book come together. Lynn leaned on her daughter’s thoughts about having a brother who is on the autism spectrum, and what her own experiences had been.
“I studied her, and how she goes about her day. She’s always wanting to help, so I kept that in mind. Then I wrote the book, speaking in a way she would to other people about her brother,” she said.
Lynn wove in how her children use sign language to communicate, and the kinds of devices available to help people who are non-verbal.
The central emotion that Lynn wanted to convey was Addy’s protective nature over Noah.
“In the book, my daughter says that it’s not nice to make fun of people, because we’ve had to deal with that,” she said. “She’s had to deal with her friends making fun of her brother and making fun of her. She handles it very well, for a 6-year-old, but we want to make clear that it’s not OK to do those things and to be kind to those who are different than you.”
To illustrate the book, Lynn was able to find a friend who used photographs of Addy and Noah to create a visual world capturing the vivid energy and tender love between the main characters.
“She’s very talented. She did all of the illustrations and all of the formatting for me,” Lynn said.
“My Brother is AU-Mazing!” was released on Oct. 28. In just a few short months, the independently published release has earned praise from around the world. “My Brother is AU-Mazing!” received the Golden Wizard Book Prize, a distinction given to outstanding children’s books chosen by qualified childcare practitioners, preschool teachers, early years professionals, other award-winning authors, illustrators and professional writers.
Reviews have been positive from other readers as well, and was named a Readers Favorite Five Star Award winner.
“My Brother is AU-Mazing!” is available on Barnes & Noble as well as Amazon, and Lynne is working to have it stocked in local book stores as well.
Having the physical copy of her work, to hold in her hands, was a surreal experience for Lynn.
‘To see it on the computer, on the TV, because I had a lot of people reviewing it. I could Google the book, I could Google my name,” she said.
AT A GLANCE
“My Brother is AU-Mazing!”
What: A childr
en’s book telling the story of a young girl and the bond she has with her older brother, who is on the autism spectrum.
Author: Bethany Lynn, a Johnson County resident
Pages: 26
Where to get it: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
