House Rules by Jodi Picoult

Say what you will about Jodi Picoult, she always does manage to find a current 'hot topic' and incorporate it into her books. This book focused on Aspergers syndrome, a high functioning type of autism. I really looked forward to reading this book as Aspergers is a topic that has interested me for some time. I have taught several children with Aspergers and have made it part of my continuing education as a teacher to learn about and try to understand how best to teach these kids. This is the story of Jacob. He is an 18 year old high school student with Aspergers. He is extremely interested in and focused on forensics. He then becomes a person of interest in a local murder case. The very traits of Aspergers, inability to look someone in the eye, taking things literally, stimming...make him look guilty. I have to admit that I was captivated by this novel. I really didn't know until the very end of the book the whole truth of the story (which isn't always the case in books). I would be very interested in what the Austism and Aspergers community think about this book. Personally, I found Jacob to be less an Aspie and more autistic.