House Rules

HOUSE RULES is about Jacob Hunt, a teenage boy with Asperger’s Syndrome. He’s hopeless at reading social cues or expressing himself well to others, and like many kids with AS, Jacob has a special focus on one subject – in his case, forensic analysis. He’s always showing up at crime scenes, thanks to the police scanner he keeps in his room, and telling the cops what they need to do…and he’s usually right. But then one day his tutor is found dead, and the police come to question him. All of the hallmark behaviors of Asperger’s – not looking someone in the eye, stimulatory tics and twitches, inappropriate affect – can look a heck of a lot like guilt to law enforcement personnel -- and suddenly, Jacob finds himself accused of murder. HOUSE RULES looks at what it means to be different in our society, how autism affects a family, and how our legal system works well for people who communicate a certain way – but lousy for those who don’t. (Via Goodreads)

I loved this book it was actually my first Jodi Picoult book. Autism is something that is very close to my heart, I've helped some people who suffer from it, and its such a wide spectrum it effects people on so many levels. This book is about a mother and her two sons one has AS, and the other doesn't. The story is from several points of view, and its focus is a murder case. Jodi captured the struggle of a single mother dealing with everyday life, and a major crisis. It sheds a lot of light into what it might be like to have AS as well. A very well told story with strong characters. Jacob was so real it was kind of scary, plus the mystery surrounding the murder case kept me hooked. Theo was a little disturbing for me honestly, but he was always playing second fiddle to his brother's autism. A very real story that tugs at the heart strings certainly worth the read.