A review by claudiaswisher
How to Build a Hug: Temple Grandin and Her Amazing Squeeze Machine by Jacqueline Tourville, Amy Guglielmo

5.0

Temple Grandin grew up before we knew about living on the autism spectrum. She just knew there were things other people loved that she could not abide...like hugs. School was difficult...not because she didn't like school and didn't like to learn. It was all the noises and distractions. She wanted to be hugged...but she couldn't do it. A new boarding school showed her there were other ways to learn, to be. She discovered her strong connections with animals. In Arizona, on her aunt's cattle ranch, she saw more connections between how she felt and what she saw in the animals she studied. Watching the chute the vets used to calm and quiet cattle, she invented something similar for herself...her own hug...a closed-up area where sounds and sensations can be muted...she found her hug.

Grandin's story IS the story of some of our students...or their siblings. This is an important book to share with kids. Please do.