Finding books focused on the adult autistic experience can be challenging, but a growing number of excellent resources have become available in recent years. Most or all resources here were written by neurodivergent people. These are some of the books I most commonly recommend:

• Unmasking Autism: Discovering the New Faces of Neurodiversity - Devon Price (an autistic psychologist)

  • This book is loved by many people, and readers often find it intensely relatable. It has remained a top recommendation from me since it first came out. Late-diagnosed autistic people often struggle with their identity, but recognizing that you’re autistic can provide clarity and improve self-understanding. This discovery helps us increase self-acceptance, reprocess past experiences to be more self-accepting, and live more authentically to ourselves.

• Knowing Why: Adult-Diagnosed Autistic People on Life and Autism - Elizabeth Bartmess (ed.)

  • This is a wonderful collection of insightful and heartfelt “essays from a diverse group of adult-diagnosed autistic people. Our essays reflect the value of knowing why--why we are different from so many other people, why it can be so hard to do things others can take for granted, and why there is often such a mismatch between others' treatment of us and our own needs, skills, and experiences. Essay topics include recovering from burnout, exploring our passions and interests, and coping with sensory overload, especially in social situations.”

• Nerdy, Shy, and Socially Inappropriate - Cynthia Kim

  • This is an approachable and very relatable book for many adults who didn’t find out that they were autistic until later in life. It shares a lot of the author’s personal experiences, some advice, and explores understanding and self-acceptance.

• Divergent Mind: Thriving in a World That Wasn't Designed for You - Jenara Nerenberg

  • Jenara is an excellent writer; I found this book to be very engaging, personal, and insightful. It has somewhat of a focus on workplaces, but not entirely. It covers “real stories from women with high sensitivity, ADHD, autism, misophonia, dyslexia, SPD and more, Nerenberg explores how these brain variances present differently in women and dispels widely-held misconceptions… [offering] a path forward, describing practical changes in how we communicate, how we design our surroundings, and how we can better support divergent minds.”

• Aspergirls: Empowering Females with Asperger Syndrome (2010) - Rudy Simone

  • This is somewhat of a classic in this area, full of personal stories and well-organized, helpful ideas. Although it uses some outdated language (such as “Aspergers”) and has been criticized for not including discussions on queer experiences, it has continued to be a valuable early resource for many autistic individuals diagnosed later in life.

There are many other great options, but these have been my favourites from recent years (FYI some of these are affiliate links, but I wouldn’t suggest a book I hadn’t read and valued).