Book Review: Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8

English Book Cover

Japanese Book Cover

A few weeks ago, I reviewed The Reason I Jump by Naoki Higashida.  The book, published in 2007 and translated to English in 2013, became a huge hit with parents of children on the autism spectrum, as well as many more of those who themselves were on the said spectrum.  Higashida was 13 when he wrote The Reason I Jump, which then caused a lot of skepticism as to how such deep thoughts and words could come from a non-verbal autistic boy.

In 2012, almost as if it was an answer to the skeptics, Higashida pens 自閉症の僕の七転び八起き (Jiheishō no boku no nanakorobiyaoki), using the same alphabet grid writing tool he used for his previous book.  David Mitchell and Keiko Yoshida, the husband-and-wife translating team from Higshida's previous book, return to translate this piece, and in July 2017 Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8: A Young Man's Voice from the Silence of Autism was published.

I had heard about this book around the same time I was reading The Reason I Jump, so when a recent trip to our local bookstore had me seeing Higashida's most recent title on the shelf, I could not resist snatching this up.

So at 20 years of age, what more did Higashida want to tell us about his world?

Just like his previous work, Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8 is made up of several small chapters, but unlike before, he no longer writes in the question-and-answer format.  Instead, Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8 reads more like a diary, with Higashida penning his thoughts in short chapters that have their own little focuses.

It is still a very easy read, but it came with a lot of insight.  There was even a foreword written by Mitchell attesting that Higashida wrote this recent piece using the alphabet grid all by himself.  He also continues to insist that, despite the skeptics' claim that the author might not be on the spectrum at all, said author is severely autistic and non-verbal.  

But Higashida conveys his thoughts with the clarity and philosophy of someone who is obviously a very deep thinker, and loves to play with his words with the skill of a wordsmith.  The images he evokes with his words are so moving and vibrant that you can get sucked into the world he creates with his little stories and poems that are sprinkled throughout the book, while explaining in vivid and exquisite detail how he goes about his daily life, and even emphatically expressing his opinion on special education and how the world in general should treat people with special needs.

I had a lot of quotes highlighted from this book, as a lot of them really jumped out to me as a mother, a teacher, and even as possibly a person on the spectrum.  Some of the quotes, I wish to share as I feel they are really, really important.

Higashida states in the book, "People with autism might need more time, but as we grow there are countless things that we can learn how to do, so even if you can’t see your efforts bear fruit, please don’t quit. Our lives are still ahead of us. Some kinds of success can be won by, and only by, sheer effort and sweat. We all have to bear in mind that adulthood lasts a lot longer than childhood."

He also says that "I would like people to stop pressuring children to make friends. Friendships can’t be artificially created."

"Education is supposed to help the child and parents: it mustn’t end up being a kind of holding cell. For this reason, our education must not be overly defined by the views of outsiders, or be unquestioningly compliant with the values and beliefs of specialists. Of paramount importance is that the special needs education be a suitable fit for each and every student."

"What matters to people with disabilities is how they can lead rewarding lives twenty or thirty years from now."

"Your child, too, will one day be an adult. For them to live life with the same degree of independence as neurotypical offspring might be difficult, but one day your child-rearing, child-minding days will come to an end. Parents grow older until they can no longer look after their adult children. The period in which we are together as parents and child is finite. So please, while the child still is a child, and while you’re still around to do so, support them well. Laugh together and share your stories. You won’t be revisiting these years. Value them."

That said, I am rating Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8 with 4.75 out of 5 stars.  Highly recommended.  To purchase your own copy, Book Depository sells it in paperback for US$11.88 (PHP 601.07) and hardback for US$19.81 (PHP 1,002.29), and shipping is free to all countries.  If you'd prefer an electronic copy, iBooks sells it for US$13.99 (PHP 707.82).  Google Play Books is also selling it for US$11.24 (PHP 568.44).