Things I Should Have Known by Claire LaZebnik

SPOILER ALERT!

This well-written story is only part of the lives of Chloe, and her autistic sister, Ivy. Several years after the siblings’ dad dies, their mom becomes inseparable from their stepfather. Chloe, being the protective older sister that she is decides to send her little sister on a date. The more time Ivy spends with Ethan, the date, the more time Chloe spends with David, the dates brother. Chloe and David connect over the struggles of having autistic siblings, but also how lovable they are.

The story extends beyond just a normal story line. Ivy starts to question her sexuality and wonders if she could be gay after catching feelings for her classmate, Diana. David and Chloe start to like eachother. They started of supporting their siblings but they ended off meeting up by themselves to. Like most stories, the end of te book is the happiest part. Everybody is in a better place than they were before.

Claire LaZebnik touches many important topics that many teens and young adults go through. We see many of issues that are common in the every day life from exploring a characters sexuality to dealing with a disability such as Autism, and socials groups within the school. I was drawn to the realness of the story, and the fact that it was something that could be ordinary to someone out there.

”You know, if we were pushing our siblings in wheelchairs, people would be nice to them and to us. They’d be like, Oh, the poor handicapped people and their wonderful siblings! Let’s hold doors for them! But Ivy and Ethan…they basically look like everyone else, with just these tiny differences in how they behave and move. And that bugs people.” This quote said be Chloe proves to us that is hard. It’s hard for her and Ivy and Ethan and David. It’s hard for people who are coping or helping someone cope with Autism. People in our world keep judging each other and that is not helping anyone.

I would rate this book a five out of five stars. It has a little bit of everything from family to young love. It’s relatable to teens and it is funny. What else could a great book need!