They tell me I'm lucky to have a son who's so verbal, who is blisteringly intelligent, who can take apart the broken microwave and have it working again an hour later. They think there is no greater hell than having a son who is locked in his own world, unaware that there's a wider one to explore. But try having a son who is locked in his own world, and still wants to make a connection. A son who tries to be like everyone else, but truly doesn't know how.PLOT: Jacob Hunt is 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 his town is rocked by a terrible murder and, for a change, the police come to Jacob with questions. All of the hallmark behaviors of Asperger's-not looking someone in the eye, stimulatory tics and twitches, flat effect-can look a lot like guilt to law enforcement personnel. Suddenly, Jacob and his family, who only want to fit in, feel the spotlight shining directly on them. For his mother, Emma, it's a brutal reminder of the intolerance and misunderstanding that always threaten her family. For his brother, Theo, it's another indication of why nothing is normal because of Jacob. And over this small family the soul-scaring question looms: Did Jacob commit murder?
Emotionally powerful from beginning to end,
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-and fails those who don't.
OPINION: This was my first Jodi Picoult book. I had heard good things about this author but never read any of her books. I loved this book & Jodi Picoult.
This book made me feel as if I knew someone with Asperger’s syndrome. Jodi
had really done her research before writing this book. I fell in love with
the family. I felt as if the mother was taking too much time with Jacob
(kid with Asperger’s) & leaving out her oldest son Theo. A Great story and
easy read.
PLOT: In an alternate 1985 where former superheroes exist, the murder of a colleague sends active vigilante Rorschach into his own sprawling investigation, uncovering something that could completely change the course of history as we know it. 
