Tony features in the Irish Independent

"Irish autism tutor's Tony The Turtle books prove a winner with parents and children"

by Valerie S. on January 26th, 2023

"Irish autism tutor's Tony The Turtle books prove a winner with parents and children"

An Irish autism tutor has penned a series of books designed to be beneficial for both children with autism and their parents.

Valerie Sheehan from Cork, has developed the character Tony the Turtle to reach out to children with Austism Spectrum Disorder.

She says the idea of the turtle came to her when she thought of how children with autism retreat into their own shells when the outside world can become too overwhelming.

"My wish is that these stories help both parent and child positively overcome some of the challenges that having ASD can introduce into everyday life," Valerie said.

"The reaction has been great. Parents have emailed me to say 'thank you, thank you'. One woman said her son loves it and he doesn't want to leave it out of his sight."

"The reason I wrote these books is, I saw how hard it is for parents especially when they hear for the first time that their child has autism."

"For parents that don't know anything about autism, this is something positive for them, instead of the heavy textbooks they might be surrounded by."

Valerie says her book is aimed as much at parents as it is at children with autism.

"There's a lesson in every page to be learned. Every sentence has a message - that's how I've designed it."

"Parents will be able to read between the lines and follow the advice."

For more information, see www.tonytheturtle.com.