This long and meaty sci-fi novel is full of imagination and interest, and its reversal of 'normality' means that readers with Asperger's will be able to relate happily to the majority of people on Elemental Island. Astatine (she's named for one of the elements in the periodic table) is the odd one out because she has 'social syndrome', a condition that means she is outgoing and friendly and looks people in the eye. She is considered a problem child by her family, even though they love her. On this island, almost everyone has obsessions, dislikes being touched, and are hugely scientifically inclined. They are expected to have a subject for their thesis by the time they are twelve and to follow all the numerous rules and regulations set out by their leaders. The computer systems on this island are incredible to our thinking. Food is computer generated, and there are 'calpads' everywhere which connect everyone to everyone else and can be holo-transferred so a person in one place can be seen with people in other places. On this island, no one is allowed to fly or to use boats, so they are cut off from the rest of the world, and when a boy lands his Tiger Moth aircraft and meets Astie, the ructions start. Set way in the future, Danny's world is far different from Astie's. Sometime in the past his country has been hit by disaster, and all the machines have stopped working because the engineers disappeared. There are secrets in both countries, secrets that involve the past, and it is only at the end of the story that these secrets come out. What is Danny doing on Elemental Island, and how will his coming affect the inhabitants? Will Astie stay in her rigidly planned island, or will she get away? And what will happen to her grandmother, who is another sufferer from 'social syndrome'? These two worlds (or countries as they are both earth-bound) have much to give to each other, and one hopes that such giving can take place. A thought-provoking novel with lots to commend it, and it will be of real value to all those who feel themselves to be outsiders. Available from Amazon, from good book shops and from the publisher, www.jkp.com.