Strange Sayings and Confusing Conversations - by Debby Elley (Paperback)

About the Book

Short stories that unravel the confusion behind slang, sarcasm, and puzzling expressions, offering insight into why people say the opposite of what they mean and how to understand better the tricky conversations around us.

Book Synopsis

Why do people sometimes say the opposite of what they mean? Why do they pretend to like terrible gifts? And...perhaps the oddest thing of all, why use a weird phrase to describe something instead of basic words? I'm pretty sure I'd rather be in trouble than 'in hot soup', as they say!

Welcome to the ultimate confusion-busting guide to the use of slang, sarcasm and the confusing conversations that hurt our heads! Over seven stories, we uncover what you can do when the people around you insist on being super-hard to understand (and what they should do to help)!

Packed with humour and brilliant illustrations by Tim Stringer, this book is the perfect companion for autistic children trying to navigate non-literal conversational customs.

Review Quotes

I'm a huge fan of Debby's writing and was very much looking forward to reading 'Strange Sayings and Confusing Conversation' - I was far from disappointed. As a resource this is fabulous; as a piece of writing it is insightful, charming, and hilarious. A fantastic informative text which is also brilliant fun to read.--Dr Luke Beardon, Senior Lecturer in Autism, The Autism Centre, Sheffield Hallam University.

A fantastic collection of short yet concise stories that clarify a range of everyday social situations. Sure to "strike a chord" with all who read them--Michael Barton, data analyst, Autistic TEDx speaker and author of It's Raining Cats and Dogs and A Different Kettle of Fish.

Stories are such a valuable tool for kids to learn about themselves, the world around them, and language. I was therefore delighted to see that this book uses stories to explore how sayings, sarcasm and metaphors can be very confusing for literal-minded kids. Many children will identify with the feelings of confusion that the story characters experience, and how they figure out their confusion. The illustrations really add to the book, bringing a fun and attractive element to this book.--Niamh Garvey, author of Being Autistic (and What That Actually Means) and Looking After Your Autistic Self