A Kind of Spark

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death, ableism, and bullying.

In A Kind of Spark, the protagonist, who has autism, experiences intense displays of prejudice and injustice from peers and authority figures alike, and her everyday experience of the world includes enduring frequent bullying from those whose responsibility is to help her and protect her from such mistreatment. The novel explicitly emphasizes this systemic injustice by opening with the scene in which Addie’s teacher, Ms. Murphy, tears up the protagonist’s handwritten story and berates her for messy handwriting, labeling her “lazy” and failing to realize that Addie’s handwriting is a side effect of her challenges with motor skills. The incident also introduces the intensity of Addie’s sensory differences, especially when she observes, “The sound of the paper being torn is overly loud. Right in my ears. The characters in the story I was writing beg her to stop, but she doesn’t” (7). Addie’s visceral reaction to her teacher’s misguided scolding highlights the varied manifestations of the protagonist’s autism, illustrating her differences in sensory perception and employing personification to show her emotional connection to the characters in her shredded story. Most importantly, however, the author uses the scene to criticize the ableist assumption that a person who cannot perform tasks to a neurotypical standard must be “lazy.” The reality is that Addie’s struggles with handwriting do not arise from apathy or self-absorption; her motor functions are objectively impacted by her autism. Ms. Murphy has no interest in accommodating Addie’s differences.

While Keedie later tells Addie that Ms. Murphy is in the wrong, Addie remains unaware of this fact when she is caught in the midst of the conflict itself. By starting the novel this way, the author shows that even the truth of a situation can be muddied by the emotional response that such mistreatment creates in its target. Although Addie comes to understand that the behavior of her teacher and her classmates is morally wrong, her social isolation causes her to internalize the interaction and blame herself instead. In this context, Keedie’s determination to advocate for her younger sister demonstrates the importance of normalizing the specialized needs of those with autism so that the fabric of society itself can be influenced in a more positive direction. 

Keedie’s protective actions are also influenced by her own past experience with discrimination; she also faced extensive ableism in school, sometimes to an even higher degree than Addie. She is also haunted by the fact that her friend Bonnie, who also has autism, was placed in a mental health facility because of her disability. Keedie reacted to this development by learning to mask the external manifestations of her autism and mold her behavior to an unrealistic neurotypical standard. This largely unconscious practice allows her to fit in but also has the devastating effect of triggering intense exhaustion and autistic burnout, a pattern that reaches crisis levels in the narrative’s climax. Her use of social masking to blend in and keep herself safe sends mixed signals to Addie, whom she often encourages to be proud of her identity despite her own inability to do so. 

In some ways, Keedie’s ambiguous attitude toward her autism parallels Emily’s embarrassment over her reading difficulty; however, rather than finding constructive ways to deal with this challenge, Emily projects her negative feelings toward herself onto others instead, bullying Addie incessantly with ableist comments. Thus, the author develops characters whose disparate responses to disability illustrate a multitude of real-life dynamics around this topic. The characters’ interactions act as a primer and a critique, showing that harmful cultural attitudes toward individuals with disabilities can have wide-reaching social consequences. As McNicoll very carefully presents the pros and cons of each character’s choices, it becomes clear that even Addie, who accepts her identity more fully than others, faces unfair conflict because of her autism, and her struggles offer a realistic and complex look at the real challenges that people with disabilities face.

Luckily, there are people in Addie’s life who recognize the impact of her disability and strive to help her feel included and appreciated for her differences. Most notably, the highly empathic Audrey becomes a staunch ally when she disapproves of the poor treatment that Addie receives from others at school and takes action to counter this trend. She also makes an effort to ask Addie about her autism and her special interests, seeking to gain a greater understanding. This open show of support allows Addie to see that her autism is simply a part of who she is; it is not just a disorder but an innate attribute that other people can appreciate and accommodate in the same way that they respect other aspects of her personality. In the novel’s conclusion, Addie delivers an impassioned speech to the town council and declares her autism outright, explaining that although her neurotype comes with some differences, these differences are valuable and can lead to great things:

‘My autism isn’t always my superpower. Sometimes it’s difficult. But on the days when I’m finding electricity in things, seeing the details that others might not, I like it a lot.’ I realize I’ve reached an end. And I feel good, no matter what is decided. ‘I like myself the way I am. A lot’ (129).

By airing her ideas in this public forum, Addie contributes greatly to her community, working to counteract the ingrained prejudices against people who have autism. Having gained self-acceptance and the active support of her friends and loved ones, she represents neurodivergent people who struggle to operate in a society that marginalizes and discounts them.