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The Autistic Buddha
Thomas Clements has always been an outsider, preferring to fantasise about the exotic East and lose himself amongst the chaotic sights, sounds and smells of London’s Chinatown rather than face the reality of his existence in Western suburbia. Despite doing badly at school, his natural talent for memorising details and his extraordinary ability to master foreign languages lands him a place at university. But this is not a habitat in which he thrives. Following a stint in a psychiatric ward while on his year abroad in Germany, he secretly drops out from his studies, and from life.
When his parents receive an invitation to Clement’s graduation ceremony, where they will discover their son has lied all along and has not attained a degree after all, he does what he always does. He hatches a plan to run away, rather than face reality. This time to a job teaching English in rural China, where he can hide from everyone and everything. But wherever Clements runs, things go from bad to worse: the teaching isn’t what he thought it would be, modern China is not as romantic as he had imagined, people he counts on as friends ultimately move on, and his first encounter with a girl leaves him questioning his identity as a man.
It doesn’t matter where Clements tries to hide in the world, his anxiety and depression always get the better of him. Now he finally realises he has nowhere in the world to run, will Clements find a way to gain inner peace before he self-destructs?
The Autistic Buddha is a stunning tale of the author’s extraordinary outer and inner journeys to make sense of the world – his world – which is at the same time bravely honest, despairing and inspiring.
When his parents receive an invitation to Clement’s graduation ceremony, where they will discover their son has lied all along and has not attained a degree after all, he does what he always does. He hatches a plan to run away, rather than face reality. This time to a job teaching English in rural China, where he can hide from everyone and everything. But wherever Clements runs, things go from bad to worse: the teaching isn’t what he thought it would be, modern China is not as romantic as he had imagined, people he counts on as friends ultimately move on, and his first encounter with a girl leaves him questioning his identity as a man.
It doesn’t matter where Clements tries to hide in the world, his anxiety and depression always get the better of him. Now he finally realises he has nowhere in the world to run, will Clements find a way to gain inner peace before he self-destructs?
The Autistic Buddha is a stunning tale of the author’s extraordinary outer and inner journeys to make sense of the world – his world – which is at the same time bravely honest, despairing and inspiring.
212 pages, Paperback
Published December 20, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 19, 2017
Wow. What a fascinating adventure the author has been on, having experienced first-hand more things in twenty-odd years than most of us do in a lifetime. Clements hasn't been afraid of being brutally honest about the mistakes he makes along the way either, wearing his vulnerability on his sleeve, which is a brave thing to do. I would say especially so in the autism community. So I applaud him for that.
But importantly, this is not a book about what it is like to have autism. This is one person's journey through depression and anxiety, and of running away because he can't face things due, in part, to his autism. It is a journey of finding inner peace by balancing his (overly) self-aware autistic self with some of the principles of Buddhism that encourage letting go of self. It was this apparent paradox that drew me to the book in the first place.
To be honest, Clement's writing style can, at times, feel long-winded, but that's because he can't help stuffing interesting detail into his tale. He, like many with autism, seems to love detail. Especially about food and the places he travels to! So much so that you feel you are by his side the whole time. If the book was longer, maybe Clement's writing style would begin to grate. But at just over 200 pages it's easy to stay with him as he shares his incredible rollercoaster of a journey from England to Asia and back.
I think there is an excellent film in there somewhere! Not to "raise awareness" of autism, but because of the journey this individual has been on.
I got sight of a review copy of the book before it was published.
But importantly, this is not a book about what it is like to have autism. This is one person's journey through depression and anxiety, and of running away because he can't face things due, in part, to his autism. It is a journey of finding inner peace by balancing his (overly) self-aware autistic self with some of the principles of Buddhism that encourage letting go of self. It was this apparent paradox that drew me to the book in the first place.
To be honest, Clement's writing style can, at times, feel long-winded, but that's because he can't help stuffing interesting detail into his tale. He, like many with autism, seems to love detail. Especially about food and the places he travels to! So much so that you feel you are by his side the whole time. If the book was longer, maybe Clement's writing style would begin to grate. But at just over 200 pages it's easy to stay with him as he shares his incredible rollercoaster of a journey from England to Asia and back.
I think there is an excellent film in there somewhere! Not to "raise awareness" of autism, but because of the journey this individual has been on.
I got sight of a review copy of the book before it was published.
January 28, 2021
I started reading this as a new Buddhist and autist myself. Though there are several actions in the beginning I condemn and several ideas I may disagree with, I can see the narrator/author as a human being through this journey. It started our confusing and having almost nothing of what I was looking for, but I became more interested once it got to the China teaching part, because I want to teach English in Japan. We learn about who thomas was and how he navigated life before he discovers the joys of Buddhist psychology. The ending is more of an analysis and summary of his findings, but it definitely helped and saved me from making the same mistakes moving forward. I hope the author reads this and knows someone has considered his perspective and been inspired by his journey.
September 5, 2025
A pleasure to read: clear honest prose and nice short chapters to keep me engaged a few pages at a time until I finished the last one-third all in one go.
Many of Thomas’s experiences rang bells for me and I wish him well on the path ahead.
Every now and then the prose becomes a bit writerly and abstract but for the most part this is a very accessible stream of consciousness, with humour and good will. A definite recommendation.
Many of Thomas’s experiences rang bells for me and I wish him well on the path ahead.
Every now and then the prose becomes a bit writerly and abstract but for the most part this is a very accessible stream of consciousness, with humour and good will. A definite recommendation.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews