Reviewed by Lily Andrews
“Looked Down Upon: The Exiled Kin” by Jordan Lopez follows sixteen-year-old Lucas “Luke” Ramirez, who lives in an old, small cottage at the heart of Blackroot town, Tennessee, together with his thirty-seven-year-old mother, who is a nurse, and his seventy-two-year-old grandmother. He has autism, a condition that makes it extremely difficult for him to make friends or cope with change. His grandmother, on the other hand, is fighting liver cancer as well as COPD, an illness that affects her lungs, requiring her to rely on an oxygen tank for breathing. Luke grows up knowing that his father, a successful mechanic, died in a car accident when Luke was three. He was told his father wasn’t big on taking pictures, which is why there are no photos of him in their house. Purchase Here.
Luke starts his sophomore year at Princeton County High School and almost immediately notices Natalie Brown, a new student. He keeps to himself, but with Brown, he feels different. They meet over lunch. But some bullies, led by Rob, interrupt their warm conversation, creating a scene by mocking Luke’s condition and leaving him deeply shattered. He imagines having beautiful times with Brown. But we know that underneath all that lies a chilling, recurrent nightmare that involves a masked haunter who lunges at him in his sleep, sometimes mocking his worth and reminding him that he doesn’t deserve to be loved.
Luke’s story explores, among other themes, identity and self-acceptance. This theme ideally forms the backbone of the story. Self-acceptance, especially, emerges as an often painful struggle, worsened by constant reminders that you are different; this often leads the victim to hide their authentic self, even as they believe they are broken or that a large part of them is out of sync with the world.
“Looked Down Upon: The Exiled Kin” is a story where the hero spirals, cries, withdraws, and tries to fight back, showing us how deeply he is hurting. His struggles pull us right into his world, a world where systems meant to protect him often fail, and where survival seems like a daily battle for someone like him. By writing Luke’s story, two-time published author and autistic self-advocate who was often misunderstood in his tender years by many of his peers and teachers, Jordan Lopez manages to show us that autism doesn’t place any limit on an individual’s purpose. His writing style keeps emotions close to the surface, so you don’t struggle to feel the story as it happens. The mystery of the masked haunter is one of his most compelling creations and a major source of psychological unease that keeps you guessing and turning pages as you wonder what that creepy figure is all about.
“Looked Down Upon: The Exiled Kin” is without a doubt a story that anyone who has ever felt like an outsider will resonate with. It is a book that offers insight into what it is like to raise or support an autistic child. It makes you understand autism easily, and on the other side, the impact of bullying and how it can shape a child’s self-worth. This makes it a great read for parents, teachers, and caregivers. Readers who love stories about courage and justice shouldn’t miss it either.
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