My Life As 18" Poseable Autism Advocate African American Doll Playset, 8 Pieces Included

I want to start this review by saying I understand there are some negative associations with the puzzle piece and Autism. I don't view the puzzle piece as saying Autism is puzzling, I view it as finding the missing puzzle piece. For too long, children and adults with autism were not understood and finally, awareness has been brought, as well as understanding, and that is the missing piece of the puzzle. The puzzle being society. I love that this doll communicates to children that they are indeed part of the whole, they don't need to feel left out or different. Being unique is a beautiful thing and autism does not need to be something that people don't understand any more. So with that said, my daughter was thrilled to receive this doll. The doll comes with a fidget spinner, little cell phone, headphones and a beanie. Her hair is super soft and my daughter loves playing with it. She loves that the doll had a fidget spinner because she has anxiety and as a result has several fidget toys to keep her anxiety at bay so to finally have a doll that she felt was similar to her made her feel so very special and understood. The doll is posable as it claims and led to hours of fun being played with in her room with her other dolls. The quality of the doll was surprisingly good, I wasn't sure what to expect but everything from the features on the doll down to her clothing and accessories were wonderful! For children who have autism, this doll represents so much more to them and then we as adults can understand. To finally feel represented in a store like Walmart is huge for children and we as adults do not need to take that away from them. Our society is often so quick to find issue with things and I understand that there has been a negative history associated with the puzzle piece but instead of trying to continue that negativity why don't we turn it into something positive for our kids? I know we all have differing opinions and that's the beauty of this world but my daughter would be so upset knowing that something she loved and viewed as special, was being ripped to shreds by adults. Let's change the narrative and make this doll what it is: a positive and welcome message to our children that you are special and loved and seen.