02-27-2007, 02:03 AM
New writings offer glimpses into autism
By Deirdre Donahue | USA Today
Experts estimate that one out of every 150 children is somewhere on the autism spectrum. Some autistic people are so disabled they can't live independently.
Others publish books, marry and appear on TV. Yet they are all considered autistic. How is this possible?
We examine some books that deal with this bewildering disorder.
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• "Unstrange Minds: Remapping the World of Autism," by Roy Richard Grinker (Basic Books, $26.95).
Hands down, "Unstrange Minds" is the most useful book of the bunch for anyone who is interested in learning more about autism. The father of an autistic teenage daughter, Grinker is also a professor of anthropology at George Washington University.
He skillfully combines his daughter Isabel's story with an accessible historical and cultural examination of how people with autism have been diagnosed and treated in the U.S. and around the world.
Autism is seen as a range of problems that involve impairments in three areas: social interaction, communication and imagination. He writes, "They are so variable in their severity that one person with autism might be profoundly mentally retarded and totally non-verbal while another might be a physics professor."
Grinker convincingly argues that the "autism epidemic" is actually the result of more accurate detection by doctors and schools.
(my note: I'm halfway through this book right now. I think the author's curbie, but he dismisses thimerisol, ect, and provides a lengthy and convincing arguement against the "epidemic"; he also talks about views of autism in other cultures, which is quite fascinating)
• "George & Sam: Two Boys, One Family, and Autism," by Charlotte Moore, foreword by Nick Hornby (St. Martin's, $24.95)
English writer Moore puts her unusual family under a microscope in this moving book. Her two oldest sons, George and Sam, are autistic; her youngest is not.
As exhausting and difficult as this situation is for Moore, it makes for a book that is extremely helpful in conveying the enormous differences in how autism affects children. One autistic son is very verbal; the other has limited language. One is anxious, and one is fearless about running away. "George & Sam" also illustrates how certain therapies can work well with one and do nothing for the other.
At the end of the book, the reader feels he really knows the boys as interesting individuals. Despite their sleep disorders, educational needs, disruptive behaviors and lifelong need for constant care, her two older sons clearly provide Moore with satisfaction.
• "Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant," by Daniel Tammet (Free Press, $24)
When author Tammet met the real-life inspiration for Dustin Hoffman's character in "Rain Man," he felt a connection: Both men share an extraordinary facility with numbers. Tammet and his remarkable mind have been studied by scientists.
The 28-year-old Englishman has become a media darling, appearing on TV shows such as "Late Show With David Letterman" and "60 Minutes." Tammet became famous by memorizing and reciting the number pi to 22,514 digits.
At 25, he was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, a term applied to high-functioning people with autism.
In his memoir, Tammet describes his childhood: Though school came easily, making friends was difficult. An accepting family, a sympathetic lover, the ability to work from home and the Internet have all helped Tammet.
By Deirdre Donahue | USA Today
Experts estimate that one out of every 150 children is somewhere on the autism spectrum. Some autistic people are so disabled they can't live independently.
Others publish books, marry and appear on TV. Yet they are all considered autistic. How is this possible?
We examine some books that deal with this bewildering disorder.
Advertisement
• "Unstrange Minds: Remapping the World of Autism," by Roy Richard Grinker (Basic Books, $26.95).
Hands down, "Unstrange Minds" is the most useful book of the bunch for anyone who is interested in learning more about autism. The father of an autistic teenage daughter, Grinker is also a professor of anthropology at George Washington University.
He skillfully combines his daughter Isabel's story with an accessible historical and cultural examination of how people with autism have been diagnosed and treated in the U.S. and around the world.
Autism is seen as a range of problems that involve impairments in three areas: social interaction, communication and imagination. He writes, "They are so variable in their severity that one person with autism might be profoundly mentally retarded and totally non-verbal while another might be a physics professor."
Grinker convincingly argues that the "autism epidemic" is actually the result of more accurate detection by doctors and schools.
(my note: I'm halfway through this book right now. I think the author's curbie, but he dismisses thimerisol, ect, and provides a lengthy and convincing arguement against the "epidemic"; he also talks about views of autism in other cultures, which is quite fascinating)
• "George & Sam: Two Boys, One Family, and Autism," by Charlotte Moore, foreword by Nick Hornby (St. Martin's, $24.95)
English writer Moore puts her unusual family under a microscope in this moving book. Her two oldest sons, George and Sam, are autistic; her youngest is not.
As exhausting and difficult as this situation is for Moore, it makes for a book that is extremely helpful in conveying the enormous differences in how autism affects children. One autistic son is very verbal; the other has limited language. One is anxious, and one is fearless about running away. "George & Sam" also illustrates how certain therapies can work well with one and do nothing for the other.
At the end of the book, the reader feels he really knows the boys as interesting individuals. Despite their sleep disorders, educational needs, disruptive behaviors and lifelong need for constant care, her two older sons clearly provide Moore with satisfaction.
• "Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant," by Daniel Tammet (Free Press, $24)
When author Tammet met the real-life inspiration for Dustin Hoffman's character in "Rain Man," he felt a connection: Both men share an extraordinary facility with numbers. Tammet and his remarkable mind have been studied by scientists.
The 28-year-old Englishman has become a media darling, appearing on TV shows such as "Late Show With David Letterman" and "60 Minutes." Tammet became famous by memorizing and reciting the number pi to 22,514 digits.
At 25, he was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, a term applied to high-functioning people with autism.
In his memoir, Tammet describes his childhood: Though school came easily, making friends was difficult. An accepting family, a sympathetic lover, the ability to work from home and the Internet have all helped Tammet.