A Mind Apart : Understanding Children with Autism and Asperger Syndrome

Rating:
Summary: First-hand accounts are now common...
Review: and provide more insight. Temple Grandin (HFA) and Liane Holliday-Wilson (Aspergers) have done good jobs with their books both in explaining their particular problems and in providing strategies that may work with children.

For a mere professional, he didn't do to bad of a job. I only caught him in a couple of what I would consider minor errors. The one that bothered me the most was our suppossed "lack of imagination".

I would like to correct that to lack of ORIGINAL material in our imaginations. I had a very lively fantasy world when I was a child, mostly based on Tolkien. But as I grew older, instead of simply redoing the scenes from the books over and over again in my head, I completely redid the world and took it in new directions. What we lack in originality, Aspies and HFAs make up fore in having a different set of "rules" our logic works by, so that even out of old, familiar material we can create things that look completely unfamiliar to neurotypicals (those not on the autistic spectrum).

As for his refusing to diagnose a woman as Asperger's just because she had a career, a husband, and seemed relatively content... I just don't see it. Now, I don't really have a career (I'm not very good at the social stuff to build one, but I'm strong academically), and my marriage to a neurotypical has basically fallen apart and is awaiting its official burial in the court systems, so I'm not a great example either. But I know of at least two people in the local Asperger's group who I consider to be of a similar functional level to myself who have successful relationships and careers. I don't really see what either have to do with diagnostics.

Rating:
Summary: Get this book now!!!!!!
Review: If you have a child with Autism Spectrum Disorder, buy this right now!! It will help you gain insight into your childs head! Dr. Szatmari actually shows you the beautiful side of the disorder, while never forgetting how difficult it can be. Excellent, excellent book!!!!!!

Rating:
Summary: Read this book first!
Review: This is the book you should reach for when you receive the diagnosis (or when a friend or family member does). It doesn't bury you in information about IEP's, and various therapies. Rather, it's like calling up a friend who has been through it all before, and is willing to open their heart and share honestly with you their answers to all the hard questions you need to ask.

When we found out our son's diagnosis, part of me was terrified that he had lived for so many years in fright and pain and that somehow we were unaware and unable to help. This book helped me to understand what he felt, and why he felt it, and to see that in some ways he was still happy. The author is capable of seeing the same beauty in his patients that you see in your own children.

He also faces the hard questions -- Why? Why did this happen? Why did this happen to me? Did I do something wrong? Can I fix it? Why can't I fix it? What will my child's life be like? Am I a bad parent? How will I handle this?

Most of the other books don't cover this territory - - and somehow make you feel guilty for even raising those questions.
This one's different. Read it.