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Summary: Very misleading, factually not correct
Review: We know there are late talking children. But most children who do not talk by the age 2 1/2 usually have PDD(autism spectrum, Pervasive development disorder). My only fear is a parent whose child is potentially a PDD may delay seeking medical help if they read such book. I urge all the parent who have late talking children not to take author's word but to get their child evaluated as early as possible. It is cheaper to get the child evaluated by a medical professional then buying this book and having a false sense of relief
Rating: 
Summary: Good book, just off target for my child
Review: This book is very specific in that it talks of children (mostly boys) who do not talk for a very specific reason. This is for children who do not talk because they are gifted in the areas of math, music and abstract arts. The children eventually talk with a little help from their parents and professionals. The children excel at numbers and sometimes have musical gifts.My child did not fit this specific area so it was not useful to me. Regardless it was well written, easy to understand and had plenty of examles and real life events. The author is drien by the topic and knows it well. If your child fits the specific audience, it is a must read as it has many contacts and ideas for helping this specific type of child.
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Summary: Very enlightening for parents with late-talking children.
Review: Thomas Sowell is one of my favorite conservative authors. He is also the father of a late talking child who was misdiagnosed with autism or other problems, when in fact there was really nothing wrong with him (other than he talked late). After writing a few columns about his son, he started to get contacted by many other people with the same situation. These contacts turned in an informal group - the members of which he writes about here. There is really not too much in this book for people who do not have family that is late-talking, but for us it was very enlightening (our son Max was late-talking). The basic conclusion of this book is that there is some unnamed, unstudied disorder which seems to make children who are very very left brained talk late. These same kids seem to excel at math, logic and computers. It is possible that the late talking is just a function of the analytical part of the brain talking all the new cells for a while and "robbing" the speech center. This is not the case will all children who talk late, just thost who are perfectly normal in every other way (can understand and perform other functions normally or at an accelerated rate).
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Summary: It just wasn't what I was looking for
Review: I was dissapointed with this book. I was hoping for an explanation of developmental speech delay and/or a parent's first hand account of how to help a "late talker" develop his speech skills. I already know my child is not autistic, and that he is exceptionally bright, and that there are others like him. If all you need to know is that you and your child are not alone, buy this book. If you are looking for answers, save your money.
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Summary: Late Talking Children
Review: We bought this book and also the book "Childhood Speech, Language & Listening Problems" (Hamaguchi). Both books were/are useful in helping us pursue the mystery of our 2 3/4 yr old daughter's speech delays, but it is "Late Talking Children" that is by far and away the more important of the two books. It not only offers hope, it offers the possibility that the medical establishment doesn't have all the answers every time, that this might just be the pattern of development for a certain subset of the population. Unfortunately, some of the professionals that we have had to deal with so far seem to want to put labels on our child when there just isn't the evidence to support those conclusions. It has added stress when it shouldn't have. Sowell's book has helped decrease stress. I think I am a better, stronger advocate for my daughter in pursuing intervention, POSITIVE intervention, as a result of the shared experiences in this book. It helps me to trust my instincts that a treatment or doctor is being more hurtful than helpful. (Then I am free to find the more caring professionals in my community, and they exist, too.) If that is all this book ever does for anyone, that is extremely helpful!
Rating: 
Summary: Great resource
Review: This is a great down to earth discussion of Late Talking Children. There have been many criticisms of this book regarding some of the treatment suggestions. Think of the book as a transcript of a "Parents of Late Talking Children" support group meeting and you won't go too far wrong. The author is a very intelligent individual who is writing this as a labor of love. For us, the most important thing was just to be able to read story after story of people who have kids like ours. The treatment suggestions are great tools to spark your thinking but use your brain and if you are unsure of something talk to your doctor or speech therapist.
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Summary: Positive Recommendation: "Late-Talking Children"
Review: I would recommend other parents of young children with speech problems at least look into this book by Thomas Sowell. The book is not a substitute for accurate medical and speech/hearing diagnosis, in fact Sowell himself has pointed this out in the book and subsequent syndicated columns. The author seeks to assist families of a subset of children with speech and language delays to have hope and realize they are not alone. Our family found "Late-Talking Children" to be very enlightening and ultimately assisted us in seeking the consultation of Stephen Camarata PhD at Vanderbilt University in Nashville TN. The result was that our son progressed more rapidly and with more specific-to-his-needs speech therapy. We are very pleased with the the results! Now, this book may or may not be the answer concerned parents are seeking. But keep an open mind and an open heart when you read this book. In case this book should in fact be helpful to your child and your family's situation, I am pleased to offer this positive review of Thomas Sowell's "Late-Talking Children" for your consideration.
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Summary: I Like and Recommend "Late-Talking Children"
Review: I would recommend other parents with young children with speech problems at least look into this book by Thomas Sowell. Be aware that Sowell himself, in his book and syndicated columns, does urge parents to get a thorough medical exam and accurate speech and language diagnosis, and that his book is the result of experiences among a small support group of parents. However, the book does offer some theories on some common characteristics of a subset of children with speech and language disorders or delays. If you keep those perspectives in mind while reading it the potentially controversial aspects of it become less of a problem. My husband and I found a lot of hope and "real life" in Sowell's book. Our son also seemed to fit the hypothetical profile of Sowell's initial support group, and we also took our son to see Stephen Camarata PhD at the Child Language Intervention Program at Vanderbilt University (www.tsowell.com). After consulting with Dr. Camarata we were able to obtain more accurate diagnosis and eventually individually targetted speech therapy for our son. The excellent results were that our son with specific therapy progressed faster than otherwise might have. We are pleased with the results and are thankful for both Drs. Sowell and Camarata in their efforts to assist a certain subset of children with speech problems. Keep an open mind. Indeed this book may not be for everyone and if it doesn't match you or your family's situation then so be it. But in case it does match your family's situation, we found this book to be _very_ helpful, provide peace of mind and positive direction for parental advocacy and a possible avenue to obtain accurate diagnosis and treatment.
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Summary: Terrific read and highly recommended
Review: I have read and reread Mr. Sowell's book and found it to be facinatinating, disturbing, comforting and most of all worthy of serious consideration by the medical establishment. My son who is a little over two and a half sounds almost exactly like some of the children in his book. While it is true the book is more anacdotal in it's approach it ( which he freely admits through out the book ) The case he builds for further study is overwhelming and just based on what I've discovered myself by talking to friends and family this sort of a-typical development is probably much more common then anyone in the "so-called" professional community is willing to admit. I recently had my son evaluated by an SLP.The result of her rather feeble eval, in my opininion, was that my son shows classic PDD (purvasive developmental DISORDER as she called it vs. DELAY ) symptoms. Fortunately, I had read Mr. Sowell's book and was skeptical at the same time not totally discounting her observations. I mentioned this book and she had said she had never heard of it. I was somewhat surprised considering the outrageous smear campaign ASHA has led against it. We have since had him reevaluated and the new SLP was much more open to this possibility while saying further evals were needed by a Nuerologist, Psychologist, team which is already scheduled and something I wanted to have done anyway. But anyone who is interested in the enigma of the late speaking child should read this book! Also, this is the only book I've found that offers a ray of hope for anyone in this sort of situation, the other "Speech,Language and Hearing problems : what every parent should know" by Hamaguchi reads more like ASHA propaganda but at the same time is useful to deciphering SLP speak. But if you read that one and before Mr. Sowell's your heading for a major bout of depression! Mr. Sowell as it turns out seems to share my exact same political and cultural attitudes to today's society much to my surprise! Coincidence, probably not.I need to read more from this amazing forward thinker! If you read this review Mr. Sowell thanks and I'll help carry this torch you've lit!
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Summary: Please read more than one book!
Review: Dr. Sowell's book provides alot of anectdotal evidence that may provide alot of hope for parents of autistic spectrum children. As Dr. Sowell himself states - the book is not meant to be a scientific treatise - however, for parents who may see similarities between the children described in the book and their own, it is invaluable and should inspire them to never give up and to keep seeking help wherever it may be. Dr. Sowell's view of the educational establishment is only his opinion - for the benefit of the children - PARENTS, please keep reading and talking and never stop getting information that can help you to build a better future for your kids. I have read many books on autistic spectrum disorders; this book only adds to the variety of ways that I am able to help kids lead a better life.
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