A truly impactful, necessary book.
A remarkable new approach to autism.
The key to successfully connecting with and helping children with autism is deceptively simple: don’t make assumptions, ask them questions about their feelings and behavior, listen closely to their responses, and try to understand the reasoning behind their actions. A little bit of empathy and respect goes a long way. The traditional methods of understanding and treating autism may be more harmful than we thought, argues leading autism expert Prizant (co-author: The SCERTS Model, 2005, etc.). Attempts to “normalize” children or to expect them to understand complex social and moral nuances may, in fact, prove detrimental to their happiness and impede their abilities to interact with others. Rather than suffering from an intellectual disability, the author writes, these children struggle with what he calls a “disability of trust.” From their perspective, adults often make statements that are not strictly true or that omit information that most of us take for granted but that a child with autism perceives as vital. Many conflicts that arise may be caused by this type of “misunderstanding,” in which the rules, especially social ones, are not outlined in comprehensive detail. Backed by cogent, compassionate anecdotes drawn from his many years in the field, Prizant also points out that many of the behaviors that people without autism may label as odd—like echolalia—stem from a child’s attempt to cope with a stressful situation, such as overstimulation or frustration at not being able to communicate their feelings or needs. Instead of dismissing these “regulating” behaviors as weird or even unacceptable, adults should embrace them as constructive methods by which children can return to homeostasis. By admitting, “it’s not you, it’s me,” we can reorient the way we perceive and embrace people with autism, helping them live joyous, meaningful lives. As the author wisely notes, we must embrace their uniquely human experience, not subvert it.
A truly impactful, necessary book.Pub Date: Aug. 4, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4767-7623-1
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015
A straightforward tale of kindness and paying it forward in 1980s New York.
When advertising executive Schroff answered a child’s request for spare change by inviting him for lunch, she did not expect the encounter to grow into a friendship that would endure into his adulthood. The author recounts how she and Maurice, a promising boy from a drug-addicted family, learned to trust each other. Schroff acknowledges risks—including the possibility of her actions being misconstrued and the tension of crossing socio-economic divides—but does not dwell on the complexities of homelessness or the philosophical problems of altruism. She does not question whether public recognition is beneficial, or whether it is sufficient for the recipient to realize the extent of what has been done. With the assistance of People human-interest writer Tresniowski (Tiger Virtues, 2005, etc.), Schroff adheres to a personal narrative that traces her troubled relationship with her father, her meetings with Maurice and his background, all while avoiding direct parallels, noting that their childhoods differed in severity even if they shared similar emotional voids. With feel-good dramatizations, the story seldom transcends the message that reaching out makes a difference. It is framed in simple terms, from attributing the first meeting to “two people with complicated pasts and fragile dreams” that were “somehow meant to be friends” to the conclusion that love is a driving force. Admirably, Schroff notes that she did not seek a role as a “substitute parent,” and she does not judge Maurice’s mother for her lifestyle. That both main figures experience a few setbacks yet eventually survive is never in question; the story fittingly concludes with an epilogue by Maurice. For readers seeking an uplifting reminder that small gestures matter.
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-4516-4251-3
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Howard Books/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
A riveting look inside the human brain and its quirks.
Acclaimed British neurologist Sacks (Neurology and Psychiatry/Columbia Univ.; The Mind’s Eye, 2010, etc.) delves into the many different sorts of hallucinations that can be generated by the human mind.
The author assembles a wide range of case studies in hallucinations—seeing, hearing or otherwise perceiving things that aren’t there—and the varying brain quirks and disorders that cause them in patients who are otherwise mentally healthy. In each case, he presents a fascinating condition and then expounds on the neurological causes at work, drawing from his own work as a neurologist, as well as other case studies, letters from patients and even historical records and literature. For example, he tells the story of an elderly blind woman who “saw” strange people and animals in her room, caused by Charles Bonnet Syndrome, a condition in with the parts of the brain responsible for vision draw on memories instead of visual perceptions. In another chapter, Sacks recalls his own experimentation with drugs, describing his auditory hallucinations. He believed he heard his neighbors drop by for breakfast, and he cooked for them, “put their ham and eggs on a tray, walked into the living room—and found it completely empty.” He also tells of hallucinations in people who have undergone prolonged sensory deprivation and in those who suffer from Parkinson’s disease, migraines, epilepsy and narcolepsy, among other conditions. Although this collection of disorders feels somewhat formulaic, it’s a formula that has served Sacks well in several previous books (especially his 1985 bestseller The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat), and it’s still effective—largely because Sacks never turns exploitative, instead sketching out each illness with compassion and thoughtful prose.
A riveting look inside the human brain and its quirks.Pub Date: Nov. 6, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-307-95724-5
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: July 16, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2012
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