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31 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An sourcebook with heart, October 1, 2005
This review is from: The Autism Sourcebook: Everything You Need to Know About Diagnosis, Treatment, Coping, and Healing (Hardcover)
I have a loved one (nephew) that has been challenged with an Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD). I felt that reading this book would be informative as well as showing my support for the family. Well it was, and then some.
What surprises me is that it is not a dry and tedious read. Author Karen Siff Exkorn manages to explain technical, diagnostic and therapeutic terms and processes in intelligent and uncomplicated English. Make no mistake - this is not a dim-witted "Autism for Dummies" style book either.
It is clear that she has been through much, for only the voice of experience could have this veracity. I was intrigued to read about her family's personal experiences. Her stories and examples involving her son, Jake, are understated and not drenched in sentimentality. It added a very real and human dimension to the book.
The book has four sections:
-Diagnosis
-Treatment
-Coping
-Healing
It also includes a large and pragmatic appendix; covering areas such as diagnostic criteria, organizations, resources, recommended reading, and a glossary.
At the end of each section are questions and answers. I found myself reading the questions and thinking to myself "Hey, now there is a good one!" No stone was left unturned.
I think many parents and guardians will also appreciate chapter 7: "You Have the Power: Advocating for Your Child's Legal Rights". It is clear and practical information, loaded with parent's experiences and helpful tips on how to "work the system". There are a variety of programs and Siff Exkorn explains how to jump the hurdles and stay on top of it all.
There is an aspect often neglected by other books and articles regarding ASD: the emotional impact on the care-givers and the family. Siff Exkorn devoted much of the last two chapters to this very subject matter. Here she advocates taking care of ourselves, and ways to do it, so that we remain effective care-givers and create a content family life that includes a child with an ASD. It was reassuring to read that others have gone through similar experiences.
I am most grateful to Karen Siff Exkorn for authoring this much needed book, and would recommend it to anyone who has interest in the Autistic Spectrum Disorders.
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30 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Don't bother -- Save your money, January 2, 2006
This review is from: The Autism Sourcebook: Everything You Need to Know About Diagnosis, Treatment, Coping, and Healing (Hardcover)
Save your money ... this book is misleading, nothing new, and for anyone to claim that they have written a book that is "everything you need to know" about helping your child with Autism is, in itself, ludicrous.
Apparently "everything you need to know" is just using ABA therapy.
The Author, Karen Siff Exhorn, claims that her child is "completely recovered from Autism" (his actual diagnosis was PDD) but then the author also says that her son still needs a 1:1 ABA therapist to "support him" on playdates. The child is in 4th grade. That is hardly what I would consider to be "recovered".
What this author appears to consider "recovered" is her son's ability to speak, to be compliant, and to not "look autistic" ... meaning, she focused on ABA "training" to get her kid to not flap or shriek and to "look normal". "Looking normal" was the most important thing to her, it seems. So her kid sounds as if he can appear normal, which is great, but her son still doesn't know how to relate to kids, converse with them, or play ...
Half a page on Sensory Integration and a quarter of a page on Integrated Play Therapy can hardly be considered "everything you need to know".
We all have 1000 times more computing power at our fingertips right now than NASA used to get a man on the moon ... yet few of us make very good use of it.
It would be great if there were one book that would tell us everything we needed to know, but since every case of Autism is different, that is not possible. Forget this book and just search the web.
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10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A Good Start for Newly Diagnosed, March 9, 2006
This review is from: The Autism Sourcebook: Everything You Need to Know About Diagnosis, Treatment, Coping, and Healing (Hardcover)
I wish this book had been around five years ago when my son was diagnosed. This is a great start, but ONLY a start. I feel there needs to be much more on sensory integration. My son is also PDD and ABA did nothing for his flapping and spinning. Newly diagnosed parents must remember that Autism isn't curable but treatable. With therapies, diet, and a good special ed teacher their child can live in our world very well. My son is now eight and looks, acts, talks like a typical boy. Certain social still cause stimming and behavior problems but all in all he's doing excellent. Again, this book is a great start.
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