The world is a better place with this book in it. I am a better person for having read this book.
All of my friends (and myself) question why a 20-year-old with no personal connection to autism would be so interested in this book. Autism has always fascinated me; I don't know why. I do know that this book answered everything I could have ever wanted to know about autism.
If only school textbooks were written like this book. The authors do such a wonderful job of taking so much information and turning it into beautiful and relatable stories. Very rarely did I feel like I was reading a biographical, non-fiction book like the ones I'm used to reading as a result of educational assignments. I think this was strengthened by the fact that the authors have backgrounds in television. They know how to tell a great human narrative.
A few months ago, late on a Saturday night on my college campus, I ran into a group of kids handing out flyers. I was about halfway through this book at the time. I thought to myself, "oh my god who the heck is bothering people at 10pm on a Saturday night." I quickly retracted my negative thoughts when I was handed a flyer about neurodiversity. I struck up a conversation with the girl who handed me the flyer. She revealed that she was on the spectrum. We spoke for 20 minutes about a range of topics from ABA to Asperger's to Neurodiversity. It was enlightening and heartening to see such passion.
As I read the latter half of the book, I frequently thought back to that conversation. I can only imagine the impact this book might have on readers who have much closer connections with people on the spectrum than I do.
The authors do a wonderful job of remaining partial and non-bias in most situation where there's neither a right or wrong to certain sides. I think right now, a very interesting debate that they pose later on in the book is whether or not autism is something to be cured. I don't know if I have an opinion on it, but I do know that I am immensely fascinated in seeing how autism develops in the future. As I grow older, I hope that my financial and professional situations will provide opportunities for me to make a difference within this community.
Thank you for a compelling book, and a wonderful journey.
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The most comprehensive story of autism ever told. A GREAT read that I recommend for everyone, not just autism families!!
I just finished reading this book and feel the need to sing its praises in every online and social media forum I belong to! I am an avid reader, a mother of a 4 year old non-verbal boy with autism and I am also a research scientist who studies the biochemistry and biophysics of eye disease, but I want to recommend this book for EVERYONE to read, not just autism families or scientists. This book is exactly what it claims to be: The Story of Autism. The whole story, from all perspectives. As someone who compiles, analyzes and publishes data constanty for my job, I can't imagine the amount of work and time that went into gathering all of this information let alone the skill it took to weave it together to read like an actually story while somehow managing to be heart warming and compelling at the same time as being historical and scientific. The facts and figures, names and dates, cases (both clinical and court), countries and controversies involved are masterfully and seamlessly woven together in a completely objective and unbiased manner to paint an extremely thorough picture of how the autism diagnosis came to be and how the clinical, social, psychiatric and cultural landscape surrounding autism has evolved over the years, leading to where it is today. This 'compendium on autism', to me, is a beautiful tapestry of real people, real history, activism, research science, biology, psychology, non-profit organizations and government involvement surrounding what is and has become one of the most important medical issues of our time. I want to thank the authors for all of their work and for caring enough about autism to take on such an enormous project and for doing it with such integrity! Speaking as an autism mother, this book made me laugh, made me cry, made me furious, and filled me with joy and intense gratitude for those who went before to pave the way for progress. It left me with a greater desire to be a better mother to my son, to be a better scientist, to be a better advocate and to be a better person. Thank you, sincerely, for what you have done to spread awareness, to disseminate truth, to educate and to chronicle one of the greatest medical journeys in the worlds history. EVERYONE should read this book.Note: I rarely issue 5 stars to anything but this deserves it. Also it might help to know that I was not given this book at a discount or for free. I paid full price for it and listened to it on Audible which I also highly recommend as the narrator does a wonderful job! I am writing this review because the book deserves it, plain and simple. Hope this helps!
Top reviews from other countries
Jim
A good resource and a great read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 16, 2016
