The Autism Book

April 1, 2005
Ham-Kucharski, the parent of an autistic child, joins with freelance health writer Robledo to offer a primer on autism that will especially benefit parents first grappling with the condition. Organized into nine sections covering diagnosis, childhood issues, and life after school, the book presents a series of basic questions followed by the answers written in jargon-free language. Because there are so few universal truths associated with autism, many answers -as in the case of "Will my child ever fall in love and have children?" -are not definitive. While this seems counterproductive, parents of autistic children will benefit by learning that many issues are indeed difficult or impossible to resolve. Some questions, as with one regarding Individualized Educational Plans, could have been improved by providing additional resources in the context of the answer. Another drawback is the lack of a full list of questions, which makes the book more difficult to use. Even with these faults, the book is recommended for public libraries because it addresses basic important questions at a bargain price. -Corey Seeman, Univ. of Toledo Libs. Social Science

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