5 comments about My Name Is Bill: Bill Wilson--His Life and the Creation of Alcoholics Anonymous.

1. I was actually looking for the autobiography of Bill W. but stumbled upon this in the search. I am pleasantly surprised. It gives a thorough chronological sequence that shaped Bill W.into the man he became and his never ending battle with the bottle. Ms. Cheever also gives good detail to the emotional struggles of those touched by alcolholism. It truly gave me an even deeper appreciation for all that Bill W. went through and accomplished. At times, the characters got a little confusing (so many of them) that I had to go back and reread a bit, but I think that you will find it well with your while.



2. how this squirrel made it to the top god only knows, the miracle is aa works for a few of us, too bad the rest of you drunks are screwedStarbucks Assortment



3. While Susan Cheever makes a valiant effort to use imagery and some carefully styled first person musings of Emily and Bill Wilson, her efforts fall somewaht flat. On the balance, this is essentially a retelling of "Pass It On." There are a few details at the end regarding Bill W.'s sexual compulsions that are common AA lore, and have appeared elsewhere.
   
   For those interested in the history of AA, this won't offer much in the way of insight into the early days of AA and how the program worked. Entertaining at points, but difficult to read attenteively if you have already read other accounts of Bill Wilson's life.
   
   Cheever's artistic touches didn't do much for me. I would rather she had put additional effort into her research, and brought a fresh telling with some new facts or insights.
   
   A completist must have. For the rest...optional.



4. I just finished reading this biography. I am so grateful for Bill and Bob and for me - they are a constant reminder that there is a Higher Power looking out for us.
   
   So what if Bill was less than perfect? Yeah, I was a little surprised at some of the content of the book - but again I ask so what? Bill always said that Dr. Bob was the more "spiritual" of the two of them. He never claimed to be the saint that so many people in program seem to need to make him in order to ?????
   
   Bill was an ordinary man with ordinary human issues - and he did his best with what he had. I believe that Bill would be amazed at the sainthood that seems to have been given to him since his death.
   
   Personally, it makes me feel safe to know that throughout all of Bill's experiences he managed to keep sober AND to share this so important message. This book clearly tells us that while Bill was at times struggling with his demons, he cared about other people (drunks) anyway.
   
   So, he had affairs? Who am I to judge? Step 4 - asks me to make a fearless inventory of MY affairs - not of other people's -
   
   Reading this well researched and written book only makes me appreciate Bill and Bob MORE - wow! they were actual ordinary guys who gave the world the most magical of gifts and for that I am grateful.



5. I read this book and I was disappointed beyond words. If you really want a great book about Bill W. I Suggest the book by Rober Thomsen, who
   knew Bill Wilson personally (The title is Bill W.)

5 comments about Switching Time: A Doctor's Harrowing Story of Treating a Woman with 17 Personalities.

1. This is an amazing story of a woman overcoming terrible events in her childhood. It is terribly sad and difficult to believe, but it's out there. Bad stuff doesn't just happen on tv and the movies. This is real life about an amazing woman.



2. I borrowed this book from the library. Once I started reading it I couldn't put it down. It was the saddest story I've ever read. Karen's parents were crazy and ignorant. They choose her for abuse because of her childhood deformity and bad health. I think this proves that anyone can have children it takes special people to raise them in a health environment so that they will be healthy. I was so glad when her father died. I was happy for all the deaths of the crazy people in her life. I was fascinated by the descriptions of the intergrations. I could picture them as I read them. A very good read. It will be added to my personal collection. I'm pleased to see that the paperback copy has been published. Either edition of this book should be read and studied by every one who takes care of children. All teachers, coaches, and day care workers should be required to read this book so they know what to look for in the extreme abuse cases. It also helps to reenforce that not all child in a family will be abused. It's usually the weakest child who will be destined for abuse.



3. Reading this book is like rubbernecking at an accident; you're drawn to the gruesome details against your better judgment. I'm still waiting for Oprah to reveal to the world that the book is a huge hoax, though the writer's credentials with Medicare suggest he wouldn't risk his career and reputation. Her tale is horrendous but even worse is the writer's inability to talk about its effect on him. What was he thinking and feeling as this woman revealed 17 personalities to him? All we know about him is that he's ambitious and status seeking. Anything he describes beyond Karen's tale is about his career trajectory and is written like a boring resume. Perhaps it was okay for him to sit silently and observe in therapy, but as the author of this book he owes it to the reader, if not to himself, to reveal his thoughts and emotions during what must have been a harrowing and incredible experience, assuming it's true.



4. I loved this book. I felt connected to each personality and wanted to know about them and their complicated "house". I couldn't put the book down and read it in 2 days. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the human mind, effects of childhood abuse and books that keep you wondering what will happen next. Very good read!



5. Would you like to ask me, Karen Overhill, a question? Log onto "Switching Time" website www.switchingtime.wordpress.com and I will answer you.

5 comments about About Alice.

1. This is one of the sweetest books I have ever read. It is the book I give to friends and family for whatever reason... a recuperation , a "thank you," "love you," or simply, " you have to read this book!" Calvin Trillin shares Alice with us with humor and love and we are all better for it.



2. A touching in memorium to the author's wife, who recently died of lung cancer. The couple's relationship is tenderly depicted, but I found myself not liking Alice all that much. She is definitely a complex person, but she also seems a bit superficial and showy at times. i suspect this is my misinterpretation based on a few episodes described by Trillon. I really enjoyed Trillin's writing and his sensitive treatment of his relationship with his wife, though.



3. About Alice contains some very powerful stories about the transforming power of human love. The story about the handicapped girl at the end of chapter VII (p.65-66) is especially moving.



4. It's all been said before, but never so eloquently. A true loss. An amazing spirit.



5. This is a slim book and a quick read but don't let the small size fool you; it packs a punch. Readers of Trillin's other works may recognize a version (or two) of Alice in this book. He never nails down Alice's essence which may be a disappointment for anyone who picks up the book with the hope that Alice's true personality would be revealed. This is a love letter about Alice and their marriage.
   
   Love can be the culmination of stories told (some details are naturally remembered differently than your partner) and shared experiences. Trillin visits many different stories and memories (his and others') about Alice and their life together. There is no doubt he loved her and was inspired by her to be a better writer and a better person.

5 comments about Well Enough Alone.

1. Jennifer Traig was pretty sure she had cancer. Also, lupus, tuberculosis and kidney failure. And herpes, rickets and Lyme disease. Plus, she might have had a heart attack somewhere along the way. As a hypochondriac, Traig is constantly convincing herself that she has been stricken with all kinds of illnesses; the symptoms are real, but the results are always negative. Or, almost always. She does have obsessive compulsive disorder and irritable bowel syndrome. She suffered from an actual eating disorder and, she will tell you, has frizzy hair.
   
   While hypochondriacs exist only as the butt of bad jokes for most of us, Traig's latest memoir, WELL ENOUGH ALONE, explores the disorder in a personal and compelling way. Traig is often the butt of her own jokes, but this book makes it clear that hypochondria is no laughing matter.
   
   Traig explains that hypochondria doesn't generally manifest until adulthood, yet she had signs of it as a child. In second grade she was worried about brain aneurysms, not to mention contaminated school lunches and injury from risky playground equipment. Her family seemed to be full of hypochondriacs, some of them genuinely sick, and her parents' medical professions also gave her fuel for the fire. She soon figured out that doctors worked hard and fussed over the sick, who got to rest and be pampered. Being sick, she reasoned, was the better deal. As she got older, the worry turned into real hypochondria, and she often found herself in the doctor's office with lists of pains and symptoms, rashes and spots.
   
   Her teenage years were consumed with OCD and her eating disorder, and this seemed to keep the hypochondria at bay. But it resurfaced in college, and she began to self-medicate. She also started working in medical offices that, instead of worsening her hypochondria, actually soothed it; she found that having some control in a medical environment, even if it was just organizing patient files, helped her feel more in control over her symptoms. Still, her college years (and they are many, as she earned a PhD in literature) were ones of poor nutrition, alcohol and non-prescribed prescription drugs as well as angst at literary theories like deconstructionism. None of this sounds quite funny, but truly, Traig has a way of making it so.
   
   Because the market has been flooded with horrible childhood memoirs, Traig's is refreshing. She doesn't lay blame (except with her genetic pool), and her tone is good-natured and self-mocking. She is a charming narrator, and her supporting cast --- her raucous and kind family and strung-out friends --- are interesting as well. From her unorthodox teaching methods as a grad student to her love of 1970s drug company marketing practices, Traig expands her story beyond her body yet is able to tie it all in to make a cohesive whole. She explains hypochondria clearly but without dull medical technical details, and is sensitive enough to make sure that the readers are laughing with her and not at hypochondriacs in general.
   
   The book also includes some oddly hypnotic and beautifully graphic Victorian portraits of patients with conditions like Lupus Erythematosus, Molluscum Fibrosum and Rhinoscleroma. The appendix is full of gems such as "handy phrases for the hypochondriac traveler as translated somewhat unreliably on my computer," "diseases that would make nice names if they meant something else" and "hypochondria haiku."
   
   WELL ENOUGH ALONE is funny and surprisingly sweet. A bit unfocused at times, it is a good book overall and gets better as it goes along.
   
   --- Reviewed by Sarah Rachel Egelman



2. Jennifer Traig's Well Enough Alone is a memoir centered around the author's health, a history of the real and perceived sicknesses and syndromes and symptoms that have shaped her life. Traig writes about a childhood soaked in free samples of prescription medications foisted on her father, a physician, about her discomfort with her body and its emanations, about her life as a hypochondriacal college and grad student. She discusses the social joys of food poisoning, the heartbreak of eczema. Her chapters mix memoir with medical information and the occasional health-related historical tidbit (e.g., Abraham Lincoln's final bowel movement is on display in a museum in Baltimore; George Washington's teeth were spring-loaded, so that he was compelled to clench his jaw at all times to keep his mouth shut). The result is a narrative that flows so smoothly you barely notice when it changes direction, from puberty to bat mitzvah to the Talmud to donkey urine, autopsies, the Eucharist, and breasts.
   
   A book-length investigation of hypochondria might seem an unlikely vehicle for humor, but Traig's a very funny writer. There's a delightful turn of phrase or two on nearly every page of the book. Most of these I merely appreciated in silence, but a passage in Traig's chapter on the breast reduction surgery she underwent sent me into a sort of hysterical tittering that made the children come running from another room:
   
   "When I heard about the 'pencil test'--an assessment of perkiness in which you place a pencil under your breast and pray the breast is not saggy enough to keep the pencil in place--I was eager to see what, besides pencils, my breasts could actually hold. I went from pencils to playing cards to CDs, stopping only after I successfully held up a VHS tape."
   
   Traig's pendulous, VHS-holding breasts would eventually be much reduced. The size she selected, after some research, was a 36C:
   
   "The end result would be a perky little 36C, a size I'd settled on after spending several weeks staring at women's chests. Friends, relatives, elderly nuns: no one was spared my penetrating gaze. Companions started to avoid going out with me. 'Oh, cut it out, will you?' my best friend pleaded. 'You're embarrassing every woman here. Well, except for the 34B with the graying brush cut, who's mouthing you her phone number.'"
   
   Traig is an honest writer--unless she's exaggerating for effect--insofar as she paints herself as a very unlikable person at times. She is immature and abrasive; she drinks too much (or did) and takes (or took) drugs and doesn't practice good dental hygiene; she was highly irresponsible as a teacher when in graduate school. On the other hand, Traig is self-aware and self-condemning, chastising herself for this behavior, which one rather admires. Whatever the childishness of her first several decades, Traig seems well past it now.
   
   But while I'm not entirely sure I like the author's persona, the quality of her writing is not in question. Well Enough Alone is a fascinating and funny book.
   
   -- Debra Hamel



3. Funny,dry,sharp without being in any way sad. I laughed the hypochondria out of my body. I don't know why another review suggested that it was negative for Jennifer to "use an excuse" to talk about herself, isn't that what autobiographical material is all about? I would read anything this author wrote about herself. She's funnier than most authors and is an excellent writer as well. Prepare to laugh and laugh again, this book is worth the read!



4. I had so much fun reading Jennifer Traig's memoir, I was sorry when it ended. Jennifer has such an exquisite, dry wit you'll find yourself laughing out loud at all of her imagined health crises, perhaps recognizing a bit of yourself in each one. (And I thought I was the only one thinking about Lupus while my classmates were resting their heads during nap time!) Let's hope that when Jennifer does actually go, it's of old age.
   
   Wendy Aron, author of Hide & Seek: How I Laughed at Depression, Conquered My Fears and Found Happiness



5. About: A biography of Traig's experiences with hypochondria, including not so imaginary experiences with eczema, irritable bowel syndrome and breast-reduction surgery.
   
   Pros: Humorous, not poorly written.
   
   Cons: Chapter on history of hypochondria seems out of place. Sources not cited. I could not get into this book at all. It seems like Traig just used hypochondria as an excuse to talk about herself.

5 comments about The Tiger's Child.

1. I THOUGHT THIS WAS A GREAT BOOK AND I RECEIVED IT FAIRLY QUICKLY AND IN GOOD CONDITION. I WAS EXTREMELY PLEASED!



2. In "One Child," Hayden first told the story of Sheila, a seriously abused, violent six-year-old who was placed in her special ed classroom as she awaited placement in a state mental hospital for setting a younger child on fire.
   
   Although just about everyone else -- including her own alcoholic father -- had given up on Sheila, Hayden realized the little girl was keenly intelligent. Doggedly, she began testing and teaching Sheila, all the while showing her patience, love and understanding. And despite the occasional setback, within months, Sheila was an entirely different child.
   
   Then the school year ended, Hayden took a different job out of state, and she lost touch with Sheila. Despite searching for her former student, Hayden was unable to connect -- until a coincidence reunited the two when Sheila was 13. Hayden was ecstatic -- and Sheila claimed not to remember the time they'd spent together.
   
   Undeterred, Hayden persisted, inviting Sheila to help out with a summer program for disturbed children she and another clinician were running. Soon the bond they'd once had seemed resurrected. Yet each time Torey and Sheila's friendship seemed to be going smoothly, something happened to test it fiercely -- interference from Sheila's father, or a facet of Sheila's own unpredictable adolescent persona. Despite her best intentions, Hayden often wondered why she persisted -- was there any point? Was she hurting Sheila more than she helped?
   
   Hayden's experiences with Sheila and her other students serve as complex and engrossing material for this book, a simple yet realistic portrait of the world's ugliness -- and the few, stubborn individuals who are determined to make a difference in others' lives.



3. Sad story, will make you cry. Too bad some children have parents that abuse them and make them suffer.



4. This is the sequel to One Child so it's best to read that one first. This book is fantastic. I loved it. It continue's the story about Shelia as a teenager and how she had blocked a lot of her childhood out. Her memories came back the more she talked with Torey. Also worked with Torey with some disturbed kids which was good for awhile. This book tells how Shelia overcame her very abusive childhood and how Torey encouraged and helped her long after she left her class. If you read "One Child," then you must read this one!
   
   Karen Arlettaz Zemek, author of "My Funny Dad, Harry"



5. This is a follow up of One Child, I could not put this down. I wanted to she how Tory's impact affected her. It does go over in the first couple of chapter's some of the history of the child but If you read One Child first it explains a lot more of her past and give you a true understanding.

5 comments about Where is the Mango Princess?.

1. Crimmon's book was heart-wrenching to read. The story of her husband's TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) and the after effects of it on her life, his life and their daughter have to be read to be understood. I can't do it justice. She keeps a good sense of humor throughout the book but there is certainly an underlying cynical and bitter tone throughout. Not that I can blame her. It's real. It's life and a it ain't pretty. Personally, after reading this I literally wanted to make all my loved ones wear helmets each day after reading about the hell that TBI can put a family through.



2. An honest telling of head injury and what family will experience.
   
   I was shocked at what her daughter, Kelly, was exposed to - I have since read that the author now regrets this. Rehab is NO PLACE for children - or an endless stream of friends. I am sad that her husband's privacy was taken away in order to project 'normalcy' or the authors belief in emotional honesty. She should have protected her husband and her daughter. THIS is the time when you close the door to the world outside and tend to your family - as best you can.
   
   I feel for the author. How quickly the nurses/non-doctors put forth a 'professional opinion' about brain injury. As I often say: Everybody wants to be a doctor, nobody want to go to medical school. You have to see brain injury over a long span of time, which is years and decades. A nurse who sees them admitted and discharged knows next to nothing, unless personally affected.
   
   The beginning of the story was confusing to me because the marriage had so little intimacy. The parents were 2 ships in the night and then they had a child. This little girl was utterly alone through a waking nightmare. I hope she finds the support that she will need as she grows up.
   
   Eventually, the author acknowledges her lack of connection to husband and child and explains herself in a way that is somewhat satisfying.
   
   I appreciate her honesty in the discussion on disinhibition. You can count on it happening and it's real hard to explain to people - especially when you have to.
   
   Worth reading, though disturbing in ways the author may not have intended.



3. We read this book for book club and we all loved it. Only now I understand what my cousin and his family have gone through after he had an bicycle accident and was in a coma for three days. The writer clearly describes the pain and anguish she and her daughter went through. I admire her absolute commitment to her husband and getting him back on his feet and back to a "regular" life. This is a great and informational book to read for everybody who comes into contact with a person with brain injury.



4. I read this book in four nights, right before bed. I tore through it like no other memoir before. This book, for me, was like reading my own parents' memoir. My father suffered a TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) when I was four/five years old. Of course, so much of what was available to the author's husband was simply not around 45 years ago. I understand so much more why my father acted the way he did for the remaining 16 years of his life. This book is powerful. It is honest, raw, intense, lighthearted at times, funny, sad, well written and easy to read (though the subject matter is quite painful at times)... an all around excellent book. I am so glad that I read it, and plan to keep this one.



5. I found this account of a severe brain injury and the bumpy road to recovery very moving. I ask will there be more to Cathy and her husband's experiences
   written as a memoir at some later date? Maybe not this book was published in September 2000. Worth the read!

5 comments about When Rabbit Howls.

1. This is a VERY graphic book. Not for young children, or even teenagers. It is for mature adults. This is a very interesting book written by a woman an her various personalities, that were formed through incest. This book is distrubing at times and confusing, but it is a very good read. Its not for the soft hearted.



2. I purchased this book after it was recommended by my professor in class. The book was fascinating to read and at times made me outraged at the life this individual lead and where she is today. A glimpse of multiple personality and how the personalities all worked together to protect the inner child of Trudy. I highly recommend such a book.



3. items purchased were in good condition (purchased as used ) at a good price and arrived here on the other side of the world in good time.pleased with the result



4. I thought this was a wonderful book. It is highly triggery, but we loved it! It's honest, accurate, and they (Truddi's Troops) do not choose to integrate. A great book on MPD from the inside views. Also talks about her therapy process.



5. I read WHEN RABBIT HOWLS about 20 years ago following my Abnormal Psychology class and watching Sybil (Two-Disc Special Edition). It was a truly amazing (and sometimes horrifying) account of what the human mind can do to protect itself. Along with Sybil, I think Ms. Chase's experience is one that all psychologists and therapists can learn from.
   
   The author, Truddi Chase, had close to 100 different personalities living inside her head. To keep track of them all, I jotted each one's name down on a sheet of paper, along with their personalities. It came in quite handy, and I recommend every reader do the same to keep track of them all.

5 comments about Puppy Chow Is Better Than Prozac: The True Story of a Man and the Dog Who Saved His Life.

1. Everyone needs to read this book, whether you are a dog lover or not. A truly inspiring story.



2. Being a dog owner and a person who lives with bipolar disorder, this book caught my attention. I waited a few weeks to read it, but once I picked it up, I couldn't put it down. I read the entire book in a 24 hour period. The author's depiction of living and struggling with bipolar disorder is so real. I am very glad that he was so honest, as it will help people understand what we are dealing with.
   I have been through some struggles with bipolar disorder and my dogs have been there with me through it all. I don't know how I could be here today if it were not for my babies.
   I have a better grasp on my bipolar disorder because of this book. It really touched me!



3. Bruce Goldstein clearly put 110% into this book, not one person can deny him that. However, his writing leaves a lot to be desired. He states in the introduction when he was writing this novel that he drank pot after pot of coffee and it is clearly reflected in his writing. Coming from an understanding of bipolar disorder, I would say that the entire book save for the very last chapter 11 years later was written during his manic episodes.
   
   As I read a lot of other reviews I was disappointed to see that several people criticized him for the way the book was written centered around his illness. Hello this was the whole purpose of the book itself? Other people were focused simply on Ozzy and call this a book for dog lovers. I am puzzled by this also because I found that the parts with Ozzy and especially the parts where he goes trolling to meet people and the irritating descriptions of "Pupeeeeeeeeeeeee! Look at the puppeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" were tedious. He basically describes that all of us dog lovers turn into blathering, mindless 'puppeeeeeeeeee" idiots when we see a dog.
   
   I admire Bruce for putting himself out there and really trying to cope wiht his manic depression. His dedication to Ozzy is doubtless throughout the whole book. I think that he gives a great insight to people who want to learn a bit about the manic side of bipolar disorder to what it is truly like. However, the middle section of him getting Ozzy and the endless descriptions of puppy potty habits leaves the reader lacking and detracts from his story. Potty training it one thing, but constant talk of fecal matter is another.
   
   Overall I would recommend this book to people who want to learn about bipolar disorder and enjoy dogs (both, together, not either or, this is not a book for dog lovers who could care less about the mental illness piece). However, I would not recommend paying $17 for it.



4. I have had several friends with bi-polar disorder and a boyfriend that was much like Bruce. Yikes. I don't wish that situation on anyone. For me the book was tedious and a bit over the top, but then I thought, "THAT is mental illness." Everything is magnified. The book actually made me much more sympathetic to those with mental illness as I can't even imagine how many of those people get from one day to the next. Obviously many don't. A homeless man in British Columbia (who suffers from mental illness) had one of his dogs taken from him and all he wanted was his dog back. Michael Phelps, on an interview with TODAY, just wanted to see his dog. Dogs do something for all of us. If Ozzy gave Bruce his life back then not a big surprise to the many, many of us who's lives dogs touch. Not sure if I'd recommend this book just based on the tedium. Not every sentence needs to be a ringer.



5. Hi,
   I just want to share a little story. My baby girl Abby was a shepard/ rot mix and she was 10 when she left this world. I am bipolar / manic depressed and the story in this book is so true. Abby loved me unconditionally and I her When I was real down she was there. When I was feeling better she was there. True friendship and love. This book reminded me so much of what happened to me and how she helped me through the bad times. Now that she is gone I can,t help but think what will happen now but the words in this book ring true A dog is more than a best friend it IS A LIFE SAVER and I hope it will inspire more people to seek help. Depression is an illness that some of us have to deal with and we need all the help we can get. I myself don,t know what the future will bring but if I could have her back for just one day I think I could make it but now we all have our own demons to fight and PUPPY'S ARE BETTER THAN ANY DRUG
   Kevin Stenson

5 comments about The Unheard: A Memoir of Deafness and Africa.

1. This is the first time that I felt compelled to write a review. I found this book honest, entertaining, soul searching and amazing. Josh really lets you see who he is and doesn't hide his emotions or short comings. He provides insights into coping with his deafness and also reveals how he experiences that world. His journey in Africa is unbelievable except, of course, it is true. I would highly recommend this book.



2. I found Josh Swiller's riveting and beautifully written account of his Peace Corps service in Eastern Africa impossible to put down. Swiller weaves insight about deafness brilliantly into his story, giving the reader an insider's perspective on being deaf in any and every possible situation. As the mother of a present Peace Corps Volunteer, I couldn't help but imagine how Josh's mother might have been feeling during his two years in Africa. What did she know about his experience? Was she able to communicate with him? Did he protect her by not divulging details of the danger? While he doesn't tell the reader much about his mother in his book, I found myself wondering about her beyond the book. And...I have continued to think deeply about his experience long after reading his final words. I'm ready to read whatever Swiller publishes next!



3. I love this book. I've recommended it to just about everyone I've spoken to since I finished it. It is a wonderful memoir. It is hard to put down, and it's incredible to reflect on.
   
   Read it.



4. As a Psychotherapist, I would recommend this book to anyone with a hearing problem or anyone who has a child with a hearing problem. I also would recommend it to anyone who needed to be inspired by the human spirit and to see that the limits of our coping capacities are beyond anything we can imagine.



5. Josh Swiller's account of his Peace Corps years is a wonderful insight into how he coped with volunteering in an African village as a young deaf man. It is a real page turner. A 5 star read!

5 comments about Different Like Me: My Book of Autism Heroes.

1. This book is AMAZING. Many of these people were around long before the autism diagnoses could be given to them (Lewis Carroll, Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton... etc...), but the book fully supports the idea that they did have it. This book isn't just for elementary-school aged children, either. Adults can even read it. Its absolutely wonderful.



2. This book examines the lives of Albert Einstein, Lewis Carroll, Temple Grandin, and other very successful people in history who are either known or strongly suspected of having an autism spectrum disorder. The title is a bit misleading (as is much of the text), because many of the people included are believed to have had Asperger's Syndrome or some other PDD, not necessarily autism. Keep in mind, the diagnosis for AS is really new, so no one knows for sure that Lewis Carroll had AS. However, that is beside the point. This book is an excellent early reader chapter book, especially for children who have an ASD or who have a sibling or parent with one. It gives them positive role models and something to aspire to. Furthermore, it can be very useful to have teachers read if they are going to have a child with an ASD in their inclusive classroom. There is still a misperception that a child with autism is doomed to a life of savantism, institutionalism, and repeating "Wapner starts at 11. Gotta watch Wapner" (not disparaging those with lower-functioning autism-just stating the stereotype). This is a great resource for those with high-functioning ASDs. Children like reading books that are about people like them, to give them hope and someone to look up to. This book may not be perfect, but it is an excellent first step.



3. The book Different Like Me: My Book of Autism Heroes is an excellent book with short biographies of people in the past who may have had autism. Its readibility and simplicity are good for elementary age students, especially those who are either related to or know students with autism.



4. Having worked for years with children on all levels of the autism spectrum, I truly doubt many of those listed; i.e. [...], Andy Kaufman, etc. actually belong anywhere on the spectrum. Parents continually face denial and try to rewrite diagnoses to fit there own agenda. Autism is the symptoms of a disability or combinations of disabilities NOT a disability in itself. All autistics share the lack of social pragmatic skills but each suffer from their own set of neurological damage. Unfortunately, it continues to be the label du jour that parents can most readily accept.



5. My son appreciated this book. He was aware he was different than other kids but didn't really understand himself. While teaching him about his autism, he got to thumb through this book and feel a surge of pride that some of the worlds most brillant and artistic men and women were and are... autistic themselves! Great book, highly recommended!