In A Different Key: The Story of Autism by John Dovan and Caren Zucker
In a Different Key:
The Story of Autism by John Donvan and Caren Zucker
The
first night I decided to pick this book up I had only planned on reading a few
pages, more than likely the first chapter, and then calling it a night. I
wanted to get an idea of what the tone of the book would be before diving
headfirst the next day. I ended up fully engaged and forcing myself to put the
book down after reading over a hundred pages. From the first pages of In a Different Key: The Story of Autism
I knew I had begun a book that would educate me, touch me emotionally, and make
me reevaluate autism as I know it. I was right.
This
book provides so much information that I am honestly having a hard time trying
to quantify it for this review. In a
Different Key begins where autism begins, with Donald Triplett, the first
person every diagnosed with autism. Here was a boy who emotionally indifferent
to everything, known for throwing tantrums, set in his routines and yet able to
have total recall. Doctors pushed his parents Mary and Oliver to send him to an
institution. They looked elsewhere and met Leo Kanner, the psychiatrist who
would eventually diagnose Donald with “infantile autism.” From there readers
look at how the criteria of autism was created and how it would evolve. Donvan
and Zucker even looked to the past at famous persons who may have been autistic
based on the characteristics being used to diagnose children. Society’s view of
autistic children was thoroughly explored from the institutionalization that
took place, to the blaming of mothers, a theory propagated for years by certain
scientist. Science would progress and parents would be a key reason behind that
progress. They began to advocate and force people to view autism differently.
They formed organizations like National Society for Autistic Children, which
would request more research into the cause of autism, treating autism and
educating autistic children. As the diagnoses increased and autism awareness
spread so did fear and the narrative about autism. Parents of autistic children
and autistic adults would eventually have new struggles and new hardships to
face as autism continues to be redefined, even in today’s society because there
are still so many questions to answer.
I
honestly hope the above paragraph sheds some light on the scope of this book.
It’s over five hundred pages long, with a timeline and notes section that takes
up another one hundred pages but it is well done. Donvan and Zucker created a
historical book about an evolving diagnoses and they did it in such a way that
I remained intrigued the entire time. My fascination and urge to gain more
understanding about the diagnoses and its history never waned. With each new
chapter I was introduced to new concepts, different struggles, different key
players though many would become recognizable as the chapters progressed. So
many different theories, conspiracies, alternating view points and so much
struggle throughout the pages but presented in a comprehensive way that was
never confusing. If you are looking to read a book that will provide you with a
wide range of information about what we now know as Autism Spectrum Disorder
then I would highly recommend this book. I give this book 5 out of 5 stars. Thank you Blogging for Books for the copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
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