Reviewer: Allison Martin

Encouraging and highly informative, Tony Attwood's Asperger's Syndrome is hands down the best single guide to Asperger's Syndrome available. If your child has (or may have) Asperger's Syndrome or high functioning autism, this book will answer many of your questions.

The scope of this remarkable book is very comprehensive - from diagnosis, social behavior, language, interests and routine to cognition, motor skills, and sensory sensitivity - Attwood covers all the areas where children with Asperger's struggle. He provides an in-depth description of the effects of Asperger's Syndrome, along with gripping examples, and suggestions for coping in each area. It is also a very practical book, as he clearly explains the wide range of psychological and social tools you can use to help your child with social relations and emotions.

Parents of preemies will find the descriptions especially helpful, as he addresses a wide number of quirks and difficulties related to prematurity in older children - such as rigidity of eating, poor balance, anxiety, fine and gross motor difficulties, social skill deficits. In addition to excellent discussion of social skills issues, Attwood provides one of the best discussions of the motor difficulties common to preemies in school that I have read.

Parents will find that Tony Attwood's definition of Asperger's is a bit broader than the American definition. While a few times he seems to stray into personality traits, most parents of children with Asperger's will find this approach very helpful and more encompassing. Despite the great breadth and the complexity of the diagnosis and treatment covered in his book, Attwood is optimistic about your child's long term outcome. In his conclusion, Attwood affirms that, "our civilization would be extremely dull and sterile if we did not have and treasure people with Asperger's Syndrome." I highly recommend this book.

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