Unstrange Minds

by Grinker, Roy Richard

• ISBN13: 9780465027637
• ISBN10: 0465027636
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2007-01-22
• Publisher: Basic Books

Summary

Unstrange Mindsdocuments Grinker's quest to find out why autism is so much more common today, and to uncover the implications of the increase. His search took him to Africa, India, and East Asia, to the National Institutes of Mental Health, and to the mountains of Appalachia. What he discovered is both surprising and controversial: There is no true increase in autism. Grinker shows that the identification and treatment of autism depends on culture just as much as on science. As more and more cases of autism are documented, doctors are describing the disorder better, school systems are coding it better--and children are benefiting. Filled with moving stories and informed by the latest science,Unstrange Mindsis unlike any other book on autism. It is a powerful testament to a father's quest for the truth, and is urgently relevant to anyone whose life is touched by one of history's most puzzling disorders.

Author Biography

Roy Richard Grinker is Professor of Anthropology and Director, George Washington University Institute for Ethnographic Research. He is the author of four other books, including the widely acclaimed In the Arms of Africa: The Life of Colin M. Turnbull. He lectures widely at universities and to parents and professionals involved in autism. He lives in Cabin John, Maryland.

Table of Contents

Introduction : bringing autism into focus	p. 1
One in three hundred	p. 23
Theme and variation : the "discovery" of autism	p. 37
Stigma, shame, and secrets	p. 67
Blaming mothers	p. 85
The rise of diagnosis	p. 103
Autism by the book	p. 123
Autism by the numbers	p. 143
Isabel in Monet's garden	p. 175
Igloos in India	p. 197
Breaking the rules	p. 215
Half past winter in South Korea	p. 229
Becoming visible	p. 251
Getting in tune	p. 263
Beyond the curve	p. 283
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