As a parent of an Autistic child, I purchased this book when my son was first diagnosed. It has a wealth of information and helped me better understand the few treatments available and the state of research on the disorder. It is a technical book, and not for all parents, but it is dog-eared in many sections from my use. I hope there is an update in the near future.

Neither cheap nor a light read, but just what it says - a definitive summary of the state-of-the-art in knowledge about autism and the other pervasive developmental disorders. Everything you need to know is in here.

Second book I read when trying to figure out whether my son had autism/PDD. Not for the parent who is faint of heart, but excellent, balanced, and objective resource for the parent who wants a deeper understanding of the research literature. Depending on your educational background, some chapters may be incomprehensible (e.g., the chapter on neurochemicals), but almost all are accessible to the well-educated and attentive layperson.

I bought this book after I found it mentioned in several posts and chat rooms for Tourette's Syndrome.

James Leckman and his book are held in high regard by the TS community.

If you are looking for an approach to the problem that doesn't involve drugs, look here, it is covered. There are techniques and methods explained, such as Habit Reversal, that have been validated as working for TS; validated over a long time. The method was originated in 1973 by Azrin. ....

Even if you work with only one or two children with Tourette's Syndrome, this compilation of over 25 years of research results with a client base of thousands is an excellent resource to have in your reference library. The documentation of multidisciplinary contributions makes it convenient to explore concepts further without having to search through a wide variety of professional journals. Two useful features include the summary of one chapter and preview of the next on the same page and the assessment tools found in the Appendices. The recommended treatment approach focuses on supporting development of the child over time, rather than just eliminating symptoms. A multidisciplinary team of professionals can provide a variety of treatment approaches to address the factors affecting the child at home and at school. Coordination by a flexible, non-doctrinaire clinician, and partnerships with parents and teachers are encouraged. While the authors suggest that the school psychologist fill this role, not all schools have access to one with the necessary perspective on treatment. Instead, the licensed professional social worker is more likely to employ the multidisciplinary, strengths-based, coordinated approach to caring for children with Tourette's Syndrome and related conditions. Contributions from licensed professional social workers would be an asset to the next edition.

This is one of the best and most comprehensive works on Tourette's Syndrome I've come across. Scientists and/or practitioners working with people who have TS should buy this book. As a psychologist who works with people who have TS, I've found this book to be my best resource on the subject.

I read this book awhile ago, but it was one of the best books I have ever read. It dealt with subjects that most father's and son rarely talk openly about. To have both a father and son open up to one another the way this father/son team have done is quite remarkable. I would recomend this book to any one. Father's and son's need to be more open with each other and share their feelings with one another. I think if more father's and son's would open up to one another there would be less trouble in the world today.

The publisher's statement, cited above, that this focuses on "neuropsychological" issues is wrong. Only a small part does this. The book is the outcome of the June 1999 3rd International Symposium in New York, and contains almost all of the edited talks given there. It is deliberately technical in its approach, and therefore most suitable for physicians, psychologists, and other health care-related professionals who have an interest in Tourette's and its associated disorders. Though costly, I highly recommend it as a "state of the art" publication.

Roger D. Freeman, M.D., Vancouver, BC

This is perhaps the definitive source on the nature of autism. I particularly enjoyed the bit on cognitive neuroscience.

The collaboration of Linda C. Mayes (Arnold Gesell Associate Professor of Child Psychiatry, Pediatrics, and Psychology at the Yale Child Study Center) and Donald J. Cohen (Irving B. Harris Professor of Child Psychiatry, Pediatrics, and Psychology at the Yale Child Study Center), The Yale Child Study Center Guide To Understanding Your Child: Healthy Development From Birth To Adolescence is a superbly practical and "reader friendly" guide for parents which compiles the findings and discoveries of the Yale Child Study Center (an organization first founded in 1911) in order to assisting men and women in finding their own parenting style, achieve balance between family and work duties, and acquire ways to strengthen the ties the bind their family relationships and deal with difficult issues arising from new siblings, to school bullies, to divorce and death. The Yale Child Study Center Guide To Understanding Your Child is confidently recommended as being a wide-ranging, eminently readable reference packed with solid information for parents and caretakers of children everywhere.