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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 649
EAN num: 9781885477859
ISBN number: 1885477856
Label: Future Horizons
Manufacturer: Future Horizons
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 208
Printing Date: May 16, 2002
Publishing house: Future Horizons
Sale Popularity Level: 384834
Studio: Future Horizons
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From composer Amadeus Mozart to astronomer Carl Sagan, Ledgin examines the evidence of Asperger's Syndrome in some of history's most famous men and women and shows how, despite their apparent challenges, each made an immeasurable contribution to the world. A great book to raise the self esteem of those with Asperger's.
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Rated by buyers 
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Mr. Ledgin uses the criteria for Asperger's from the DSM-IV to theorize that famous men and women from the past may have had Asperger's Syndrome. He includes people such as Orson Welles, Marie Curie, and Charles Darwin in his theory. This book was great reading for my 16 year old Asperger son, giving him hope for his future and reassuring him that he can accomplish whatever he wants in his life. Also, that being the "oddball" in his class may not be a bad thing.
Rated by buyers -
Well written, absorbing, sensible and much needed. Mr Ledgin examines the possibility that some of histories most loved and respected artists, musicians, and scientists may well have been on the autistic spectrum, and quite possibly achieved what they did not just despite their differences but perhaps even because of them.
This book is not so much an endeavor to diagnose famous historical figures as a sincere look at what traits these people had in common with the autistic spectrum, the objective being to remind those who receive this diagnosis, their families and their schools, that having difficulties with some things doesn't mean you lack potential or talent. There are drawbacks to this approach, but if you find yourself curious then you will probably find this easy read both enjoyable and interesting.
Since this book was published there have been many copy cats, so despite the controversy and criticism it seems to have become quite a legitimate practice to speculate over the possibility of famously talented but troubled individuals having been autistic. I think it is a sign of the general prejudice toward autistic people that so many people are disgusted by the suggestion and of the general ignorance about autism that so many people laugh at the suggestion.
Rated by buyers 
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This book is very well written and gives a good broad view of Asperger's Syndrome (as opposed to "Classic Autism"). As someone on the Autism Spectrum, knowing that on one side is "Severe Classic Autism" which most people think of when thinking of autism... and on the other end are those like Thomas Jefferson, Albert Einstein, and myself who all have Asperger's Syndrome... shows that the Spectrum is VERY WIDE. I have both a Doctorate of Divinity and a PhD in Psychology. Both are "abstract" and not "scientific" (most "Aspies" tend to be VERY STRONG in the sciences, and of course by definition are VERY DETAIL ORIENTATED). One must clearly differenciate between "Classic Autism" and "Asperger's Syndrome"... those with CA are VERY DIFFERENT than someone with AS...as this book plainly shows, in investigating famous people with the particular form of Autism on the Autism Spectrum known as Asperger's Syndrome. I also recommend Notm Ledgin's "Diagnosing Jefferson" (ISBN number: 1-88-5477-60-0), which is also published by Future Horizons... which like this book discusses a famous person with Asperger's Syndrome, but since it is on a single subject, it goes into MUCH MORE DETAIL in showing the very strong Asperger's traits that the second President of the United States of America had. This shows how someone with high functioning Asperger's Syndrome can function, even as the author of the Declaration of Independance and the Constitution of the United States of American... and even as President of the United States. So families with children with Asperger's Syndrome and those with Asperger's Syndrome can find much hope and information in these two books.
Rated by buyers -
I'm very sorry that the autistic person who wrote the last review feels this book is misleading. His information about Einstein's brain is, very first of all, erronious. To quote the BBC: "Scientists at McMaster University, Ontario, Canada compared the shape and size Einstein's brain with those of 35 men and 56 women with average intelligence.
They think their findings may well explain his genius for mathematical and spatial thinking.
In general, Einstein's brain was the same as all the others except in one particular area - the region responsible for mathematical thought and the ability to think in terms of space and movement. Extensive development of this region meant that Einstein's brain was 15% wider than the other brains studied.
Uniquely, Einstein's brain also lacked a groove that normally runs through part of this area. The researchers suggest that its absence may have allowed the neurons to communicate much more easily."
Anyone who has read a thorough account of Einstein's childhood and later life can attest that the evidence is overwhelming that this man was indeed autistic. Not all autistic children start out talking and then stop, as the reviewer stated. That is only true in what is known as "Regressive autism" or "Autism syndrome", not classical autism as defined by Kanner in the 1940's. The fact that Einstein had friends is a testament to his brilliance and contributions to science -- not to a lack of autism. The truth is that Einstein had a miserable, friendless childhood; was considered extremely odd by his peers, and, at first, to be "an imbecile" by teachers.
People with high-functioning autism and Asperger's can and do get married all the time. I am married to a man with (previously undiagnosed) Asperger's. He is an engineer. One of my best friends is also married to a man with Asperger's. He is a CPA. My six-year-old son is high-functioning autistic, and though it has taken a great deal of time and effort, he is a brilliant child who is blossoming into a wonderful, lively little boy who is finally starting to make friends. Donna Williams is a very creative and successful autistic person who is married.
I can think of several other contemporary examples of successful autistic people. Temple Grandin, Raun Kaufman, Stephen Shore, and twins Stephen and Phillip Morgan come to mind.
I don't discount the pain that people with HFA and Asperger's Syndrome experience. In fact, as the mother of an autistic child, I greatly sympathize with and respect it. Every one of those people I listed experienced it. But there is the issue of positive attitude and perseverance. Those people had it. Norm Ledgin's book is attempting to help autistic people with that. If you don't want to listen, fine, but please don't impede others who are looking for hope and insight on how to achieve a happy, fulfilling life.
Rated by buyers 
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"The discontented child cries for toasted snow" goes the old arab proverb. How we yearn for things we cannot have. Persons with autistic spectrum disorders and those who work with them, want to give false hope. They want to lead people to believe that they or their offspring can grow up to be a nobel prize winner or president.
As a person with mild autism I really resent this book and the false hope it gives. There is no evidence that Einstein's late talking was a result of autism. There is no evidence to indicate that Einstein's speech developed normally and then he stopped talking the way an autistic person does. Also, there is evidence that Einstein's alleged late talking was apocrophyl as he is reported at age two, upon the birth of his baby sister, thinking it is a toy, to ask "where are the wheels?" Einstein had many friends Also he was married twice and had other relationships with women. This would contradict Einstein having autistic traits. Autopsies of Einstein's brain are also inconsistent with those of autistic persons. Einstein's brain weighed substantially less than a normal brain, while weight and volume of post-mortem autistic brains are higher than average. This disputes the rather superficial information that Ledgin gives about Einstein's brain.
Jefferson's quirks can be explained just as easily by bereavement as they can be by alleged asperger's. You have to remmeber that Jefferson's father died when he was young and his wife died and this could have caused profound psychological problems for Jefferson, explaining his eccentricities and sensitivities to noise. It was the economic panic of 1819 that caused jefferson to go broke, not asperger's. There is no reason any businessman would not keep records of his business.
Also, fires destroyed records of Jefferson's childhood making a retrospective diagnosis of asperger's virtually impossible.
The book's writing is often awkward and hard to follow in the beginning chapters, consistent with Future Horizon's track record of neglecting to edit their manuscripts properly.
Not only is this book giving people false hope, as a person with autism, I fear that this book coud be used by ABA practitioners, special educators, and others who have a vested interest in making money from autism treatments to claim that any given person with autism is capabable of being a Bill Gates, Albert Einstein, Thomas Jefferson, Charles Darwin, etc.
My autism has caused me great grief. I feel this book does far more harm than good.
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