There are so many “autism” books out there for parents new to the diagnosis. Unfortunately many are just not good. We’ve spent a lot of time here discussing the problems with books that promote “mommy instinct” or therapies untested for safety or efficacy. Warning parents off a book isn’t the same thing as giving them some idea of where to turn for good information. Recently I was loaned a book by friend and fellow blogger Liz Ditz (of the I Speak of Dreams blog): Making Sense of Autistic Spectrum Disorders by James Coplan.
I read the first chapter and a couple of bits here and there and came away thinking: this could be a good resource. I plan to go through the book in pieces over time, but I am willing to start recommending it already.
There are a few things I would probably word differently, and I certainly haven’t seen it all yet. It isn’t a quick read, and a new parent may not want to go through it from start to finish linearly. But there are good sections to jump to, refer back to and the like.
Disclosure: I’ve asked for a review copy so I can return this one to Liz.
Left Brain Right Brain 
Lit reviews by evidence based ideology parents who already have a lot of experience parenting their ASD child mean a lot to me. As I type this I have thirteen books piled up on my bedside table. This is fresh stack to replace the ones I recently completed (fixation?). I dont mind making my way through all the various stories and ideologies because it confirms my confidence about the choices I make for my son. But for those who don’t have the privilege of time and money to wade through all the books out there, reviews from the likes of Sullivan, Kev, Liz etal mean a lot. I shall order this online tonight.
I was also about to order “Unstrange Minds’. Can anyone vouch for it?
Unstrange Minds is one of the best books out there on the subject of autism. Highly recommended.
As Liz Ditz noted, Dr. Coplan blogs at Psychology Today. Here’s a link to part 1 of Coplan’s series “No autism epidemic”:
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/making-sense-autistic-spectrum-disorders/201006/007-no-autism-epidemic-part-1