In a Different Key: The Story of Autism

Donald Triplett was born eighty-two years ago in Forest, Mississippi, and would become the first child ever to be diagnosed with autism - after years of patient determination by his parents, and the work of one extraordinary clinician who solved the puzzle of his mysterious condition. In this profoundly humane and beautifully rendered history, John Donvan and Caren Zucker tell the whole story of autism - from the small Mississippi town where Donald still lives today to the classrooms, laboratories, and courts where essential questions concerning autism have been battled over. The history of autism is, above all, the story of families fighting for a place in the world for their children- women like Ruth Sullivan, who rebelled against a medical establishment that blamed mothers for causing autism, fathers who pushed scientists to dig harder for treatments, and parents who forced schools to accept their children. But many others played starring roles too- doctors like Leo Kanner, who pioneered our understanding of autism, and those with autism, like Temple Grandin and Ari Ne'eman, who explained their inner worlds and championed a philosophy of 'neurodiversity'. At the same time, this is also a history of competing theories. This book delves into some of the most contentious debates that have divided the autism community, among them the question of whether vaccines cause autism; which therapies are backed by science and which by wishful thinking; how we measure the prevalence of autism - today said to be 1 in 68 - and whether it is overstated; and whether autism should be 'cured' or accommodated. By turns intimate and panoramic,In a Different Keytakes us on a journey from an era when families were shamed and children were condemned to institutions, to one in which parents and people with autism push not simply for inclusion, but for a new understanding of autism- as difference rather than disability.

About the Author :
John Donvan is a multiple Emmy Award-winning Nightline correspondent with a long career in journalism. Prior to Nightline, he was the chief White House correspondent for ABC News. Caren Zucker is an award-winning veteran television news producer who has worked most extensively with ABC News. She also produced and cowrote a six-part series on autism for PBS in 2011.

Review :
In a Different Key is almost as much a history of coping with ignorance and uncertainty as it is a voyage of discovery. But even ignorance can be good or bad. And so we have, at least, evolved from locking away people who seem impossibly different to beginning to talk about their different mental wiring with something approaching respect. It is the great achievement of this book to show how this happened in an exciting and poignant way -- David Aaronovitch The Times John Donvan and Caren Zucker manage to remain objective and compassionate throughout... a history book with a compelling narrative BBC Focus This is not a how-to guide or a polemic on neurodiversity. The book probes a difficult subject with intelligence and compassion - and makes you think. The complete absence of hysteria will make it essential reading for many... its insights and quiet wisdom demand our attention, and gratitude -- Amy Bloom Oprah Magazine Fast-paced and far-reaching... this is an important missing piece to the conversation about autism; no one trying to make sense of the spectrum should do so without reading this book -- Andrew Solomon, author of Far from the Tree Donvan and Zucker's generous yet sharp-eyed portraits of men, women, and children - most of them unknown until now - make it stunningly clear that we all have a stake in the story of autism. We come to understand that we are all wired differently, and that how we treat those who are different than most is a telling measure of who we truly are. This is the kind of history that not only informs but enlarges the spirit -- Susan Cain, author of Quiet Donvan and Zucker have taken on a monumental task: to write a comprehensive history of autism. They delve deep into both the science and the politics of autism across time. They tell the story of the extreme treatments that have been tried, such as administering LSD or electric shocks in the 60s, to 'normalize' these children. They uncover the tragic 'mercy killing' of a teenager with autism by his father, and explore the MMR vaccine-causes-autism theory, named by TIME magazine as top of the list of 'great science frauds'. This book will make a remarkable contribution to the history of autism -- Simon Baron-Cohen, Professor of developmental psychopathology, University of Cambridge, author of Zero Degrees of Empathy Sweeping in scope but with intimate personal stories, this is a deeply moving book about the history, science, and human drama of autism. It's also something larger: a fascinating exploration of a social movement that grappled with the mysteries of mind, behaviour, and the relationship between parents and children -- Walter Isaacson, author of The Innovators and Steve Jobs In a Different Key transports the reader back to the earlier days of autism. It is essential reading for anyone who is interested in how society treats those who are different -- Temple Grandin, author of Thinking in Pictures and The Autistic Brain Autism is a shape changer that has continuously resisted being pinned down. This meticulously researched book leads us deeply into the history of autism and brings to life the colourful personalities and conflicting ideas that deepen the fascination of autism -- Uta Frith, Emeritus Professor of Cognitive Development at University College London