Editorial Review
Practical advice and information from the world's foremost experts on autism -- and a mother's own hard-won lessons from helping her son recover from the disorder
When Karen Siff Exkorn's son, Jake, was diagnosed with autism, she struggled to pull together comprehensive information about the disorder. Fortunately, she was able to educate herself quickly, and her extensive at-home treatment of her son led to his amazing full recovery. But the journey wasn't easy, and now, in The Autism Sourcebook, Siff Exkorn offers parents the wisdom she wishes she'd had at the beginning.
Recent studies show that there is a worldwide epidemic of autism. More than 1.5 million people are affected in the United States alone, with one in every 166 children diagnosed. Early detection and early intervention are two of the key factors in improving prognosis -- but too often, writes Siff Exkorn, parents get bogged down in denial or confusion about the still mysterious disorder, and are unable to take the necessary steps. Providing accessible medical information gleaned from the world's foremost experts, Siff Exkorn offers an inside look at families with children who have autism, and ties in her own firsthand experience as a parent. The author shares valuable knowledge about the following:
- What the diagnosis really means
- Understanding and accessing treatment options
- Knowing your child's rights in the school system
- Coping with common marital and familial stress
- Making the stigma of autism a thing of the past
With extensive appendices, including the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers, Diagnostic Criteria for the Five Pervasive Developmental Disorders, and carefully selected lists of Internet resources, recommended readings, and top autism organizations worldwide, The Autism Sourcebook is the single most comprehensive, practical resource available to parents and loved ones of children with autism.
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Customer Reviews
No good biomedical help here 
2007-07-03
So many ASD kids are sick with bowel disease and live in terrible pain. This book only covers the bare minimum of ASD issues and deals effectively only with ABA treatment. Sadly, it takes far more to recover many children than ABA. Ms. Siff-Exhorn's book oversimplifies the very complex causes and medical problems that all too often go untreated or are simply viewed as behavioral.
Okay if you're just finding out about autism 
2006-12-10
But most of the information found in this book is easily found on the internet. I was hoping this book would help us find school/treatment for our 2 year old austistic son, but it was much different that I expected. Most of the material that was written was information about autism that I was already very well aware of.
Disappointed. :o(
Excellent Sourcebook 
2006-07-19
This is an excellent book if you're looking for something like an Autism encyclopedia. This isn't really one of those books that gets into too much personal detail about experiences with Autism, it's more of a guidebook and a reference manual for parents or ABA therapists. It has a plethora of information from diagnosis to dietary intervention. It covers all the bases and leaves you with plenty of hope for your child. Definitely a worthy buy for parents, teachers, or anyone else interested in learning more about Autism and how to intervene.
A Good Start for Newly Diagnosed 2006-03-09
I wish this book had been around five years ago when my son was diagnosed. This is a great start, but ONLY a start. I feel there needs to be much more on sensory integration. My son is also PDD and ABA did nothing for his flapping and spinning. Newly diagnosed parents must remember that Autism isn't curable but treatable. With therapies, diet, and a good special ed teacher their child can live in our world very well. My son is now eight and looks, acts, talks like a typical boy. Certain social still cause stimming and behavior problems but all in all he's doing excellent. Again, this book is a great start.
Don't bother -- Save your money 
2006-01-02
Save your money ... this book is misleading, nothing new, and for anyone to claim that they have written a book that is "everything you need to know" about helping your child with Autism is, in itself, ludicrous.
Apparently "everything you need to know" is just using ABA therapy.
The Author, Karen Siff Exhorn, claims that her child is "completely recovered from Autism" (his actual diagnosis was PDD) but then the author also says that her son still needs a 1:1 ABA therapist to "support him" on playdates. The child is in 4th grade. That is hardly what I would consider to be "recovered".
What this author appears to consider "recovered" is her son's ability to speak, to be compliant, and to not "look autistic" ... meaning, she focused on ABA "training" to get her kid to not flap or shriek and to "look normal". "Looking normal" was the most important thing to her, it seems. So her kid sounds as if he can appear normal, which is great, but her son still doesn't know how to relate to kids, converse with them, or play ...
Half a page on Sensory Integration and a quarter of a page on Integrated Play Therapy can hardly be considered "everything you need to know".
We all have 1000 times more computing power at our fingertips right now than NASA used to get a man on the moon ... yet few of us make very good use of it.
It would be great if there were one book that would tell us everything we needed to know, but since every case of Autism is different, that is not possible. Forget this book and just search the web.
Great support for Parents 2005-12-31
Practical advice and information from the world's foremost experts on autism -- and a mother's own hard-won lessons from helping her son recover from the disorder
When Karen Siff Exkorn's son, Jake, was diagnosed with autism, she struggled to pull together comprehensive information about the disorder. Fortunately, she was able to educate herself quickly, and her extensive at-home treatment of her son led to his amazing full recovery. But the journey wasn't easy, and now, in The Autism Sourcebook, Siff Exkorn offers parents the wisdom she wishes she'd had at the beginning.
Recent studies show that there is a worldwide epidemic of autism. More than 1.5 million people are affected in the United States alone, with one in every 166 children diagnosed. Early detection and early intervention are two of the key factors in improving prognosis -- but too often, writes Siff Exkorn, parents get bogged down in denial or confusion about the still mysterious disorder, and are unable to take the necessary steps. Providing accessible medical information gleaned from the world's foremost experts, Siff Exkorn offers an inside look at families with children who have autism, and ties in her own firsthand experience as a parent. The author shares valuable knowledge about the following:
- What the diagnosis really means
- Understanding and accessing treatment options
- Knowing your child's rights in the school system
- Coping with common marital and familial stress
- Making the stigma of autism a thing of the past
With extensive appendices, including the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers, Diagnostic Criteria for the Five Pervasive Developmental Disorders, and carefully selected lists of Internet resources, recommended readings, and top autism organizations worldwide, The Autism Sourcebook is the single most comprehensive, practical resource available to parents and loved ones of children with autism.
A Supurbly Written, Interesting, Detailed Encyclopedia 2005-12-04
The sub-title of this book 'Everything You Need to Know About Diagnosis, Treatment, Coping, and Healing' pretty well sums it up.
When Karen Siff Exkorn's son was diagnosed with Autism she set out to learn everything about it that she could. Among the things she found out was that there was no single source that had everything she wanted to know. There's a web site here, a book there, an organization, theories of treatment, country groups, specialty hospitals -- but no concentrated source. And especially nothing that would tell a mother how to cope with the disease.
Now there is. It covers not only the medical aspects, but the personal stories of Ms. Siff Exkom and further the stories of people she met and shared similar stories.
To anyone who has an autistic chile, or who knows anyone in that situation this book can be a life saver. I cannot recommend this book too highly.
The Real Deal 2005-10-31
I am one of Karen Siff Exkorn's oldest friends. We have been friends for thirty five years and I am like an aunt to her son, Jake, who I visited in the hospital when he was born. This book is not only from Karen's heart, it is from her formidable mind as well, tools everyone touched by autism must cultivate. For everyone else, Karen's book should light the journey. For her the journey was pretty dark. The aspects of her book which I would focus on are those that describe the relentless devotion to the holistic healing process -- for the child and the parents -- keeping adamantly to therapeutic schedules while maintaining rituals and pleasures of normal life, even when it seems impossible. This is a scholarly, but utterly approachable work that should empower everyone who needs empowering. Cheers to Karen, Franklin and especially Jake!
Helped me to help my friend..... 2005-10-29
Karen Siff Exkorn's book has been an invaluable resource to me. When my close friend's child was diagnosed with autism, I had no idea how to approach her and talk to her about it. I feared I would say the wrong thing to her and found myself avoiding her -- not calling, not visiting -- and having a tremendous amount of guilt around that. The chapter of the book, "Advice to Loved Ones: Coping Tips for Family & Friends," was so helpful to me. The author's guidance was amazing and gave me what I needed to show up as the kind of friend I want to be. The chapter's practical and common-sense guidance has transformed the way I am able to support my friend and what she is facing with her child's disorder. I learned that rather than hiding, we should call and visit our loved ones, even asking questions about the diagnosis and treatment so they can see that we accept them, care for them and are here to support them. This chapter also taught me about listening to my friend and what she was going through with her child. I had felt hesistant to reach out in part because I felt I had to provide her with good insights and advice. Siff Exkorn explains that we needn't -- and shouldn't -- give unsolicited advice and that listening can be of tremendous help. I can now comfortably sit with my friend and give her the space to vent her sadness and frustration about autism and the effect its had on her child and family. By just "being there" for her, I'm doing enough. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is close to someone touched by autism.
An sourcebook with heart 2005-10-01
I have a loved one (nephew) that has been challenged with an Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD). I felt that reading this book would be informative as well as showing my support for the family. Well it was, and then some.
What surprises me is that it is not a dry and tedious read. Author Karen Siff Exkorn manages to explain technical, diagnostic and therapeutic terms and processes in intelligent and uncomplicated English. Make no mistake - this is not a dim-witted "Autism for Dummies" style book either.
It is clear that she has been through much, for only the voice of experience could have this veracity. I was intrigued to read about her family's personal experiences. Her stories and examples involving her son, Jake, are understated and not drenched in sentimentality. It added a very real and human dimension to the book.
The book has four sections:
-Diagnosis
-Treatment
-Coping
-Healing
It also includes a large and pragmatic appendix; covering areas such as diagnostic criteria, organizations, resources, recommended reading, and a glossary.
At the end of each section are questions and answers. I found myself reading the questions and thinking to myself "Hey, now there is a good one!" No stone was left unturned.
I think many parents and guardians will also appreciate chapter 7: "You Have the Power: Advocating for Your Child's Legal Rights". It is clear and practical information, loaded with parent's experiences and helpful tips on how to "work the system". There are a variety of programs and Siff Exkorn explains how to jump the hurdles and stay on top of it all.
There is an aspect often neglected by other books and articles regarding ASD: the emotional impact on the care-givers and the family. Siff Exkorn devoted much of the last two chapters to this very subject matter. Here she advocates taking care of ourselves, and ways to do it, so that we remain effective care-givers and create a content family life that includes a child with an ASD. It was reassuring to read that others have gone through similar experiences.
I am most grateful to Karen Siff Exkorn for authoring this much needed book, and would recommend it to anyone who has interest in the Autistic Spectrum Disorders.
