Nobody knows the frustration of understanding and coping with autism more than Dawn Ham-Kucharski. Her son, Alex, was diagnosed with autism at the age of two and she was given little hope that he would ever function verbally or be able to meaningfully interact with his family. But now, at the age of seven, Alex is an uplifting autism success story after Dawn¹s tireless efforts to seek out an appropriate treatment program, educational plan, and socialization strategy for her son.

In THE AUTISM BOOK: Answers to Your Most Pressing Questions (Avery/ Penguin Group USA; April 7, 2004; $14.95), Dawn Ham-Kucharski‹an impassioned advocate for educational opportunity for autistic children and a member of the Board of Directors of the Michigan Autism Partnership‹and her friend, health and parenting journalist S. Jhoanna Robledo, have combined their efforts to answer the most urgent questions of parents and educators of autistic children. Together they offer comprehensive information on diagnoses, causes, manifestations, treatment options, managing emotions, family relationships, parenting and lifestyle issues, education, and common worries.

From the basic questions such as: "What is autism?" and "What types of treatments work?" to the controversial: "Is there an epidemic of autism?" and "Do vaccines cause autism?" to the very frank and often devastating: "My marriage has suffered from the challenges of raising an autistic child. How can we get help?" and "What if after all interventions my child never gets any better?", Robledo and Ham-Kucharski offer incisive answers gleaned from extensive research and hard won experience.

In his Foreword to the book, Richard Solomon, M.D., clinical associate professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of Michigan Medical Center and creator of the PLAY project, says "Dawn is one of the most connected people to the autism community of families and professionals I have ever seen and she is a leader within these communitiesŠ The authors have done a remarkably thorough job of bringing to parents (and professionals) the latest in scientific researchŠ The advice in this book is caring, compassionate and wise not only because it is based on Dawn¹s personal experience but because it is based on the broad experience of other parents all walking the same road."

Positive and encouraging, the authors note that most children with autism can be helped to make substantial and often dramatic gains in language and social skills when provided with appropriate amounts and types of early intervention. And while many books on autism focus on just one form of therapy, or solely the personal stories of the author and their child, THE AUTISM BOOK offers an unbiased opinion on potential

causes and the wide range of therapies, offering information on what to expect, risks, and potential for success.

Written with the compassion of first-hand experience, extensively researched with an unparalleled resource section of international contacts in the legal, educational, medical, social, and therapeutic world of autism, THE AUTISM BOOK will be the first place parents turn when faced with an autism diagnosis.

More Early Praise for THE AUTISM BOOK:

"THE AUTISM BOOK is a must-read for parents of newly diagnosed children as well as all health care professionals. I only wish we had this book nine years ago when my own son was diagnosed with autism."

æPeter Bell, CEO of Cure Autism Now

"Ms. Robledo and Ms. Ham-Kucharski have done a superb job of presenting often confusing and complex informationŠ THE AUTISM BOOK should be given to parents at the time of diagnosis."

æLeslie Sinclair, Program Director for the Cleveland Clinic Center for Autism

"When I was starting on the Autism boards right after my son¹s diagnosis, I felt like I was listening to another language. People would post about stimming and NT (neurotypical children or nondisabled) and I was lost. THE AUTISM BOOK is the book I wish I had at the beginning when first diagnosed!"

æElaine Jones, owner of the Christian Special Needs yahoo group &

Support Group facilitator for Everyday Miracles

About the Authors

S. Jhoanna Robledo is a graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism and is a freelance writer specializing in parenting and health whose work has appeared in Newsweek, New York, Self, Real Simple, and American Baby. She lives in New York City.

Dawn Ham-Kucharski is a former college literature professor who is now a stay-at-home mom caring for her autistic son, Alex. She is on the Board of Directors of the Michigan Autism Partnership, a non-profit organization, which works within the state to help low income families find intervention services for their children with autism and lobbies the state for mandated insurance coverage for services for autistic individuals. The outreach coordinator for the PLAY Project, a therapy program for autistic children developed at the University of Michigan Medical Center, she and her family have been featured in Family Circle, The Detroit Free Press, The Detroit News, the Ann Arbor News, and on Detroit television news. She is a member of The Autism Society of Michigan, The Autism Society of America, Cure Autsim Now, and many other national and online groups. She lives in Canton, Michigan.

THE AUTISM BOOK: Answers to Your Most Pressing Questions

By S. Jhoanna Robledo and Dawn Ham-Kucharski,

Foreword by Richard Solomon, M.D.

Avery/Penguin Group USA

Trade Paper

Publication Date: April 7, 2005

Price: $14.95

ISBN: 1-58333-224-3

© 2005 HealthNewsDigest.com