Autism: A Biography
A multifaceted standard work on the history of autism.
Autism has become an everyday term. Many people think they know what autism means... more or less. And just like other terms relating to psychological disorders, such as narcissism and schizophrenia, it’s often misused. Things were very different in the past. Back when the phenomenon was unknown, and even after the word itself had been coined, the various symptoms were considered individually rather than as part of a bigger whole. The picture became clearer only when doctors began to connect the dots.
The historian Springveld, himself autistic, has pulled off a masterly feat of research in this exhaustively thorough and deeply personal history of autism. His in-depth search was intended, at least partially, to better understand and accept himself. After a long journey, his final success is moving and heartwarming. The individual stories of researchers and people with autism not only make the book an enthralling read, it also ensures that the reader can imagine what it is like to be autistic.
Nowadays, about 1 in 100 people have ‘autism spectrum disorder’. Based on archive and literature research, Springveld shows how autism developed from a label for a symptom of schizophrenia and a term denoting a rare childhood disorder to a common form of neurodiversity and variations in personality that, in many cases, are not indicative of a pathological disorder. Over the past decades, people with autism – and their loved ones – have increasingly spoken out against the medicalisation of autism and challenged medical authority, leading an emancipation movement that strives for acceptance of a neurodiverse society.
The book’s personal and engaging style, its autobiographical character, the countless testimonies of people with autism, and of experts; its lucid insights into changes in scientific trends and diagnostic criteria make for a truly thorough understanding of autism. Even those who know a lot about autism and are familiar with the main literature in the field , will admire and be engrossed by Autism: A Biography.
'Autism: A Biography' is a standard work for those looking to gain a deep understanding of attitudes toward autism.
GGZ Totaal
You won’t find anything more comprehensive or detailed book on autism than Niels Springveld’s Autism: A Biography [Rated: 5 stars]
De Standaard