Autism is a variable and complex developmental disorder which is frequently not recognized, or else misunderstood by both parents and professionals. Based on their extensive experience with parents of young autistic children both before and after diagnosis, Maureen Aarons and Tessa Gittens provide a practical handbook which aims to dispel the myths associated with this puzzling condition and provides parents and professionals with relevant, up-to-date information. The book enables the reader to understand autism in a wide perspective, in relation to its history and within the context of current research into its possible causes. The authors describe their developmental approach to the assessment of the disorder in individual children and explore areas of particular difficulty such as social understanding and communication. Case studies are used to illustrate the variability of autism and an appendix of useful addresses is included.