Temple Gradnin has been a beacon of hope for those who struggle to deal with the world the way it is because of autism spectrum disorder. Born in 1947, at a time when most children with developmental delays or issues of any sort were institutionalized, Ms. Grandin's parents took special interest and exposed her to intense speech therapy and educational programs for her autism. Because of their early and swift intervention, Temple Grandin was able to live her life and adapt to her autism while giving hope to the millions of others in the world suffering from autism-related debilitations.

In her new book The Autistic Brain: Thinking Across the Spectrum, Ms. Grandin shares her experience of adapting to a harsh world and offers perspective on how far science has come. While she begins from her first diagnosis as "brain damaged" during childhood, her books eventually arrives at the modern-day developments of advanced brain imaging and genetic studies. Dr. Grandin even shares some of her brain scans in the book to illustrate how some anomalies may result in symptoms of autism.

Dr. Grandin makes a point that much of current research focuses on facial recognition and social issues that autistic people suffer from, failing to address many of the sensory issues such as hypersensitivity to light, sounds, and even touch. She even remarked that wool pants that nonautistic individuals could wear would be an excruciating experience on some with autism. Dr. Grandin does not express much belief in the roles of vaccines in autism development, but does focus on helping those who are diagnosed to acclimate.

The book focuses not on how to attend to the weaknesses of children with autism, but on how to explore their strengths and potential contributions to the world using their unique abilities and gifts.

The book is available from all major retailers.