Book Review: Strange Son by Portia Iversen

Imagine a child with profound autism. He has never spoken, and his behaviors make you wonder whether he understands more than a few words. Despite hundreds of thousands of dollars and more than 40 hours a week of behavioral therapy, little has changed in the eight years since he was diagnosed.

Now, imagine a woman who can teach that child to communicate, using just his fingers and a cardboard alphabet. Suddenly, the child can tell you what he knows...what he's thinking...and what he's capable of. It turns out that he's not just bright, he's brilliant. He's also highly literate, he's good at math, and he has a poetic turn of phrase.

This is, essentially, the premise of Portia Iversen's book, Strange Son. A writer, a mother, and co-founder of Cure Autism Now, Iversen invited Soma Mukhopadhyay and her autistic son, Tito, to come to the United States to demonstrate her "rapid prompting method" of communication. Soma does come, and she even teaches Iversen's son to communicate through "pointing." But though Iversen and Soma are convinced that the method has released both their sons from the "hidden world of autism," neither has been able to convince the wider world that the method is scientifically legitimate.

If you're the parent or teacher of a child with severe autism, you'll find this book compelling. Whether you find it persuasive is, of course, up to you. I actually met with and interviewed Portia Iversen, and certainly there's no doubt that she believes wholeheartedly in the efficacy and importance of "pointing."

Find out more about Iversen's experiences, along with resources to learn more about "pointing." Then share your thoughts right here!