The Nine Degrees of Autism – Review

“The Nine Degrees
of Autism”

Edited by Philip Wylie, Wenn Lawson, Luke Beardon
Publisher – Routledge
ISBN-10: 113888717X

This is a collection of essays by a variety authors on the different life stages of a person with autism, with a couple of very good introductory chapters.

I found it fascinating to see life with autism as a step by step process in individuation. The first chapter which wets the appetite for the book is by Tony Attwood and the last by Temple Grandin speaks of an autistic individual achieving a certain amount of recognition in the wider world.

My favourite chapter was by Altazar Rossiter a ‘shamanic healer’ It was probably the most radical. He proposed that we should hold lightly the myths we invent about ourselves to explain who we are and how we got this far in our journey. We should be flexible so that we can bend under natural pressures. If we are too inflexible we may become brittle and crack. It’s a kind of ‘dare to be real’ message. Inspiring stuff and in fact the whole book is awesome. Certain bits are highly accessible and others more challenging.