Montgomery, Sy. Temple Grandin.

Montgomery, Sy.   Temple Grandin.   Houghton Mifflin  148p  $17.99      978-0-547-44315-7 ms/hs       VG    Biography  

The topic is Temple Grandin, world-renowned lecturer, teacher and advocate for the humane treatment of animals.  The book presents Grandin’s struggles to overcome the symptoms of autism and the steps she took to gain the respect of her colleagues, as well as of others who cope with her condition.  Sy Montgomery is undoubtedly a good writer.  Her comprehensive research combines with her drive to portray Temple Grandin as accurately as possible, and she has produced a very good biography for a younger audience.  After completing this book, readers will understand the struggles of autism, the steps that were taken by Temple’s mother to help her daughter live in a “normal” world, and the unique drive that Grandin possesses to this day.  Grandin is well known the world of animal science.  Based on her studies of animal behavior, she designed equipment to make the handling of cattle and other creatures more humane.  In fact, half of the cattle in the U. S. and Canada are handled by her inventions.  The special qualities of this book include the smooth-flowing narrative style combined with impeccable organization, the supporting photographs, and the appendix, which includes Temple’s advice for children with autism.   Charts portray the intricacies of Temple’s designs, as well as the unusual talent that she possesses for detail!  After every few chapters, Montgomery adds a section that enhances the reader’s understanding of autism or adds anecdotal information to her writing.  For someone with prior knowledge of Temple, or for someone who has seen the movie on HBO about her life, there is little that is new.  But for a younger audience with no prior knowledge, this book will instruct children in a topic that needs to be shared due to the prevalence of autism, the quest to understand it, and the thirst for hope.  This book is a good choice for a middle-school library.  Upper-elementary school children will also appreciate the information.  A healthy lifestyle teacher will find information for teaching about autism as well!                                                                                    -- Martha Squaresky