Take Control of Dyslexia and Other Reading Difficulties

Gr 4–9—This book does several things really well. First, it reassures readers that a reading disability is nothing to be ashamed of and that it can be dealt with. Second, it gives them a number of tried-and-true strategies to use when encountering problems with reading and study skills. Third, it is visually appealing and has a graphic organizer at the end of each chapter. However, there are a couple of things that the book does not do well. In an attempt to give children an understanding of what is going wrong with their own abilities, the reading process is oversimplified to the point of being inaccurate, and the book does not include many of the latest theories on reading and writing abilities. Rather, it breaks reading down into simple sets of skills and leaves out motivation and sociocultural perspectives, two of the biggest areas in research today. Second, the attempt to explain the reading process occurs at the beginning of the book and this explanation, even in its simplified form, may deter young people from reading more of the book, where they could learn how to cope with their own difficulties. Fisher and Price have done so many things well that it would be a shame if students were stymied by the details on reading disabilities. Encourage readers to start with chapter three and use the earlier sections as appendixes.—Wendy Smith-D'Arezzo, Loyola College, Baltimore, MD