Communication-Disorders Books

Book Review
Lou Heite
lheite@eldhorn.is

STUTTERING: A Life Bound Up in Words
Marty Jezer
New York: Basic Books, A Division of Harper-Collins Publishers, 1997

Marty Jezer's much-awaited book is on the brink of publication, if it isn't already on the stands. Marty, of course, is known throughout the stuttering community for his clear, intelligent commentary and searching questions on several discussion lists. Marty is a commited pacifist whose conciliatory tone consistently rises above flame battles which remind this writer of scenes from Star Wars. In his book he has applied his great good humor to the story of his lifelong battle with his severe stutter, and has come out the winner.

From a vantage point of middle-aged mellowness, Marty has taken a clear-eyed look at what it means to be a person who stutters and what impact his speech impediment has had on his life. He is neither vindictive nor maudlin. He makes no attempt to hide his avoidances, his denial, or his embarrassment under a cloak of heroism, and yet the real strength of his honesty shows in his unwillingness to blame any individuals or much of society for the difficulties he has experienced, difficulties which are familiar to us all. Marty is no whiner.

The book begins and ends with a description of Marty's participation in an experiment involving a drug that some hoped would alleviate stuttering. For those who have dreamed of a "fluency pill" -- a regular list topic -- these two chapters alone are worth the price of the book. But there is more, much more, to be learned in retracing Marty's path through the minefield of life with a stutter.

Marty's story underscores the oft-made assertion that the only thing that differentiates those who stutter from the general population is the fact that they stutter. Marty's loving, if somewhat competitive, family, his school, his neighborhood, his college, and his original career goals are a model of American life in the 1950's and 1960's. I would like to have seen a closer look at the effects of Marty's stuttering on the people around him, but the young Marty was a remarkably normal kid and by his own confession didn't think about that any more than he absolutely had to.

There are some wildly funny passages in the book, ones which I think anyone can identify with, whether stutterer or not. The hilarity and pathos of the chapter "An Errant Elbow or an Act of God" is as gripping in its second and third readings as it was when it first appeared in draft on The Stuttering Homepage. And there is a description of a restaurant dinner with his family that made this reader laugh out loud remembering the same kind of conversation around my own parents' table, ten adults and ten monologues only tenuously connected by a most absurd stream-of-consciousness association.

And yet, for all the good humor and, yes, love of life in this book, Marty delineates well the kinds of wrenching doubts and wandering detours that plague the fumbletongued. He holds up a lot of mirrors to others of us who have had to wrestle with the same demon - even though the demon might be smaller and more tractable in its form. It was the little things that grabbed me particularly: Marty's desire to be a funny person, his recitations alone before the mirror and in the shower, a preference in conversation to agree or to summarize rather than to bring up or change topics. The war with the telephone. The desire, indeed, a near compulsion, to write - and the freedom and joy of the written page where words fasten themselves in their ordered rows and meaning is divorced from delivery.

Marty came of age at a time of great turmoil in American society. In the eyes of at least some of us, he took a hero's stand against great injustices and terrible lies. The entire community should be proud that there were stutterers at the vanguard of the Antiwar and Civil Rights movements. Not only Marty, but his friend Paul Johnson, also a person who stutters, were instrumental in the formation of the arguments in the early years of the Protest movement. It was Johnson who introduced Marty to the activist's life and who helped him find his real voice as a journalist and formulator of policy. Their actions at that time have had a lasting effect on the shape of American society.

Marty is sure, and I will second his assertion, that the little and big prejudices which he faced as a stutterer made him especially sensitive to the big and bigger prejudices which spawned the Civil Rights movement. And from there it was only a short step to seeking a fuller liberation of all society, in the Free Speech and the Anti-War movements. That Marty could turn his intensely personal experience of prejudice as a stutterer to society's greater good should stand as a reminder to all of us that no matter how bitterly we perceive our own oppression, there is great freedom to be gained in helping others to achieve their liberation.

I could easily see _Stuttering: A Life Bound Up in Words_ as a topic of organized discussion in self-help and group therapy sessions. Marty touches on almost the whole range of emotion which is likely to both inspire and trouble the person who stutters. He also delineates the process of growth, from denial through depression to something resembling integration. He makes it clear that one can honestly accept the fact of stuttering without having to accept the baggage that attaches to the label "stutterer."

I would especially recommend this book to parents and "significant others" of people who stutter. Marty's candid and unsentimental descriptions of the way his impediment has influenced and been influenced by his feelings, his aspirations, and his dreams should open passages to understanding for those who feel the effect of their loved one's impediment almost as directly as the stutterer him- or herself. This book has the potential to provide talking points for people who are inhibited by shyness and the natural reluctance to bring up a subject that may be painful to someone they are close to.

As a final note, it is interesting to compare _Stuttering: A Life Bound Up in Words_ with Wendell Johnson's little autobiography, _Because I Stutter_, which was made available online within this past week. They make a very interesting back-to-back read, for though about seventy years stands between the two books, the stories are remarkably similar. The basic message is that stuttering, though a dreadful inconvenience and even a torment, is not necessarily a permanent roadblock to a productive, fulfilling, interesting, and ultimately happy life.

MR. JEZER'S GIVES PARENTS INSIGHT ON THEIR CHILDS DISABILITY. AS A PARENT OF A SEVERE STUTTER WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR ANSWERS OR SOLUTIONS TO THE OUR SON'S SPEECH DIFFICULTIES. CHILDREN HAVE DIFFICULTY ARTICULATING THEIR FRUSTRATIONS, EMOTIONS, AND INNER CONFLICTS. MR. JEZER HELPED ME UNDERSTAND MY SONS DAILY STRUGGLES JUST ALTTLE CLEARER. I WISH I WOULD HAVE READ THIS SOONER, I MAY HAVE APPROACHED THINGS DIFFERENTLY. THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR STORY WITH US.

I received this book a week or two after purchase, and I was very pleased. The book was in perfect condition, no highlighting, tears, worn covers or anything. I was very pleased!

This is a thorough and readable book designed for the emerging clinician. The author speaks from the point of view of a person who stutters as well as one well read in the research surrounding cause, nature and treatment of stuttering.

I would be interested to hear from families of and people who stutter to see if this book is an appropriate, in-depth, resource for them as well.

"Assessment of Communication Disorders in Children" is a superb all-around assessment resource for speech pathologists! It has a case history form and a protocol for each area of evaluation (speech, language, fluency, voice [yes, resonance is lumped in with voice], and assessment of nonverbal and minimally verbal children). The authors also include a literacy primer.

Hegde and Pomaville explain and discuss the limits of standardized and non-standardized assessments and give clear, practical advice for assessing "ethnoculturally diverse children" (a major reason for their preference of non-standardized assessment methods for ALL children, regardless of background). Take note that, for reimbursement purposes, their strong inclination toward non-standardized assessment is not necessarily practical, but their advocacy is strengthened by reason and research, and they do offer lists and brief descriptions of many standardized and non-standardized materials that are available.

In areas of disagreement (e.g., quantitative analysis of stuttering), the authors explain their reasons for their own interpretations as well as opposing views, and they interpret the research in what seems to be a balanced light.

Unlike many other assessment resources, this one doesn't gloss over the non- and minimally-verbal kids. It provides a solid chapter on best practices for their assessment and includes an explanation of the evolution of AAC.

The authors avoid chapter titles like, "Evaluating a Child with Autism" or "How to Assess a Child Who Has an Intellectual Disability". Instead, they categorize assessment from a communication perspective (e.g., language, voice, fluency) and then mention other behaviors or disabilities that are often concomitant. Each chapter also has a differential diagnosis section to help you distinguish between the subcategories within a communication area (e.g., straight artic. vs. phonology vs. dysarthria vs. artic. secondary to structural anomalies).

Included with this resource is a CD with fully customizable protocols and forms. You can easily add your own letterhead and the client's information and then incorporate these forms into your own report.

All in all, this book is well worth the money you will shell out for it. I highly recommend it.

DR. HANLEY AGAIN PROVIDES PRACTICAL & IMPORTANT,CARING INFORMATION THAT SHOULD BE READ BY ANY PARENT CONSIDERING MEDICATION FOR A POSSIBLE ADD CHILD.

Thanks for this superior book on augmentative communication. As a speech pathologist in the public schools, I found this book extremely helpful when relating information to other professionals with limited aug. com. experience. This book is a must for the SLP in charge of educating other professionals in aug. com.

Dewan and his co-authors provide a great overview of the field but even those outside of behavioral healthcare would benefit from reading this book. This is what the healthcare super information highway is really about. Dewan is a true visionary. A must read.

The book "Beyond Aphasia" is highly recommended for speech-language pathologists and social workers working to address the socially disabling consequences of aphasia. Subtitled "Therapies for Living with Communication Disability", it provides speech-language pathologists and others with ideas and strategies for moving from traditional therapy towards restoration of identity and ultimately advocacy.

This text is wonderful for Speech and Language Pathologists serving the Spanish speaking population. It provides information in all aspects of language and describes in detail how to analyze the Spanish of native speakers and Spanish influenced English. All of the information provided can help the Speech and Language Pathologist to make an accurate diagnosis relative to the existance or non-existance of a disability. Thus, it is a great tool that can be used to assist in making appropriate educational choices.

This book is a great introductory book for Speech-Language Pathology students and SLPs beginning to work with individuals who use augmentative and alternative communication. The book outlines in each chapter how to obtain communication goals with the person using AAC. The chapters become a bit repetitive in their teaching tactics, but this does help the reader remember the strategies used. It does focus on individuals with cognitive skills who are able to make choices regarding their communication systems. The material, however, can be applied to individuals who are in the severe to profound range of mental retardation.

Having noticed and become more familiar with symptoms and failures of ADHD, it is helpful for how often these factors show up in society. For example, the "enigma" of Bill Clinton may be confusing to many, but may be a result of the class symptoms of many of the characteristics of ADHD undiagnosed persons whose spouses often compensate for them in many situations and circumstances. This can be seen in many cases where she "spoke for him," in interviews, for example, to explain what he meant, or to clarify his views, specifically in the 1995 interview about Flowers when he said "he had caused pain in his marriage." Reviewing the many complaints or observations of his staff about his personality suggests that he was indeed not only brilliant, but also suffered the effects of ADHD that had never been diagnosed, and should be looked at with what we are beginning to learn about adults with undiagnosed ADHD. All signs point to this problem and may explain much of his approach and his behavior, especially the desire to do everything at once, and to jump around from thing to thing. The extent of the effects of childhood trauma and the possibility of undiagnosed ADHD together make for a very interesting analysis of this complicated person, and how his family and friends deal with, or cover for him, in many situations. Hillary has classic characteristics of many of the compensating ADHD behaviors that unwittingly spouses fall into using to cope with their ADHD mates over time.