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With the numerous books currently being written and published on mental retardation, it is amazing how few are written directly for the parents who have a retarded child. The re-issue of You and Your Retarded Child is certainly timely and necessary. Unfortunately this book does not really begin to fill the gap or meet the current needs. In a sense it is an oversimplified "how to do it" dialogue. Nowhere does one feel empathy or compassion for the parents. Instead it is often sharp and unfeeling. For example, in the chapter dealing with the sensitive subject of keeping the child at home or placing the child in a residential school, the final two paragraphs come under the heading of "If You have Difficulty in Deciding" and states the following:
If you are unable to decide whether to send your child to a residential school or to keep him at