DIFFERENT KINDS OF MINDS

Animal behaviorist Grandin and children’s author Koffsky collaborate on a rambling exploration of different kinds of thinkers.

Grandin was born in the 1940s, when, as an autistic kid, she was labeled “brain damaged,” yet she eventually earned a Ph.D. She credits much of her success to being an “object visual thinker.” Grandin’s definitions foreshadow the work’s troubles: They’re vague, rely heavily on the empirically unsupported framework of multiple intelligences, and omit any mention of growth mindset, while frequently referring to things that certain types of people are “good at” or “bad at” (which seems designed to limit rather than expand their horizons). In the strongest moments, the book presents oft-told anecdotes from Grandin’s own career. In its weakest, it devolves into lengthy praise of “geniuses”—almost entirely white men—who are depicted in glowing terms and neatly slotted into Grandin’s categories. Grandin also complains mightily about how the education system has worsened since she was young, but her admirable push for more practical, hands-on education is mired in non-specific complaints, inconsistencies, historical myths, and ignorance about contemporary education; only in the chapter on animal thinking does her expertise get the chance to shine. Grandin often seems out of touch with contemporary young people’s conversations around disability, identity, and activism; similarly, for a generation traumatized by school shootings and active shooter drills, praising Samuel Colt for an invention that allowed a gun “to be fired multiple times before it needed to be reloaded” may not land well.

Pop science and longing for a sentimental ideal are leavened with a smattering of intriguing anecdotes.