Product Description

Audio CD version of The Gift of Dyslexia (Perigee; ISBN: 039952293X), read by the author.

At the age of 38, Ronald D. Davis made a discovery about perception that enabled him to read a book cover to cover -- for the first time. The methods he devloped have helped thousands of children and adults around the world to overcome reading, writing, study and attention problems. This audio version explains the concepts of Davis Dyslexia Correction (R) for people who would rather listen than read.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9021 in Books
• Published on: 1997-03-01
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 260 pages

From Library Journal
Levinson's use of patient testimonials and case studies to describe his breakthroughs in the treatment of dyslexia makes for a medical text that reads like a novel. He traces both his research on the connection between dyslexia and the inner ear and cerebellum and also the scientific community's skepticism regarding his claims. Formerly a professor at New York University Medical School and currently director of the Medical Dyslexic Treatment Center, Levinson acknowledges criticism and errors and, overall, offers a balanced view of his methods. In the process, he reveals the unfortunate increase in the politics of scientific research. Levinson's book is recommended as a source for the most current research, an account of the patients' plight, and an expose of the scientific debate. Davis, on the other hand, emphasizes child development, psychology, and education rather than medical treatment. As a dyslexic individual and a teacher, he offers a unique perspective on the subject of learning disabilities. Through his own real-life experiences he shares what everyone needs to know about dyslexia, what the dyslexic student encounters in a typical school, and what is needed to teach such students effectively. To support his conclusion that dyslexics have special talents of perception, imagination, and intuition, Davis cites talented and brilliant figures from Einstein and Leonardo da Vinci to Churchill and Walt Disney. He concludes with a test, written in simple language and printed in a large typeface to make it easier to read. Given Levinson's medical focus, his text is recommended for academic and larger public libraries, while Davis's book is appropriate for all types of libraries.
Samuel T. Huang, Northern Illinois Univ. Libs., DeKalb
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author
Ron Davis, author of The Gift of Dyslexia, grew up "retarded" (what would today be called autistic) until his early teens. Even though he failed miserably in the school system, he later took technical courses and became a successful engineer, businessman and artist. He was functionally illiterate until age 38 when he discovered how to mentally orient his perceptions. After that, he dedicated his life to helping people with the gift of dyslexia achieve literacy and self-esteem.

Customer Reviews

This should be how all children are taught to read!!!
If we started at the kindergarten level with Dr. Davis' techniques - there would never be another dyslexic. These techniques are so easy to implement and so effective, it is astonishing.

I AM A DYSLEXIC and this book changed my life!!! Now I actually publish and EDIT books - and am quite good at it. And I'm especially good at it now because I AM DYSLEXIC!!! That is I am a visual thinking!!!

Teach kids to relax while they learn instead of stressing them out by yelling at the TO CONCENTRATE and everyone will learn better! That's just one of the SIMPLE, LOGICAL, USEFUL techniques detailed in this book!

Absolutely Brilliant!
Whether you are a professional educator, parent, or just interested in the world of dyslexia, this book is a wonderfully eye opening read. It shows how dyslexia is not a learning disorder, but a different way of processing information. An excellent book!

This Book Was God's Gift to Us...!
My now 12 yo son was discovered to have dyslexia, just 2 years ago (after years of frustration in trying numerous "how to read" approaches, to no avail). He was homeschooled from the beginning, and though I'd successfully taught his older siblings to read, this kid stumped me... every attempt to teach him (no matter what methodology was used), resulted in both of us dissolving into tears of frustration and despair...

We tried some traditional/professional approaches -- no results. We eschewed the labels, having gone down that dismal route with our eldest son (language delays), who is now carrying a 4.0 in college.

Anyway, the breakthrough for us, was discovering this practical, hands-on book -- I came to see and understand (& believe) that it's not a disability at all -- it's an incredible gift based on innate, insatiable curiosity (even in infancy), and incredible multi-dimensional perception skills. It enables children to see the "other side" of objects, with their "mind's eye".

Most dyslexic children are inordinately bright. Some famous dyslexics in history have been Michaelangelo, Thomas Edison, and Einstein. Their ability to see "all sides of an object at once" enabled them to do extraordinary feats. Michaelangelo could "see" the image of David in that block of marble, and knew how to "get him out" of it.

The problem comes in when a dyslexic child tries to do a "mere human" feat, such as reading. Letters on a page are two-dimensional, and yet the child's insatiably curious mind wants to see what that "E" looks like on the "other side"... the mind's eye will go there, which causes an image of the letters to either "dance" on the page, or spin, or else swap places with each other.

My son learned, from some easy exercises in this book, to "re-orient" his mind's eye -- to "lock it into place" in the back of his head, thereby aligning his mind's eye, with his natural eyes... so that both of them were focused on the same thing (the "E") at the same time. He can "unlock" that orientation at will, enabling him to do whatever tasks God had in mind when He gave him this particular gift.

It's hugely liberated my son, given him a true sense of being unique (rather than defective), and given him the confidence he needed to tackle reading.

One day, within a month of so of having discovered how to "re-orient", he picked up a 300 page novel, and devoured it in 3 days...! This was the same kid who would dissolve into tears, when he couldn't get through a paragraph, only weeks previously.

I don't know how many more "disabilities" are really just misdiagnosed gifts, but I'll bet God does... I'll bet He knows how to enable us to meet our children where they are, and to discover just what He had in mind when He created each of our unique children.

My son has morphed into a reading-fanatic...! As I type, he's lying on his bed, devouring yet another thick book -- he cannot get enough; it's as if he's making up for lost time. As a homeschooling/unschooling mom of 8 kids, I've learned that a desire to read is the greatest educational resource at their disposal. I've gone from hopeless despair over this son, to incredible hope and joy...!

I really don't care how scientifically accurate this approach is -- I've found it to be incredibly fruitful. In my experience, the scientifically-backed methods were found wanting. This method opened up my son's world! I'm grateful, and I see this method as a Gift from God.

Shalom, Dena

"The unanswered questions aren't nearly as dangerous as the unquestioned answers."