A book of case studies can convert abstract concepts and theories into a more powerful, clearer, and more meaningful understanding of brain–behavior relationships in neuropsychology. What human being, and especially what neuropsychologist, does not like a good story? After over 20 years in the field, I still look forward to every day I am in my office talking to parents and hearing stories about their children. So a book entitled, Pediatric Neuropsychology Case Studies, proved particularly tantalizing. As I scanned through the table of contents, it made me think back to one of my first assigned textbooks, Organic Brain Syndromes: An Introduction to Neurobehavioral Disorders, by Strub and Black (Reference Strub and Black1982). Each clinical chapter began with a case study illustrating the neuropathological process subsequently described. I knew that neuropsychology was for me when I did not put the book down after the week’s assigned chapters, but kept charging ahead into the next case study, and the next, and the next. I had a similar, but not quite as satisfying, experience with Pediatric Neuropsychology Case Studies, which may be related to my own idiosyncratic perspective as much as the content of the book.

The stated goal of the editors was to create a book that represented the “incredible diversity of challenges” faced by many children and families, and their attempts to understand and overcome these challenges through working with professionals who witness and mediate this process. A range of case studies are provided that illustrate the most commonly encountered neuropsychological disorders of childhood, as well as those somewhat less common, in most clinical practices. We encounter the stories and neuropsychological evaluations of children who have suffered traumatic brain injury, medulloblastoma, autism, Williams syndrome, and sickle cell disease. The stories are quite compelling; who wouldn’t want to read a chapter entitled, Grand Larceny in the First Grade: Traumatic Brain Injury in the School-Aged Years. Also, the case studies are presented in a narrative style that is engaging and easily accessible. The lack of references cited throughout the text is one unusual aspect of most chapters that definitely creates a livelier and more novel-like read, but it also makes the writing less scholarly and effective for the reader who is looking for documentation of various concepts presented throughout the text. Certainly, references are presented at the end of each chapter, but it is sometimes difficult to tie them to specific information introduced in the text.

The book is organized into three sections covering neurological disorders, developmental disorders, and interesting questions and controversies in our field, with each section prefaced by an introduction to orient the reader to the ensuing chapters. The following 32 chapters are well formatted with key terms printed in bold face type the first time they are used and then defined at the end of each chapter. This feature will be particularly helpful to students and those less familiar with terminology used in the field of pediatric neuropsychology. The 31 authors represent a diversity of backgrounds and settings, from neuropsychologists in private practice and academic settings authoring chapters in the first two sections of the book to a professor of occupational therapy and a speech-language pathologist in the latter section of the volume.

Pediatric disorders are covered in varying detail. Some more common disorders are discussed in several chapters, whereas other disorders are covered in only a single chapter. In Chapters 2 through 5, cases are presented illustrating the neuropsychological impact of traumatic brain injury. Likewise, four chapters are devoted to the presentation of several variants of reading disorder/dyslexia, and three chapters present case examples of children with seizure disorder. Multiple chapters related to a particular diagnosis allow for the illustration of various facets of the disorder, including pertinent assessment tools, severity, age, remediation strategies, and outcomes. Although one could argue that multiple chapters for a diagnostic category allow for more stories to be told, a case could also be made for limiting the number of cases and providing a more in-depth discussion of the diagnosis under discussion. In addition, single chapters address a variety of interesting, but somewhat less common disorders, such as prematurity and related post-hemorrhagic hydrocephalus (Chapter 1) and pediatric bipolar disorder (Chapter 24).

Many chapters throughout the text provide numerous useful recommendations and intervention strategies for the disorders that are discussed. This is a definite strength of the text and will be potentially beneficial to many pediatric neuropsychologists, especially those who are early in their career. For example, in Chapter 22, Wiebusch describes the consultative role of the neuropsychologist in treatment of a child with moderate autism spectrum disorder through the use of Applied Behavior Analysis therapy. Also, other resources such as websites and books for clinicians and families are cited at the end of each chapter.

The more conceptual aspects of the book pertain to the controversies in pediatric neuropsychology discussed and illustrated in the third section of the volume. It was a bold and important decision by the editors to provide space for the discussion of topics such as sensory integration and central auditory processing disorder, which raise the passions of advocates on both sides of the issues. As they note in the introduction to the section, “we also seek forums such as the present book to spark valuable discussion among disciplines,” while acknowledging, “systematic research is also needed to test hypotheses and build support for the construct validity of ideas from other fields.” In this section, a sensory processing model from the occupational therapy field is presented with an extensive list of references, which is helpful given that this is an unfamiliar or minimally familiar area for many neuropsychologists. Also, since the size of the chapter limits the critique of the research cited, the extensive reference list allows the readers the opportunity to explore further research more thoroughly on their own.

A substantial drawback of the text from this reader’s perspective is the very limited discussion of brain–behavior relationships in the majority of the chapters. Although the chapters on reading disorder present very good information about many aspects of the disorder, such as the double-deficit hypothesis of dyslexia, there is virtually no mention of the extensive accumulating research on the neuropathology of this disorder. Similarly, the chapters covering traumatic brain injury (TBI) provide only minimal reference to brain-related mechanisms affecting the neuropsychological effects of TBI. It seems that the editors chose to maximize the number of very interesting stories presented at the cost of not integrating these case studies into a broader neuropsychological context.

Pediatric Neuropsychology Case Studies is ideal for those in training or practicing early in their careers, as it will provide them with exposure to a wide variety of disorders, and the basic assessment tools and intervention strategies associated with these diagnoses. Ideally, one would read this book as an accompaniment to a more theoretically and research referenced text. Dessert is wonderful, but usually best when accompanying a more substantive meal.