This week we’ve learned of the fascinating and inspiring story of Donald Grey Triplett, the first person to be diagnosed with autism. Donald might easily have been trapped by the low expectations of medical science and society in the 1930’s, spending his life in an institution and being abandoned by his parents. Instead, his mother and father refused to give up on him and brought Donald up as a normal boy. Now aged 82, Donald lives an independent and active life, still living in the home he grew up in, and indulging his love of travel and golf.

A key part of Donald’s story is the affection and support shown to him by the residents of his home town of Forest, Mississippi. In a world where people with disabilities still encounter discrimination, their sense of community and acceptance of diversity is remarkable and an inspiration to us all.

Donald’s story is told in In a Different Key: The Story of Autism, a new book by American journalists John Donvan and Caren Zucker, reviewed by The Observer on 17th January.