Three interesting narrative lines propel The Prodigy's Cousin: The Family Link Between Autism and Extraordinary Talent, a new book by psychologist Joanne Ruthsatz and her daughter, science writer Kimberly Stephens.
First there is the endlessly fascinating connection between high intelligence and behaviour on the autism spectrum - something we've glibly mythologised in such stereotypes as the absent-minded professor and the geeky tech guy.
Second is Ruthsatz's intensive, long-term investigation of child prodigies - defined as children who reach professional capability in a demanding field by the age of 10.
Third is her observation that roughly half of these prodigies, although they are not autistic, have relatives on the autism spectrum, which raises the question of whether further study of the genetic connections might lead to a breakthrough in the treatment of autism.
She begins with an account of two brothers, both of whom were diagnosed as autistic: the silent, withdrawn Alex, who didn't speak his first word until he was 2 1/2, and William, who at that age was actually spelling words (he wrote "algorithm'" with magnetised letters while sitting in his high chair) but who didn't interact with other children and could barely dress himself even when he started school.