Sound Stories for Adults. (1999). By Katie Schwartz, Claudia J. Strauss, & Cheryl Gross. Interactive Therapeutics, Inc., P.O. Box 1805, Stow, OH 44224-0805. Spiral softbound book containing 185 reproducible pages, $46.50. Reviewed by Maria Tuchscherer, Pasqua Hospital, Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada.

The three authors of Sound Stories for Adults  have complimentary backgrounds as speech-language pathologists and as a consultant in strategic communication. They have compiled a resource containing adult-level reading material intended for people wishing to practice specific phonemes. The material is versatile and can be used for clients who are experiencing dysarthria, apraxia, or for those wishing to modify accents. The book has items for practice of 47 individual speech sounds, beginning with 34 consonants alphabetically and 13 vowels and diphthongs. All sounds are represented by IPA symbols, standard alphabet characters, and by an example word. There is only one word list in the form of a grocery list for the /b/ sound; otherwise, the material is in paragraph or sentence form.

There are six or more stories per chapter that are arranged by lowest reading level, journalistic style, and last in a business writing style such as letters and memos. Also listed at the end of each section is the number of times a targeted sound appears in the body of the material.

This manual is not restricted for use by speech-language pathologists and could be used for independent practice, individual therapy sessions, or in group ses sions for accent modification.

As a clinician working with adults who present with a variety of communication profiles, I was pleased to see something more than lists of words for the initial, medial, and final sound. The items cover many different subjects, which makes practice interesting and eases the tedium of repetition of isolated words. The spiral-bound style also makes copying the pages easy. It is expected when pages are copied that credit is given to the authors.

The price of this book is very reasonable because it saves time for the clinician searching for appropriate adult therapy materials and being able to copy pages for clients is an added benefit. I highly recommend this book as an additional resource in clinical settings for those working with adults.