?According to Tyor and Bell, ... debate over how to meet the needs of the retarded is not a new one. Their interpretation is that mentally retarded people have been viewed traditionally with a mixture of pity, scorn, fear, and contempt, and have been consigned to the periphery of society.' The mentally retarded are, they emphasize, an underclass of forgotten people.' Even though some have championed their cause, the mentally retared have had few advocates working on their behalf. Ignorance of their plight is the enemy of the retarded. Tyor and Bell's book is a scholarly and informative step toward public enlightenment.?-Choice