Best of
Disability

1997

Adam: God's Beloved


Henri J.M. Nouwen - 1997
    He discovered that by reflecting on the story of this young man, he had found a way to describe his own understanding of the Gospel message. In "Adam," a book completed only weeks before his own death, Nouwen has left a fitting reflection of his own essential message and legacy.

Helen Keller: Courage in the Dark (Step Into Reading)


Johanna Hurwitz - 1997
    But her indomitable will and the help of a devoted teacher empower Helen to triumph over incredible adversity. This amazing true story is finally brought to the beginner reader level.

The Disability Studies Reader


Lennard J. Davis - 1997
    This volume represents a major advance in presenting the most important writings about disability with an emphasis on those writers working from a materialist and postmodernist perspective.Drawing together experts in cultural studies, literary criticism, sociology, biology, the visual arts, pedagogy and post-colonial studies, the collection provides a comprehensive approach to the issue of disability. Contributors include Erving Goffman, Susan Sontag, Michelle Fine and Susan Wendell.

Look up for Yes


Julia Tavalaro - 1997
    Suddenly, just thirty-two years old, she was a prisoner in her own body and a victim of the ignorant and cruel treatment of hospital workers who neither noticed nor cared that the "vegetable" they changed and fed every day was actually a bright and emotional woman. In this powerful memoir, painstakingly written with the help of poet Richard Tayson, Tavalaro details the hellish life she endured as a defenseless patient, angry and desperate to die, and the liberating actions of two therapists who took the time to realize that she was not incognitive but rather brimming with intelligence and life.At last, Tavalaro managed to break through the isolation that imprisoned her. Slowly, methodically, she regained her ability to communicate -- aided by technological and therapeutic developments -- and began to compose poems that drew on the memories of her life before her stroke. Beautifully written and achingly heartrending, Look Up for Yes is a testament to a passionate and articulate woman who is ready and able to let the world know she is, indisputably, alive."A story of utter tragedy and the triumph of a woman with uncommon courage". -- Los Angeles Times

Changed by a Child


Barbara Gill - 1997
    Finally, here is a book that honestly describes the inner needs and range of issues parents with disabled children face. Changed by a Child invites parents to take a moment for themselves. Each of the brief readings offers comfort and hope as they capture the unique challenges and joys of raising a disabled child.

Eyewitness Bloody Sunday


Don Mullan - 1997
    The first edition of Eyewitness Bloody Sunday brought to light 100 witness statements that were officially ignored for more than two decades. This book had a phenomenal and far-reaching impact, profoundly weakening the official version of the events of January 30, 1972. In addition to giving a voice to the civilian demonstrators who witnessed the events of Bloody Sunday, it exposed facts supporting the hypothesis that snipers in the vicinity of the old Derry Walls might have shot dead three of the victims. With the Saville inquiry now into its second year of investigations, this book has become a pivotal source of firsthand evidence about what really happened on that tragic day.

The Scandal of Service: Jesus Washes Our Feet


Jean Vanier - 1997
    Vanier pursuesthe connection of this gesture of humility and service to Jesus' actions withthe bread and wine.

The New Social Story Book: Over 150 Social Stories that Teach Everyday Social Skills to Children with Autism or Asperger's Syndrome, and Their Peers


Carol Gray - 1997
    This 10th Anniversary edition of her best-selling book offers the ready-to-use stories that parents and educators have depended on for years, but now features over 25 additional Social Stories, groundbreaking new strategies for creating custom stories, and a modern design complete with full-color photos. Developed through years of experience, these strategically written stories explain social situations in a way children with autism understand, while teaching the social skills children need to be successful at home, at school, and in the community.

Staring Back: The Disability Experience from the Inside Out


Kenny Fries - 1997
    Through the vehicles of nonfiction, poetry, fiction, and drama, Staring Back is the first anthology to open the landscape of the disabled experience for exploration and discussion.

Growing Up with Joey


Sandy Papazian - 1997
    An emotional rollercoaster ride which gives the reader an inside view of the needs, the stresses, and the celebrations of caring and planning for a child with severely involved cerebral palsy, and a rare form of epilepsy.

North Enough: AIDS and Other Clear-Cuts


Jan Zita Grover - 1997
    What she didn't expect to find is the reality of the devastated landscape that makes up the north woods--massive cut-overs, land that has been logged and used beyond any easily recognizable loveliness.However, Grover's extraordinary imagination sees similarities between this ravished landscape and the ravished bodies of her dying friends. Refusing to sentimentalize, she nevertheless finds surprising consolation in loss. From landfills that have become prime wildlife feeding areas, to the unexpected joys of fly-fishing without a hook, Grover again bears witness to something she first began to articulate in San Francisco: the "difficult beauties of deformity."