A writer diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD as a child explores the toll the system takes on kids who are not "normal" and advocates for a revolution in the way society thinks about diversity, abilities, and disabilities.

"In this essayistic autobiography, Jan Grue reflects on social structures, disability, loss, relationships, and the body: in short, on what it means to be human"-- Grue was diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy at the age of three. Shifting between specific periods of his life-- his youth with his parents and sister in Norway; his years of study in Berkeley, St. Petersburg, and Amsterdam; and his current life as a professor, husband, and father....

Growing up as a paralyzed girl during the 90s and early 2000s, Rebekah Taussig only saw disability depicted as something monstrous (The Hunchback of Notre Dame), inspirational (Helen Keller), or angelic (Forrest Gump). None of this felt right; and as she got older, she longed for more stories that allowed disability to be complex and ordinary, uncomfortable and fine, painful and fulfilling. Writing about the rhythms and textures of what it means to...

Robert Mercer's life could have been very different. He was born with very low vision and, as a youngster, struggled in school. But through the intervention of a caring teacher and the support of his family, he found his way to the Halifax School for the Blind and into the classroom of Mrs. Beaton. It was there that he discovered his voice, a voice he uses to recount his remarkable journey from a shy little boy to a community leader.

This book was written in the hopes of reaching and uplifting its audience. You will learn how Honey Kasper survived every type of abuse, and her journey of self-discovery. Take the journey with her and discover how she turned her life around. Learn how to end abuse in a family line, and how you can still lead a remarkable and successful life.

"I was in the car the first time music seemed strange: the instruments less distinct, the vocals less crisp."  John Cotter was thirty years old when he first began to notice a ringing in his ears. Soon the ringing became a roar inside his head. Next came partial deafness, then dizziness and vertigo that rendered him unable to walk, work, sleep, or even communicate. At a stage of life when he expected to be emerging fully into adulthood, teaching...

From the Periphery consists of more than 30 first-person narratives of everyday people who describe what it's like to be treated differently by society because of their disabilities. The stories are raw and painful, but also surprisingly funny and deeply inspiring. The oral histories describe anger, independence, bigotry, solidarity and love-in the family, at school and at the workplace. Inspired by the oral historians Studs Terkel and Svetlana Alexievich,...

We were walking this journey together, yet alone. Two siblings from a close-knit, boisterous family of six. There is nothing like the camaraderie of family to give you the determination to persevere in spite of any obstacle. We were overwhelmed by the disease of multiple sclerosis as well as other autoimmune diseases. Our outward appearance of healthiness was deceiving. Unbeknownst to us, the disease of multiple sclerosis would eventually consume...

J O Moshopeh Pratt, in his book, From the Valley to the Mountain, encourages and motivates his young friends who might be labeled as drop-outs to prove that they are not drop-outs. Probably, they might be slow or late developers; or most probably, they might not have had people who were capable to discern that they had potentials in them that needs to be developed. Parents who have children who are slow in their development process are also encouraged...

Our Life Our Way, A Memoir of Active Faith, Profound Love, and Courageous Disability Rights explores an extraordinary love story grown out of engagement with both disability rights advocacy and Christian faith communities. This important memoir contains thoughtful, often-entertaining, and sometimes heart-wrenching anecdotes of a couple's journey to create their profoundly intimate relationship and Christian marriage, in a world, not yet ready for...