Reviews tagging 'Fatphobia'

Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century by Alice Wong

25 reviews

anniefwrites's review

emotional informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

This plethora of stories and voices shows that disability is not a monolith. As a non-disabled person, I really value the breadth of experience that Wong included, and I think it’ll be a great foray for me to become more involved with disability justice. Wong also has an ongoing GoFundMe for medical expenses if you read and got something out of this book and want to contribute: https://www.gofundme.com/f/alice-wong-stay-in-community

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Rape, and Chronic illness

Moderate: Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Grief, and Medical trauma

Minor: Death, Domestic abuse, Excrement, and Fatphobia

softgalaxy's review

hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

One of the best books I’ve ever read. Everyone should read this. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Medical content, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Xenophobia, Colonisation, Physical abuse, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Sexism, Cancer, Chronic illness, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Classism, Confinement, Death, Fatphobia, Hate crime, and Sexual assault

Minor: Blood and Acephobia/Arophobia

atomicbritt's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Medical content, Medical trauma, Body shaming, Racism, Abandonment, Classism, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Ableism, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Mental illness, Chronic illness, Physical abuse, Sexism, and Sexual assault

thedisabledreader's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective slow-paced

4.0

Although it may not be *the* disabled book, it is certainly a place to start for listening to diverse and individual perspectives within or out of your own communities. These creators, Alice Wong included, are witty and funny yet still maintain the vulnerability and strength necessary to share their experiences in such a public light. They are captivating and open to being wrong, willing to learn and letting the reader do so as well. 

The authors and speakers are all disabled, but there is very little overlap within disabilities. Diversity is not just a theme in this, it is a celebrated requirement. Thoughts are shared on different issues, different identities, different marginalizations and intersections, walks of life, and opinions. Despite the individuality of each story, the stories are well structured and engaging, especially when stories relate or build off similar foundations.

This is the first time I have ever seen one of my chronic illnesses, Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, even briefly mentioned in any mainstream media - or anywhere outside of the disabled community on social media. 

The author with EDS wrote an entire story for this. Although it wasn’t necessarily groundbreaking to me in its subject, disabled motherhood, it will remain a part of my life that I can attribute an important ‘first’ to. That’s a feeling I want everyone to feel - and then a million times afterward - and that is a feeling that this book can bring.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Ableism, Sexual harassment, Sexism, Medical content, Chronic illness, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Forced institutionalization, Fatphobia, and Classism

Minor: Acephobia/Arophobia and Transphobia

youcancallmefi's review

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Abortion, Addiction, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Child death, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Deadnaming, Cultural appropriation, Domestic abuse, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, and Forced institutionalization

abookandaspotoftea's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, and Fatphobia

spiritedfaraway's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative medium-paced

5.0

Stories are the closest we can come to shared experience… Like all stories, they are most fundamentally a chance to ride around inside another head and be reminded that being who we are and where we are, and doing what we’re doing, is not the only possibility.

       – Harriet McBryde Johnson 

Everyone should read this.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Racism, Chronic illness, Medical trauma, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Body shaming, Forced institutionalization, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Sexual assault, and Violence

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Racial slurs, Panic attacks/disorders, Colonisation, Abandonment, Grief, Police brutality, Transphobia, Terminal illness, Sexism, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Abortion, Domestic abuse, and Fatphobia

Minor: Slavery

pollyhall's review

challenging informative sad tense slow-paced

2.0

 
This was a very slow read, I had to look up a lot of words. I would have liked to see fewer essays but with more depth. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment, Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Car accident, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Fatphobia, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Lesbophobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Racism, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Terminal illness, Transphobia, and Violence

deveyway's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Abandonment, Addiction, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and Suicide attempt

annemaries_shelves's review

challenging emotional informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

A stunning essay anthology centering disabled voices from a diverse range of authors and experiences. The collection is organized in four sections: Being, Becoming, Doing, and Connecting and each provides unique, and intersectional perspectives around this broader element of the disabled experience.

Most of the essays were under 10 pages, which made for a great sampler of each writer’s work and stories without becoming overwhelming. While there were essays I loved more than others, each one gave me something to think about and each essay made sense as part of a greater anthology whole. The trigger content warnings at the top of each relevant essay was also appreciated. And I spent the whole time reading with a pencil in hand, underlining and starring and commenting - just annotating the whole book really.

A few above and beyond elements: You can also access a plain language version of the book on the disability visibility project website, which I think is amazing. The back of the book contains bios of each contributing author as well as recommended additional reading, which I will be taking advantage of. Since Disability Visibility was primarily focused on disabled authors in the USA (with a few exceptions) the book also reinforced my desire to read from Canadian, and other non-American disability perspectives.

I recommend this as introductory/extremely important reading for everyone. For me, Disability Visibility is just the first step in reading and learning more about disability justice and exploring disabled authors’ fiction, non-fiction, and other creative works. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, and Chronic illness

Moderate: Abortion, Cancer, Death, Fatphobia, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts