Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

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

53 reviews

booksjessreads's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

This is such an eye-opening anthology of essays from disabled people to speak their realities of being disabled in such an ablest world. The stories were so deeply personal and evoked so much emotion. I liked how through the audio, the essays felt more like dialogue with the reader, or like an official talk. Alice Wong and Alejandra Ospina read this with the right tone and made it so digestible despite the heavier content. 

This book does not solely focus on disability, but contributors also discuss further intersections of identity, such as gender, sexuality, age, race and religion. This allows the reader to understand how society further disadvantages those with these intersections and offers a deeply moving and rage-inducing account of US society. 

I enjoyed the audio so much I am getting my own print version to get more familiar with the text. This is essential reading and is one of the most informative reads I have read this year. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Racism, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Ableism, Transphobia, and Chronic illness

Moderate: Fatphobia, Rape, and Sexual assault

Minor: Death and Pregnancy

amberinbookland's review

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Sexual assault, Excrement, Ableism, Terminal illness, Mental illness, Blood, Racial slurs, Medical trauma, Rape, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Medical content, and Death

changelingreader_adrian's review

challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Racism, Sexual harassment, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Abortion, Bullying, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Cancer, Chronic illness, Forced institutionalization, Body shaming, Grief, Confinement, Death of parent, Fatphobia, and Eating disorder

laupm's review

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Ableism, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, Abandonment, Genocide, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, and Classism

lilacs_book_bower's review

challenging hopeful informative lighthearted sad fast-paced

4.75

I really enjoyed this book. Alice Wong as the editor has gathered a wide range of essays and interviews from people with disabilities, and the collection covers a huge range of topics. I liked the approach of reading about the different aspects of disabilities that people wanted to discuss; topics range from medical care, discrimination, wheelchairs and artificial limbs, transportation, and accessible clothing. I appreciated the wide selection of topics. The only flaw I would say with this book is that some of the essays are so short (three pages), that the reader is left wanting more. A few felt like they introduced a topic and then abruptly ended. Overall, a very strong collection of narratives and a fast read!

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Pregnancy, Racism, Fatphobia, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Abandonment, Chronic illness, Classism, Death, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Ableism, Abortion, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Terminal illness, Body shaming, Dysphoria, Self harm, and Sexual harassment

atuin's review

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective

5.0

Truly an amazing collection detailing stories from people with different backgrounds all living in a world with disabilities. This book helps communicate how disabled people are not lesser in any way, and are perfectly able and willing to lead happy lives if given the proper chance. A must read. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Ableism, Rape, Sexual assault, Excrement, Sexism, Abortion, Suicidal thoughts, Medical trauma, Medical content, Genocide, Death, Sexual harassment, Mental illness, Police brutality, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, and Fatphobia

arlingtonchamberofgay's review

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Chronic illness, Police brutality, Sexual assault, Death, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Mental illness

booksandboba's review

informative medium-paced

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Abandonment, Mental illness, and Chronic illness

Minor: Sexual assault, Excrement, and Medical content

kerrygetsliterary's review

challenging emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Racism, Rape, Acephobia/Arophobia, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Police brutality, Sexism, Confinement, Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Chronic illness, Medical content, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence

Moderate: Abortion

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

---

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