maeverose's review

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Dnfed @ 48%

This is the second time I’ve attempted to read this - the first time was via audio and I retained very little of it - this time my ebook copy was due back to the library.

I’m not sure if I’ll attempt to read it again, hence why I’m marking it as a dnf instead of putting it back on my tbr as I normally would. I think this book is important and has a lot to offer, especially if you  want an insight into the lives of actual disabled people telling their own story, as opposed to inspo porn books/movies made by non-disabled people — It just put me in a bad mood every time I picked it up. I’m currently going through a lot regarding my own disabilities, so it made me feel a bit hopeless.

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wandering_canuck's review

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challenging dark emotional hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

Beautiful and raw, this collection of essays is mind-blowingly honest and unapologetic. Told from the first person, these stories are wonderful complex and offer a glimpse into the just as complex and varied experiences of disabled people. 

This is exactly what you don't expect to read: unapologetic, candid, genuine tales of the lived disabled experience. Do not expect inspiration porn or movie of the week stories of overcoming. This book gives space and voice to the realities of the day to day lived experiences of disabled people.

This book served to highlight my shameful ignorance and forced me to confront some of my own biases. This isn't a one-and-done type of book. I challenge you to read this book and not have your world shook. 

Wong does a fantastic job of bringing together many types of voices. A common theme throughout is the unjust marginalization of disabled people and it's intersectionality with other invisibilized qualities, such as poverty, queerness, size, and race. 

This is an absolute must-read and is deserving of a permanent spot on your bookshelf. 

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lipstickitotheman's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny

4.5

Really stunning collection of pieces. Only thing taking it down in stars is how some felt a little shorter/less fleshed out than I'd expected. Overall a really well-curated selection with great narrative voices. 

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zombiezami's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

I consider myself familiar with disability justice principles and discussions, and I still learned a lot from this.

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kateyhb's review

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challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective fast-paced

4.5

I appreciate that this book is an accumulation of first hand accounts. It is full of both everyday and extraordinary wins and losses told directly from the ones experiencing them. Not every chapter had to contain some “call to action” for able-bodied readers-- stories from disabled folks deserve to be heard simply because we value them and their experiences as human beings. It is so important to acknowledge and appreciate the multitude of  wisdom and value disabled folks bring to the table, while also rejecting the capitalist idea that we are only as valuable as the goods we can provide.

This book helped me consider multiple new struggles faced by disabled folks, and helped me to examine what my role should look like as a co-conspirator fighting against our systemically ableist society. There is so much diversity in the disabled community, and they really don’t need more one-size-fits-all solutions created by well-intentioned able bodied folks. We need to stop and listen. 

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kelleykamanda's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

Damn. Read this book!

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leelaamanda's review

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challenging emotional informative reflective fast-paced

5.0


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lizziaha's review against another edition

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4.0

important work being done here to build a disability archive

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changelingreader_adrian's review

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challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.75


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laupm's review

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challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0


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