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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
challenging
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is a great young adult read for hearing and deaf people alike. I will say the writing tends to focus on educating the reader by placing the protagonist, Lillah, in situations where she is either being educated or is doing the educating when it comes to deaf culture. There are also some blind characters as well, but they are not the main focus of the story and exist more as background characters. Overall, it’s a great introduction to deaf culture for the uninitiated and there’s some cute romance as well - I would argue the romance is meant to be the main focus.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Violence, Police brutality
Very educational, great insight into deaf culture and the complexities of it.
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
i love this book. i understand it with me being deaf/hard of hearing. even if i have ci, & i mostly use speech. so as the book say, it’s not too late to learn my own language that was meant for deaf/hard of hearing members.
This was great! I do tend to shy away from YA contemporaries since I don't care for all the relationship drama they tend to center on, but while there was some of that in this book, the focus was definitely on Lilah in relation to her community and her struggle to find a balance between Deaf pride and how she should be able to use ASL and live without her hearing aids if she wants to and the practicalities that in an ableist world, doing that would make her life exponentially harder. Which is a much more interesting thing to center a book on in my opinion.
I will say that the book is definitely written with little d deaf and/or hearing readers in mind; it spends a lot of time explaining aspects of the Deaf community and sign languages that I imagine would be a bit tedious if you're already plugged in to the community. Also, for a book set at a camp for the Deaf and blind, I do wish there were more blind characters. I know the author is Deaf, so I assume she was trying to primarily write about her own experiences, but on a watsonian level, it feels odd that Lilah only really spends time with one blind camper, and I don't recall mention of any of the counselors being blind.
I really enjoyed this book; it provided an interesting and nuanced look at Deaf and disabled community, the balance between pride and being yourself as you are vs dealing with ableist people who refuse to learn or provide accommodations, the struggle of access barriers to necessary tools such as ASL, and the process of dealing with a wide variety of well meaning but still ableist able bodied hearing people. The relationship drama that is present is a bit tedious, but I can't in good faith complain about the teenage characters in a book for teenagers acting like teenagers. 4⭐️
I will say that the book is definitely written with little d deaf and/or hearing readers in mind; it spends a lot of time explaining aspects of the Deaf community and sign languages that I imagine would be a bit tedious if you're already plugged in to the community. Also, for a book set at a camp for the Deaf and blind, I do wish there were more blind characters. I know the author is Deaf, so I assume she was trying to primarily write about her own experiences, but on a watsonian level, it feels odd that Lilah only really spends time with one blind camper, and I don't recall mention of any of the counselors being blind.
I really enjoyed this book; it provided an interesting and nuanced look at Deaf and disabled community, the balance between pride and being yourself as you are vs dealing with ableist people who refuse to learn or provide accommodations, the struggle of access barriers to necessary tools such as ASL, and the process of dealing with a wide variety of well meaning but still ableist able bodied hearing people. The relationship drama that is present is a bit tedious, but I can't in good faith complain about the teenage characters in a book for teenagers acting like teenagers. 4⭐️
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It's been a long time since a book made me cry. An even longer time since a book made me cry with joy.
This was a beautiful book about the joys and frustrations of growing up d/Deaf. Sortino pulls no punches in showing the difficulties all sorts of d/Deaf people experience as they try to move through a hearing world. But she also does an incredible job showcasing d/Deaf joy!
The antics among the camp counsellors, the mentorships between the counsellors and the campers, the joy of making friends and learning sign language and embracing deafness not just as a disability but as an identity. It was all so wonderful!
If you need a heartwarming but honest book to read for Disability Pride Month, please try Give Me A Sign.
This was a beautiful book about the joys and frustrations of growing up d/Deaf. Sortino pulls no punches in showing the difficulties all sorts of d/Deaf people experience as they try to move through a hearing world. But she also does an incredible job showcasing d/Deaf joy!
The antics among the camp counsellors, the mentorships between the counsellors and the campers, the joy of making friends and learning sign language and embracing deafness not just as a disability but as an identity. It was all so wonderful!
If you need a heartwarming but honest book to read for Disability Pride Month, please try Give Me A Sign.
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism
funny
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book represented my experience being hard of hearing like no book has before. It was so refreshing to have a character I could deeply relate too.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Police brutality
Moderate: Bullying
Such a cute summery read! I loved learning more about Deaf culture through this