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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
You've probably seen one of the film versions of "The Miracle Worker," but have you read Helen Keller's memoir? Notice that the focus and agency is different in the titles: "The Miracle Worker" refers to Keller's teacher Annie Sullivan, while "The Story of My Life" is firmly centered on Keller herself, and I felt that keenly while reading this autobiography.
The story recounts much of the same material that is in the movies (and stage play) but contains lots of other material, including the beginning of Keller's college career. One of the things I loved best about this book was all the sensory detail you get about her favorite things, especially from the senses of touch and smell. She talks about some of the favorite pets growing up and trees in her family yard, as well as how joyful it is to ride a tandem bike, or how she can feel a qualitative difference between taking a walk in the country vs. in a bustling city.
Don't feel sorry for Keller. She is a m--f--ing badass who learned German and Latin and French, graduated from college with honors, was friends with Mark Twain and helped establish the American Civil Liberties Union.
Loved it, recommend it highly.
The story recounts much of the same material that is in the movies (and stage play) but contains lots of other material, including the beginning of Keller's college career. One of the things I loved best about this book was all the sensory detail you get about her favorite things, especially from the senses of touch and smell. She talks about some of the favorite pets growing up and trees in her family yard, as well as how joyful it is to ride a tandem bike, or how she can feel a qualitative difference between taking a walk in the country vs. in a bustling city.
Don't feel sorry for Keller. She is a m--f--ing badass who learned German and Latin and French, graduated from college with honors, was friends with Mark Twain and helped establish the American Civil Liberties Union.
Loved it, recommend it highly.
The inspiring early life and education of Helen Keller.
"Self-love is the root of all evil." -Helen Keller. Now that's a hot take if I ever heard one.
slow-paced
challenging
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
Despite her fame and extraordinary life, this writing did little to help me feel like I understand what she went through. I still appreciated that her life to her seemed normal. This book came out when she was only 23, so I think a part of it could be that, simply, she hadn’t lived enough life to write the “story of her life.” I imagine biography might be a better choice to learn about the remarkable life of Helen Keller. The book Haben is a modern memoir of a Deafblind woman that I thoroughly enjoyed.
This book written by Helen Keller when she was just 22 was the inspiration behind "The Miracle Worker" play and movie. At first I couldn't figure out why I wasn't enjoying the book. It finally hit me that the book lacks vulnerability and therefore honesty. Don't get me wrong. I am enormously impressed with Helen's accomplishments. She was intelligent, funny, charitable and a ridiculously hard worker. I think I would have sincerely liked her as a person, but her perfectionism prevented her from opening up in this book to allow readers to genuinely relate to her. It's like she's is trying to prove herself.
It is interesting how Helen often uses variations of the word "see" and also visual descriptions such as color in both the book and in the many letters that are included as a supplement. For example, she describes the sky in detail as if she can see it. I did love the cute way Helen described her dolls, especially her favorite named Nancy, as if they were people. I also liked the way she described interacting with animals.
I saw "The Miracle Worker" several years ago performed by a very good community theater group. The scene by the water pump is unforgettable in that format. The play refocuses the title from Helen to Anne Sullivan, Helen's teacher. In my opinion, the play is more dramatic than the book, but I am glad I took the time to read the book and learned more about Helen's personality.
It is interesting how Helen often uses variations of the word "see" and also visual descriptions such as color in both the book and in the many letters that are included as a supplement. For example, she describes the sky in detail as if she can see it. I did love the cute way Helen described her dolls, especially her favorite named Nancy, as if they were people. I also liked the way she described interacting with animals.
I saw "The Miracle Worker" several years ago performed by a very good community theater group. The scene by the water pump is unforgettable in that format. The play refocuses the title from Helen to Anne Sullivan, Helen's teacher. In my opinion, the play is more dramatic than the book, but I am glad I took the time to read the book and learned more about Helen's personality.
I listened to this using the Library's One Click AP. What I enjoyed was the time frame of recollections. The chapter in which she discusses an inadvertent case of plagiarism was excellent. If I were currently teaching I would use the chapter as a jumping off point for discussing plagiarism. The chapter also speaks to the power of having a book "read" to you, the physical act of signing the story into her hand indelibly printed the story on her memory, even though she didn't remember the book. It suggests the importance of note-taking or typing for learning, taking what is happening in one's head and turning it into a physical action of typing or note-taking creates more pathways than just reading a book.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
informative
reflective
fast-paced
I found it really interesting. I just felt like it was very choppy and all over the place the flow wasn’t great