Scan barcode
A review by kelleenmoriarty
Crystal's House of Queers by Brooke Skipstone
1.0
I'm stopping this audiobook at 32%.
I was very excited about this book because of the gorgeous cover and the promise of a complex, joyful story about queer disabled teenagers finding each other in their struggles. However, as a person with a learning disability, I was both disappointed and offended by the way that IEPs and disabled high school students were portrayed in this book, not least because the author continually used the language of "special needs." I don't know anything about the author, so it's possible that they are themself disabled, but I personally had a very hard time swallowing this representation.
I also found the inclusion of COVID in the book to be flip and the experience of reading it during the pandemic was haunting and stressful.
The audio performance by Hayley Peterson is strong, lush, and smooth.
Thanks to NetGalley and SkipStone Publishing for the ARC.
CW: COVID-19, child abuse, sexual violence, intimate partner abuse
I was very excited about this book because of the gorgeous cover and the promise of a complex, joyful story about queer disabled teenagers finding each other in their struggles. However, as a person with a learning disability, I was both disappointed and offended by the way that IEPs and disabled high school students were portrayed in this book, not least because the author continually used the language of "special needs." I don't know anything about the author, so it's possible that they are themself disabled, but I personally had a very hard time swallowing this representation.
I also found the inclusion of COVID in the book to be flip and the experience of reading it during the pandemic was haunting and stressful.
The audio performance by Hayley Peterson is strong, lush, and smooth.
Thanks to NetGalley and SkipStone Publishing for the ARC.
CW: COVID-19, child abuse, sexual violence, intimate partner abuse