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A review by andreatypesbraille
Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law by Haben Girma
I'm not rating this book, however I do believe everyone should read this book.
Haben was born deafblind to parents who are Eritrean refugee immigrants. She has some vision and some hearing still left, but she had to learn from a young age how to advocate for herself, and also how to live independently. Haben has travelled numerous times to Africa, both with family as well as with a school club, with whom she built a school in Mali. Haben went on to college at Lewis and Clark College, living without her family support, and excelled. Haben then went on to Harvard Law School, where she passed the bar and became a lawyer, fighting for accessibility rights.
Perhaps I'm a bit biased, as I do work with the blind, but I think this so wonderfully showed how important it is for those with vision impairments to develop independent living skills, as well as learning how to advocate for oneself. Haben is a prime example of how a disability or impairment is not a roadblock to living life to the fullest.
My one issue with the book was the tone. Although I haven't seen a recommendation for middle grade, this often felt like it was intended for middle grade readers. The writing is very simple, and the humor is very ... gentle? I was hoping as the book progressed for the tone to change a bit into an adult voice. However, this book will be great for a middle grade reader up through adults.
Haben was born deafblind to parents who are Eritrean refugee immigrants. She has some vision and some hearing still left, but she had to learn from a young age how to advocate for herself, and also how to live independently. Haben has travelled numerous times to Africa, both with family as well as with a school club, with whom she built a school in Mali. Haben went on to college at Lewis and Clark College, living without her family support, and excelled. Haben then went on to Harvard Law School, where she passed the bar and became a lawyer, fighting for accessibility rights.
Perhaps I'm a bit biased, as I do work with the blind, but I think this so wonderfully showed how important it is for those with vision impairments to develop independent living skills, as well as learning how to advocate for oneself. Haben is a prime example of how a disability or impairment is not a roadblock to living life to the fullest.
My one issue with the book was the tone. Although I haven't seen a recommendation for middle grade, this often felt like it was intended for middle grade readers. The writing is very simple, and the humor is very ... gentle? I was hoping as the book progressed for the tone to change a bit into an adult voice. However, this book will be great for a middle grade reader up through adults.