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A review by heydebigale
Being Seen: One Deafblind Woman's Fight to End Ableism by Elsa Sjunneson
challenging
funny
informative
medium-paced
5.0
I adored this memoir. It’s so funny & snarky & informative & difficult. Highly recommend this book.
I learned so many things from this book. Even being aware of ableist language that is so pervasive, I learned and was reminded of words and phrases we do casually use that perpetuates incredible harm.
While my disability is completely different from Elsa’s I found certain aspects of this book incredibly relatable. Particularly the chapter on motherhood and disability. I was also discouraged from having children because of my disability. I hadn’t thought to label that eugenics, but it is.
My only teeny-tiny complaint is that I was super excited to read Elsa’s critique of ableism in the romance genre (because it’s a problem!), but all of the romantic books that Elsa referred to are not genre romance. So that was a bummer because I’d love to hear Elsa’s thoughts on Phoebe and Trevillion (for example).
I did a mix of audio and print and the Audio is narrated by Elsa and it’s very funny! Highly recommend both versions of the book.
I learned so many things from this book. Even being aware of ableist language that is so pervasive, I learned and was reminded of words and phrases we do casually use that perpetuates incredible harm.
While my disability is completely different from Elsa’s I found certain aspects of this book incredibly relatable. Particularly the chapter on motherhood and disability. I was also discouraged from having children because of my disability. I hadn’t thought to label that eugenics, but it is.
My only teeny-tiny complaint is that I was super excited to read Elsa’s critique of ableism in the romance genre (because it’s a problem!), but all of the romantic books that Elsa referred to are not genre romance. So that was a bummer because I’d love to hear Elsa’s thoughts on Phoebe and Trevillion (for example).
I did a mix of audio and print and the Audio is narrated by Elsa and it’s very funny! Highly recommend both versions of the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism and Suicidal thoughts