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A review by hkat
Train Go Sorry: Inside a Deaf World by Leah Hager Cohen
3.0
Interesting book to think about in the context of who gets to tell the stories of a specific community, and especially resonates with the part of the book where the author talks about how sign language is the only language where interpreters are not (or very rarely) native speakers of one of the languages. Hager Cohen clearly has a deep connection to the community, and recognizes the
I appreciated the insight into a variety of aspects of the Deaf community, and the look at the intersectionality between deafness, race, country of origin, class, etc.
My biggest issue with the book is the (beautifully) descriptive language throughout. It's not clear that the author was present, and to describe the sights, sounds, smells of many moments often caused me to stop and wonder about how the book was written. Even interviewing some of the subjects would not have resulted in details like crescents of sweat around a parent's eyes. I think these details really add to the atmosphere of the book, but seem out of place.
I appreciated the insight into a variety of aspects of the Deaf community, and the look at the intersectionality between deafness, race, country of origin, class, etc.
My biggest issue with the book is the (beautifully) descriptive language throughout. It's not clear that the author was present, and to describe the sights, sounds, smells of many moments often caused me to stop and wonder about how the book was written. Even interviewing some of the subjects would not have resulted in details like crescents of sweat around a parent's eyes. I think these details really add to the atmosphere of the book, but seem out of place.