No comments about Rex: A Mother, Her Autistic Child, and the Music that Transformed Their Lives.

1 comments about Scattered Shadows: A Memoir of Blindness and Vision.

1. This is a book for that special bookshelf of about a dozen classics that burn with relevance and can be read again and again. John H. Griffin was not only a skilled author, but he lived one of the most amazing lives of the 20th century, aptly described by Robert Bonazzi in the book's introduction. Of course, Griffin is well known for dying his skin, posing as a negro, and reporting on his experiences in the book Black Like Me. Amazingly enough, Black Like Me is only one episode in an improbable life. Scattered Shadows covers Griffin's developing blindness, and eventual recovery. Griffin reflects upon music, literature, and religion as his sight departs as a result of a World War II injury. The author has been underappreciated since his death. Hopefully Scattered Shadows will rekindle interest in Griffin, a person worth knowing

5 comments about God Knows His Name: The True Story of John Doe No. 24.

1. On October 11, 1946, a black boy of indeterminate age was found wandering the streets of Jacksonville, Illinois. When police discovered he was deaf, mute, and suspected to be retarded, he was sent to the Lincoln State School and Colony, a state facility that bore little resemblance to its name. Had he been permitted to stay at the School for the Deaf, his life would have been completely different, but that school was not permitted to take retarded people.
   The Lincoln School was a self-contained city having a farm with price-winning cattle and a dairy processing plant. It generated its own power and returned thousands of dollars to the state treasury, thanks to the free labor provided by the residents (really inmates). These people varied from the very severely retarded to those of borderline intelligence. The place was vastly overcrowded, and the pecking order among residents was often established violently.
   John Doe, as he was called since they were unable to identify him at all, was given an I.Q. test, but much like any test, if you don't understand the value or importance of the test, there will be little incentive to do well, even assuming you can understand what is expected of you. A special test was used that had been designed for the deaf, but the examiner had difficulty conveying the purpose and instructions for the various tests that were disguised as games or puzzles. John's deafness and inexperience were a huge impediment, and, not surprisingly, he scored very low on the test. This result was to haunt him for years to come. After several unsuccessful escape attempts, John gradually adapted to his surroundings. He had no known relatives so there was no one to claim him nor to send him packages or money that might help alleviate his situation.
   By the mid-sixties, thanks in part to JFK's commitment to improving conditions and education for the mentally retarded and an Illinois commission, facilities and conditions were improving at the Lincoln School. John Doe had now been there close to two decades. Unfortunately, it was also the time of Chlorpromazine that the psychiatric profession had discovered could turn unruly or violent patients into virtually catatonic, but untroublesome, individuals. It soon became the drug of choice for nearly everyone in an institution. Despite regular doses, John was becoming one of the best students in the ASL class that had been started for the deaf residents. He became a trustee and was placed in charge of several other patients, helping them to dress and to get ready for the day.
   By 1973 the side effects of the drugs began to manifest themselves and John was inflicted with diabetes and glaucoma. In 1975, the Lincoln School was converted into a state prison, and John was sent to the Jacksonville Developmental Center. He was now totally blind, but thanks to a few dedicated individuals, his talents were recognized and he was sent to the Helen Keller School. This provided him with the skills he needed to subsequently live in a series of group homes.
   He died a few years later, but to this day no one has still been able to track down his identity.



2. that not that long ago in this country someone was found wandering the streets and there were no means to identify him. How sad that someone had raised him for 16 years and then "lost" him. This is a story about one man's dignity. Unlike a lot of stories involving institutions, it seems as though John encountered an awful lot of caring people employed at these places. I find it interesting that although he learned to communicate with others, he never discussed his past or gave any real clues as to his beginnings.

   It's a well written book about a sad subject. I recommend it.




3. Mr. Bakke has written a riveting book about a nearly unbelievable life. The reader is rapt by the circumstances 'Mr. Doe' meets at every turn, and Mr. Bakke has penned his words in a way that allows the reader to feel something of the feelings Mr. Doe must have experienced. The story told by the book is at once heartrending and hopeful; Mr. Doe is 'trapped' in 'the system,' but he is often shown mercy by compassionate people who even now deserve to be honored for their efforts.
   
   One question remained when I had finished the book: Why did no one---the police, a social worker, ANYBODY---allow Mr. Doe to take them back down the trail he had traveled? Let him be a passenger in a car, pointing his way back to his place of origin?
   
   Great book, though. I'd recommend it for almost anyone of any age. THANK YOU, MR. BAKKE, for showing us the twists and turns of this lost human riddle.



4. A very interesting story and topic best summed up by Mary Chapin Carpenter herself when she penned the words in her song that she included on John Doe 24's tombstone, "Well there's no doubt that life's a mystery, but so too is the human heart." I would suggest that many readers are drawn to this book through Mary Chapin Carpenter. For those that are, you are apt to find a 'Lewis' that is different than the one you may have envisioned since you first heard Ms. Carpenter's haunting melody. In many ways it is hard to distinguish the human being that lives inside this deaf and mute body. It is difficult to read because it tears us from the comfort of our own 'perfect' lives.
   
   The song apart, I learned a great deal about the history of institutional care through the journey that Lewis stumbles into in 1945. The picture is not pretty. Still, it is important to understand that institutional culture does exist in America. Having read this book, I am now compelled to learn where it is today with the hope that it has improved dramatically since the events I read in Mr. Bakke's book.
   
   Not a particularly 'fun' book to read, but one that should be on your list.



5. This is an incredible story of a deaf man who was found wandering the streets of Jacksonville, IL and subsequently institutionalized at Lincoln State School and Colony. It is an easy-to-read account that tells about all of the horrors and abuses that John Doe No. 24 endured and the way he survived it all. When he also went blind, he was almost totally disconnected from he world. Yet, somehow, he maintained a sense of humor and enjoyed the simple things of life.
   
   Anyone interested in the beginning of what is now called "Special Education" should read this book. Highly recommended.

5 comments about Marshall's Journey: The Power of Understanding Alzheimer's.

1. Never have I been so touched by a book about the decline of a loved one. Coming from a family riddled with Alzheimer's, I found love, hope, dedication and understanding within this easy-to-read book. I am convinced that Vailia Dennis has discovered a new path for dealing with those in our lives who have been afflicted with this devastating disease.



2. This is a must read for anyone who has a loved one with any stage of Alzheimers. The author's understanding of the disease and how to cope, as a caregiver, is wonderfully portrayed in this touching story of love and caring.



3. May we all be as blessed as Marshall to have someone as compassionate as Vailia Dennis to care for us if the need ever arises. Her amazingly creative methods of caring for her brother throughout his final years are both helpful and inspiring. I have given this book multiple times to friends in her situation, caring for an Alzheimers victim. Through this book, I am convinced, she is helping many, many people.



4. The author of this book has given a blessing to the world in the form of a journal of creative, compassionate and eminently practical ideas for dealing with a loved one with Alzheimer's. She shows exactly how to do it. How to lessen the fear that every Alzheimer's victim has as a natural course of this condition. How to enter the world of the person who has Alzheimer's and make that world safe for the person. What we don't realize, says the author, is that the Alzheimer's
   victim is no longer in the real world and although it is too difficult and frightening for them to join us in the real world, it is not difficult for us to join them in the fragmented world that they inhabit. Although we don't have a cure for Alzheimer's, at long last, with this book, we now have a care for it.



5. Vailia Dennis brings back tender memories of what life is truly about. Having worked in facilities where I was the one caring for Alzheimer's victims and trying to help their families understand the changes happening to their loved one, Marshall's Journey came as a special reminder of loving someone afflicted with Alzheimer's disease.
   
   Marshall spent his life living and loving those around him... mother, sister, nieces and nephews. When he could no longer live the life he loved, his sister made the heart wrenching decision to return that love the only way she knew - by entering his world to care for him. To suffer the tragic loss of her brother to an overwhelming disease that robs you of the life you love brought her to research all there was to know about Alzheimer's. Through learned knowledge and a love so deep for Marshall, Vailia was able to help Marshall maintain his dignity while struggling with the loss of everything and everyone he knew.
   
   Vailia chose not only to love but also to respect who her brother was. Choosing to walk with him along this, his final journey, is a choice few can make. So many are unaware of the extent of damage this disease does to the brain, we only see what someone appears like on the outside. Alzheimer's is destructive enough without our feeble attempts to bring someone back to the here and now. BRAVO Vailia for choosing to honor Marshall.
   
   I recommend this easy to read book to anyone who has to walk this same journey. Honor that individual with the depth of love shown only through understanding the effects of Alzheimer's. Marshall's Journey should be given to patients and family members at the same point in time they are diagnosed. Don't wait `til the fear overrides our love.

2 comments about Reading Lips and Other Ways to Overcome a Disability.

1. Tucked away on page 171 is an excellent inspirational story by Barbara Neal Varma titled Claire's First Song. This heartwarming story is worth the price of the book.



2. There is a very nice review of Reading Lips from the popular 'disability community' website, Disaboom.
   
   [...]
   
   The review, written by Debbie Marsh, says: Editors Diane Scharper and Dr. Philip Scharper, Jr. have selected works from gifted storytellers across the country who are united by their experience with disability - either in themselves or someone close to them. What is remarkable about this award-winning collection is the unadorned, poignant style that grabs the reader from the first sentence and shakes up their previous perceptions
   
   From poems to short stories, the collection encompasses a world of viciousness and love, calculated hurt and thoughtless caring that exposes the depth of ordinary lives in extraordinary circumstances. The stories get maximum impact by plunking the reader down in the moment, whether it be immediately before a three-year-old is shot in the face by his older brother, or when a woman of nearly 70 awakes from back surgery completely dependent on those around her.
   
   You can read more about disabilities and assistive technology from one of the contributors of the book, Suzanne Robitaille, whose blog is Profoundly Yours.

1 comments about My Punished Mind: A memoir of psychosis.

1. This book at first is quite confusing and alittle religious (Christianity area) but it is understable that the voices and maybe visions by the mental disorder called "shizophrenia" can be rather scattering. Maybe the author can write down the list of visions and voices in the TABLE with how he and other non-psychotic people reacted to them so that the readers can understand what he has been through. Some credits for the author: he states the medicine names and those amounts. He might think there were not many story books/documentary books on psychosis when in fact there is a guide showing a long list of books on psychosis at the bottom of the page showing each book after some reviews.

4 comments about Am I Alive? A Surviving Flight Attendant's Struggle and Inspiring Triumph Over Tragedy.

1. She is an outstanding writer and this is a wonderful story. She's really a hero and I don't think she even realizes it. She talks of pulling passengers from a burning plane like it's no greater feat than going to the grocery store to buy a box of Cheerios -- all in a day's work type of thing. Wonderful book, wonderful woman. I'm an EMT and am trained to save lives. She wasn't, but made it seem so routine. As a life-long flight-attendant wanna-be, my hat's off to Sandy. I also recommend reading "Hail Fire" by John Tielking, one of the surviving passengers of this crash. It is his account of the events and is an excellent book. He also mentions Sandy's amazing actions on that fateful day.



2. This was an excellent book in it's own right but it helped me more than I can ever express. As an emergency worker suffering from depression and post-trauma stress for over a year, reading this book and finding so many similarities with what she went through after her ordeal, released something in me that I'd been resisting and helped me to decide to finally get the help that I need and deserve.



3. As one of Sandy's passengers aboard Southern 242, I want to thank her for having the courage to write a book about her deeply personal experinces in dealing with the accident. She and her fellow stewardess, Cathy, did a great job under the most difficult circumstances. Without their initiative in preparing the passengers for an emergency landing at short notice and with no guidance from the cockpit, fewer of us would have survived. The pilots did their best to find a good place to land and the stewardesses did their best to protect us from injury. Sandy's story shows the price that can come with assuming the responsibility for so many people in a desperate situation. But she did it willingly and has forever earned high praise for that.



4. One of my great aunts died as a result from flying debris in the Southern Airways Crash in New Hope, Georgia that Sandy Purl describes in great detail in this book. Several of my family members are mentioned and her book, as far as what happened on the ground when the crash occurred, is perfect to every last detail. The plane landed in my grandparent's front yard, basically, and I can remember what the crash site looked like the day after. Reading this book was very difficult for my grandparents, but that is to be understood. When I read this book, I gained a better undertanding of why things happen and I have such a tremendous amount of respect for Ms. Purl. I hope one day I can meet her and give her a hug.

4 comments about I Think I Scared Her.

1. When I told my mom I was having horrible nightmares and hearing and seeing things a little over 3 years ago, she was horrified, but moreso, she wanted to help me. Countless pill bottles and 4 diagnosises later, I stumbled across this book. The tall-lettered title caught my eye, but when I read the subtitle, it made me grin. My problems were no longer taboo. It's ok to write and publish a book about psychosis and have it out in plain sight in Borders.
   
   I bought it immediately and my mother and I read it together. It helped us both understand a little better on a more human level what it is I'm dealing with and the struggles that go with that.



2. Though reading about Brooke's psychosis was interesting, the chapters towards the end of the book seemed to be lacking something. This may be from her being on antipsychotics or it may have been something else, but towards the end of the book, the book got less interesting than it had been at the beginning. If you have psychosis, you might want to check this out, though it might be a bit triggering for self-injurers as there are some descriptions of how she cut herself.



3. I have a friend whose daughter has psychosis and I've never really understood what that meant. Reading Brooke's candid and intelligent account opened my eyes to the effect this has had on both my friend's daughter and on her family. I wish everyone would read this book and appreciate the courageousness of this young author and how she has made a life for herself despite living with psychosis. It's very impressive.



4. This book is amazing and actually destigmatizes a lot of other human experiences in addition to "mental illness". The author's honesty and intelligence are empowering and truly inspirational. There is a long history of mental illness in my family and it has brought joy, pain and loss to my own life. This book removed the layer of icky fear that coated me every time I thought or talked about "mental illness". It helped me better undertand that a lot of the human experience of growing up and entering adulthood is shrouded in myth and fear. If we were all as brave and clear-headed as Brooke, the world would be a far, far, far better place.

5 comments about Nothing is Impossible: Reflections on a New Life.

1. Christopher Reeve died almost 3 months ago i am researching him and he fell off the horse and still survived and even though he was real hurt alot he cared of other people he was a good athlete and especially actor.He was a huge survivor.
   In Memoriam,
   Christopher Reeve



2. I picked up this book at my school's library and started glancing through it. It's possibly one of the most motivational and inspirational books I've seen! Reeve recounts all of his trials and how he learned to function again. Throughout it all, he stayed strong with his wife Dana, who supported him through everything. A must read!



3. In this little book, Christopher Reeve principally seeks to show the value of hope. He talks about the surprising progress he made in recovering as a quadriplegic after a terrible accident. (Long after doctors believed recovery was possible, Reeve began to show improved movement.) He also talks at length about the politicization of stem cell research and how that has likely stymied further progress on relieving many human disabilities. Despite his clear feelings on the issue, Reeve is sympathetic to people with deep religious reasons for opposing stem cell research, just not those who do so as political posturing.
   
   Along the way, Reeve talks about his brush with Scientology (a fascinating glimpse of a religion that's been so much in the news), his other religious searchings, his initial thoughts of ending his life after his accident, how he and his family have dealt with his quadriplegia, and his work as an advocate for health research.
   
   This is a quick and enjoyable read. Reeve's insights on the nature and role of hope will be strengthening to people who struggle with any of a range of issues from physical to emotional to spiritual. Reeve himself reads the unabridged audio CD version; I recommend it.



4. I just reread this book, and it brought back how much I admired Mr. Reeve and his bride. I really think this should be required reading to anyone that has had a spinal injury, or an amputation, just to show them that they are NOT the first to feel all these negitive feelings.
   
   A wonderful tribute to the Reeves in general.



5. Christopher Reeves will continue to be an inspirtion to all of us, and will influence other genertions with his insight, and courge, of trying to make the public more aware of Spinal Cord Injuries.
   He was indeed, a 'real Superman!'
   God Bless his family for allowing us all to know him better.
   Fran & Dean Johnson

3 comments about Reading Between the Lips: A Totally Deaf Man Makes It in the Mainstream.

1. This book fails to present any interesting story or perspective on the topic within. Lew expresses a distrust and dislike for ASL and Deaf Culture that permeates his work and it's simply unacceptable.



2. I just finished this book and I loved it. It was well-written and extremely interesting. Yes, it's a fact that the author supports oral communication. However, his thoughts on ASL and Deaf culture are supported with fact. His position is that of "whatever works for you" and he never says ASL shouldn't be used. He simply states the benefits of also being able to communicate orally and have a good command of the English language.
   
   As a late-deafened adult, I could really relate to many of the experiences and stories that he tells in his book. I highly recommend it.



3. This is a fascinating book. I find the writing style a little strange (every sentence is its own paragraph), but very readable -- and Mr. Golan has a lot to say that's worth reading! Mr. Golan tells the story of his own life, the challenges he faced and overcame in carving out a successful life in a hearing world that, while not unsympathetic to him, ultimately judged him by his ability to function in it on its own terms.
   
   Along the way, he gives his strong opinions on education for the deaf, ASL, etc. There are other sides to all of these issues -- and he acknowledges as much -- but he has a valid perspective of his own and makes his case assertively.