Friday, May 19, 2017

Review: Out of My Mind By Sharon M. Draper

On a blue background, an orange goldfish jumps from it's bowl of water on the left of the image to the upper right.  On the bottom, there is a darker blue rectangle with the title in small, white words and the name of the author in a lighter blue across the bottom.

Melody, a brilliant eleven-year-old with severe Cerebral Palsy, receives an assisted communication device.  With the ability to voice her thoughts for the first time, she tries out for the school quiz team.  But not everyone is glad Melody can participate.
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I loved Melody!  She’s funny, smart, and complex.  She longs for all the things “normal” kids have without falling into total pity and despair.  She loves her family intensely.

Melody is surrounded by people who want her to succeed.  Her parents are fierce in their love for her, advocating for her.  Her neighbor babysits for her and her baby sister, and is one of her first major allies.  A new aide at school helps open up her world.
But, for everyone who is good for Melody, there are people who dislike her.  There are teachers throughout her life who make things harder on her.  Students in her integrated classes make fun of her. 

The first eleven (or so) chapters of the book are like short stories of Melody’s life.  One is about the goldfish she lost.  Another is about her mom’s pregnancy and the fear her baby sister would be disabled, too.  The chapters follow the order of Melody’s life, so the reader is able to perceive her growing up.

The settings are okay.  They aren’t overly descriptive, they just have enough detail for a reader to visualize them.

Even though this book is for “kids”, I had no trouble relating to it.  The author doesn’t over-explain or gloss over the more difficult aspects of Melody’s life. 
In one scene, Melody’s quiz team goes out to eat at a restaurant.  The handicapped-accessible entrance doesn’t work, so Melody has to be maneuvered up the steps outside by her mother.  Once inside, her teammates make conversation with each other, without involving her.  Melody dreads eating in front of her peers because she needs assistance and doesn’t want them to see.  It is an uncomfortable scene, but an honest one.

 A couple of minor plot points felt like they didn’t really lend much to the story, but that’s all I can really say in regards to negatives.

I got teary-eyed twice reading this book, the first time being when Melody was finally able to tell her parents she loved them using her device.  I also smiled and became angry at different parts. What happens to Melody before the national quiz competition wasn’t shocking, but was infuriating nonetheless. 

This is definitely a worthwhile read.
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Author Biography:  Sharon Draper is a two-time Coretta Scott King Award-winning author, most recently for Copper Sun, and previously for Forged by Fire. She's also the recipient of the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Author Award for New Talent for Tears of a Tiger and the Coretta Scott King Author Honor for The Battle of Jericho and November Blues. 

Her other books include Romiette and Julio, Darkness Before Dawn, and Double Dutch. She lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, where she taught high school English for twenty-five years. She's a popular conference speaker, addressing educational and literary groups both nationally and internationally.
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There are books where (I wish) I could spoil the entire plot because I want to tell you so badly what scenes caused me to love (or hate) a novel. 

I’ve also thought about live-tweeting a book.  Maybe someday.

A quick note:  After today, this blog will be on hiatus until June or July.  I have a lot of things going on in my life right now, and I don’t have anyone I trust to take the reins while I’m gone.  I will still be on Twitter and checking my email.

Friday, May 12, 2017

Diverse Writers/Diverse Worlds Grants, Updated Markets

The Diverse Writers and Diverse Worlds grants are open to speculative fiction writers.  Applications close July 31st.

The $500 Diverse Writers grant is intended to support new and emerging writers from underrepresented and underprivileged groups, such as writers of color, women, queer writers, disabled writers, working-class writers, etc. — those whose marginalized identities may present additional obstacles in the writing / publishing process.

The $500 Diverse Worlds grant is intended for work that best presents a diverse world, regardless of the writer’s background.

Writers can apply for both grants, if they want/fit the criteria.
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The Inclusive Mainstream Publications tab has been updated with every resource we have available.  The literary/periodical section now has thirty-two entries.  The most recent ones are:  Teen Vogue, Magma Poetry Magazine, Crab Fat Magazine, Polychrome Ink,  Cosmonauts Avenue,  The Huffington Post, and BuzzFeed READER.

We'd love to add more places!  Please let us know if you can recommend any others.
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Reminder:  We are open for submissions of guest posts and book reviews.  Pay is $3 via Paypal.

Books reviewed must have a disabled/neurodivergent main character and/or a disabled/neurodivergent author.

Guest posts must be about writing/books and disability/neurodivergence.  A post about writing through brain fog, for instance, counts.  A post about training guide dogs doesn't... unless you can tie it back to writing, somehow.

We are also looking for writers/editors to interview.




Friday, May 5, 2017

Do You Read/View #OwnVoices Books Differently?

Do you purposely search for Own Voices books?  Do you approach books with disabled/neurodivergent protagonists differently if you know they're written by a neurotypical/nondisabled author?

As a reader:  

I used to only care about the story.  Almost every author I was introduced to in school was able-bodied and neurotypical and, if a writer wasn't, it wasn't discussed.  I went through most of my childhood with a scant handful of famous disabled/neurodivergent in my head; I just thought there were too few of us doing great things.  I didn't think that a great person's disability wouldn't be talked about.

Reading books with disabled protagonists was (and often still is) unsatisfactory.  A disabled person is used as the obstacle in a nondisabled person's life.  A neurodivergent person is a villain.  We can't be regular people.  Well, we can, we just have to be miserable.  Or hateful.

A book by an Own Voices author is an invitation to explore a story without trepidation.    And, while a novel by someone who is disabled/neurodivergent writer isn't a guaranteed enjoyable experience, I don't have to worry as much about ableism or botched portrayals.


As a reviewer:

I review books by both disabled and nondisabled writers.  My review process is the same regardless of the writer, though I ponder motive a bit when a nondisabled/neurotypical author writes disabled/neurodivergent narratives:  Did the main characters come to the author on crutches, or is it a gimmick?  

It is important to me to review Own Voices books and I try to give them priority.  Publishing (and related industries) tend to "innocently" neglect books by minorities and I refuse to add to that problem.  But, I can't turn my back on nondisabled authors who write disabled characters; I'd lose out on some great reads if I did.  

As a writer:

Reading Own Voices books and connecting with disabled/neurodivergent writers is nourishing.  One of the best things for anyone's art is being around those who "get it" without a mile of footnotes.  Picking up a novel and knowing there's a landscape inside that doesn't erase you, or twist lives like yours into something lesser, is a thing of beauty and comfort.

I like knowing there are other disabled/neurodivergent writers succeeding.  And holding the proof of it in my hands.