frogggirl2's review against another edition
challenging
informative
fast-paced
5.0
"Disability and able-bodiedness are both merely points on an enormous spectrum of human variation, and the work of being in the world at all entails being on this spectrum in some way, shape, or form" (p. 50).
This is both a very personal story and a perceptive examination of fairy tales and their societal effects. This is something everyone would benefit from reading. If we took Amanda Leduc's suggestion and employed a little more care and inclusiveness in the stories we tell ourselves and our children, we would all be better off.
This is both a very personal story and a perceptive examination of fairy tales and their societal effects. This is something everyone would benefit from reading. If we took Amanda Leduc's suggestion and employed a little more care and inclusiveness in the stories we tell ourselves and our children, we would all be better off.
znnys's review against another edition
5.0
I might be biased because the intersection between disability representation and folklore is the exact kind of niche that interests me, but I really enjoyed this book. It's a very quick and easy read, and goes over a lot of folklore, both well-known and ones I'd never heard of before. I especially enjoyed her analysis of these lesser-known stories, like Hans My Hedgehog and The Maiden Without Hands. As someone who's had a bone to pick with Disney, in particular, for a while now, I really appreciated her chapter in examining the ways in which Disney has chosen to portray disability in their retellings.
My only disappointment is that it is largely focused on European fairytales. The writer makes it clear that, as a white person with no background in non-western folklore, she didn't feel comfortable in trying to co-opt and interpret non-western folklore from a western perspective. I understand that decision, but I hope another writer eventually comes in to explore disability and folklore from a non-European perspective because I would be really interested in reading that!
Nevertheless, this is a really great book and I highly recommend it.
My only disappointment is that it is largely focused on European fairytales. The writer makes it clear that, as a white person with no background in non-western folklore, she didn't feel comfortable in trying to co-opt and interpret non-western folklore from a western perspective. I understand that decision, but I hope another writer eventually comes in to explore disability and folklore from a non-European perspective because I would be really interested in reading that!
Nevertheless, this is a really great book and I highly recommend it.
scarroll178's review against another edition
emotional
informative
slow-paced
3.75
Very repetitive, but a lot of good insights. I especially appreciated hearing about the language we use to talk about disability.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism and Bullying
karimorton33's review against another edition
4.0
A great listen juxtaposing fairytales with real experiences of disabled people. It really showed how much of fairytales or current fantasy works centre on someone “overcoming” their disability and only then having a good life.
ktxx22's review against another edition
4.0
You ever felt chastised by a book before?! We’ll post read that’s how this memoir/exposé makes me feel. And it’s because of my ignorance before reading. When you are able bodied you don’t see how considerably lacking the world is across the board for our disabled humans. How villainized they are in media, and stories and not in an overt way but in a subversive evil way. You notice the lack of representation in general and how shameful it is to even ask disabled folks questions According to the regular social constructs. WTF is that even a thing?!? I will definitely be doing better and my best to make things more accessible and inclusive. Fully intend to have the talks with my children and make sure they are respectfully curious. My only real hiccup with this is I wish Leduc had included more stories from her peers alongside her personal tale as I really enjoying hearing the various perspectives.