
Reach for this book when your teenager feels caught between two worlds or is struggling to find a community where they feel fully accepted. This poignant young adult novel follows Lilah, a seventeen-year-old who feels not deaf enough for the Deaf community and too deaf for the hearing world. By taking a summer job at a camp for deaf and blind children, Lilah embarks on a journey of self-discovery, learning American Sign Language and finding her voice. It is a powerful exploration of identity, self-confidence, and the nuance of disability culture. Parents will appreciate the authentic representation of the deaf experience and the healthy, realistic romantic subplot. It is perfectly suited for high schoolers navigating the universal teenage challenge of defining who they are and where they belong.
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Sign in to write a reviewDepictions of ableism and the challenges of navigating a world built for hearing people.
Occasional mild teen swearing.
The book deals directly with disability and ableism (both overt and internalized). The approach is secular and deeply realistic, highlighting the frustrations of accessibility and the 'hearing gaze.' The resolution is hopeful and empowering without being overly sentimental.
A high schooler who feels like a 'bridge' person: someone who doesn't quite fit into the mainstream but feels like an impostor in specialized communities. It is especially resonant for students with 'invisible' or managed disabilities.
The book can be read cold. Parents may want to familiarize themselves with the basics of the 'Deaf vs. deaf' distinction to better discuss the cultural nuances Lilah experiences. A parent might notice their child withdrawing from social situations because the effort to keep up is too exhausting, or hear their child express frustration about being 'different' or 'broken.'
Younger teens will focus on the summer camp fun and the romance. Older teens will pick up on the complex themes of systemic ableism and the politics of identity.
Unlike many books about disability that focus on 'curing' or 'overcoming,' this story focuses on immersion into a vibrant, existing culture and the validity of different ways of being deaf.
Lilah is a teenager with severe hearing loss who has spent her life trying to blend into the hearing world with hearing aids and lip-reading. Feeling isolated, she takes a job as a counselor at Camp Gray Wolf, a summer camp for deaf and blind kids. There, she immerses herself in ASL, navigates a crush on a fellow counselor named Beau, and learns that her disability is a culture to be embraced, not just a medical condition to be managed.
This overview was generated by AI based on the book's content and reviews, and may not capture every nuance.