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Disability Visibility anthology

Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century (Vintage Books, 2020)

Click here for more about the anthology adapted for young people.

 

[left] Book jacket designed by Angela Carlino of DISABILITY VISIBILITY: 17 First-Person Stories for Today adapted for young readers edited by Alice Wong. The cover has thin vertical gray lines with overlapping geometric shapes in green, blue, magenta, yellow and purple. [right] 3 images in a row of a book titled ‘Disability Visibility: First Person Stories from the 21st Century Edited by Alice Wong’ the book cover has overlapping triangles in a variety of bright colors with black text overlaying them and an off-white background. Book cover by Madeline Partner.
[left] Book jacket designed by Angela Carlino of DISABILITY VISIBILITY: 17 First-Person Stories for Today adapted for young readers edited by Alice Wong. The cover has thin vertical gray lines with overlapping geometric shapes in green, blue, magenta, yellow and purple. [right] 3 images in a row of a book titled ‘Disability Visibility: First Person Stories from the 21st Century Edited by Alice Wong’ the book cover has overlapping triangles in a variety of bright colors with black text overlaying them and an off-white background. Book cover by Madeline Partner.

Order paperback, e-book, audiobook (multiple retailers). Available on Bookshare and the Library of Congress’ Braille and Audio Reading Download program (downloadable talking book #DB99604 and Braille currently in process of being added).

Links to order the book in the UK, Canada, and Australia.

Subscribe to the Disability Visibility newsletter for the latest on the book, reviews, events, giveaways, and more!

Plain language summary by Sara Luterman

Discussion guide by Naomi Ortiz

Audiobook narrated by Alejandra Ospina

ISBN: 9781984899422 (paperback) 9781984899439 (ebook)

Requests for interviews and online book events

Julie Ertl, Publicity Manager, Vintage Books & Anchor Books | The Knopf Doubleday Group, jertl@penguinrandomhouse.com, 212-572-2420

Access Rider and Media Kit for Alice Wong

Infographic by Lizartistry about the book (at the end of the page)

Praise

Alice Wong should be in charge of editing all books. Even better, Alice Wong should be in charge of everything! To Alice, words like ‘diversity’ and ‘intersectionality’ aren’t just buzzwords. They are marching orders. In this book, she has collected a staggering array of stories from writers who experience disability in vastly different ways. This isn’t meant to be THE DEFINITIVE BOOK on disability. It is a doorway, and Alice is inviting us all to go through the doorway and continue our learning process. She even ends the collection with a bibliography that extends far beyond your standard reading list. Whether you currently consider yourself part of the disability community or not, you’re gonna want to take in the wisdom woven throughout this book. Now more than ever, our society desperately needs to listen to and take action on the changes disabled artists and activists have been demanding for so long. I am lucky she is my friend.

—W. Kamau Bell, host of United Shades of America

Previous Online Book Events

Text transcript from video

Reviews and Media

“How ‘Disability Visibility’ Empowered Me to Change My Narrative.” Brina Patel, Coffee Time Reviews, June 7, 2021.

“Review of: Wong, Alice, editor. Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the 21st Century.” Brenna Swift, Disability Studies Quarterly, Vol 41, No 1 (2021).

“Reclaiming Disability Space in an Ableist Society: A Review of Alice Wong’s Disability Visibility,“ Christopher Mathey, March 2, 2021, Nursing Clio.

“MS Book Review: Disability Visibility,” TK Sellman, February 3, 2021.

“8 of my Favourite Non-Fiction Books about Disability,” Jessica Moxham, January 29, 2021, Son Stories blog.

Michael Rembis. Review of Wong, Alice, ed., Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century. H-Disability, H-Net Reviews. January, 2021. URL: https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=55689

“5 Audiobook Essay Collections Ideally Suited to Your Quarantine Walks,” James Tate Hill,  January 28, 2021, LitHub.

“Disability Representation Needs to Be Nuanced, Realistic, and Respectful,” Valerie Chelangat, January 14, 2021, The Uniter.

“A Year in Reading: Sejal Shah,” Sejal Shah, December 22, 2020, The Millions.

“Grants Celebrate Disability Culture,” M. Leona Godin, December 16, 2020, Publisher’s Weekly.

“16 books to gift this holiday,” passerbuys, December 2020.

“Best Audiobooks of 2020,” Google Play, December 2020.

“Favorite Books of 2020,” Mike Ervin, November 25, 2020, The Progressive.

“Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century,” Laura Barrosse-Antle, October 23, 2020, Chemistry World.

“Expanding Candid’s commitment to DEI through our eBooks collection,” Alicia Hyman, November 23, 2020, Candid.

“UK Disability History Month 2020,” Karin, November 18, 2020, Hampshire Library Service.

“Interview with Alice Wong: Engaging with Stories of Disabled People,” Dennis R. Upkins, November 13, 2020, Yopp!

“Alice Wong calls attention to the importance of disability visibility,” Ella Fitzhugh, November 3, 2020, The McGill Tribune.

Recap from 11/7/20 Disability Visibility book event on disability justice with Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha and Patty Berne moderated by Yomi Wrong.

“Plain Language Writing — An Essential Part Of Accessibility,” Andrew Pulrang, October 22, 2020, Forbes.

“Alice Wong On Ruckuses, Rage And Medicaid,” Anna Sale, October 21, 2020, Death, Sex, and Money podcast, WNYC.

“6 Memoirs by Political Changemakers,” Alice Wong,  October 20, 2020, Read It Forward.

“DocsWithDisabilities Podcast Ep 22: Diana Cejas and Alice Wong,” October 2020.

“Fall Books 2020,” September 25, 2020,Call Your Girlfriend podcast,.

“BSI Fall 2020 Gregg Beratan review of Disability Visibility,” September 24, 2020, Rochester Public Library.

“Our Lives Matter, Too,” Truth Be Told podcast, September 24, 2020, KQED.

“A Review of Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century,” Adam Hubrig, September 23, 2020, Brevity.

“Activist Alice Wong On The Joys And Challenges Of Being Disabled,” Jenee Darden, September 10, 2020, KALW.

“Alice Wong’s Disability Visibility Project is five years strong and is permanently disrupting stereotypes about disability,” Roxanne Ray, September 9, 2020, International Examiner.

“Being in our own words,” Alaina Johns, September 8, 2020, Broad Street Review.

“5 books to read by disabled authors,” Shona Louise, September 3, 2020.

“WONDER WOMEN OF HISTORY Celebrates Real Life Heroes,” Rosie Knight, September 2, 2020,  Nerdist.

“Asian American Alice Wong Forefronts the Magic Within the Disability Community in ‘Disability Visibility,’” Giannina Ong, August 30, 2020, Mochi Magazine.

“Share the Journey with Jeneva: Staying Visible with Alice Wong,” Jeneva Stone, August 27, 2020, Little Lobbyists.

“It’s Time for Disabled Writers to Tell Their Own Stories,” Jennifer Baker, August 19, 2020, Electric Lit.

“8 Collections Featuring Underrepresented Voices,” Emily Stochl, August 5, 2020,  Bookriot.

“Alice Wong’s book launch panel offers glimpse into deeply lived personal aspects of different disabilities,” Hari Srinivasan, August 3, 2020, Daily Cal.

“Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century,” Nila Gupta, August 3, 2020, Disability Arts Online.

“ICS member Alejandra Ospina narrates Disability Visibility audiobook,” July 2020, Independence Care System.

“Brew’s Bookshelf,” Morning Brew newsletter, July 30, 2020

“Best books published in summer 2020,” Sian Babish, July 29, 2020, The Chicago Tribune.

“Activist and Media Maker Alice Wong Brings Us Moving Stories by Disabled Writers,” Karen Gullo, July 29, 2020, Seismic Sisters.

“Editor Interview: Alice Wong,” Kelsey Norris, July 28, 2020, Libro.fm

“How to teach children about disability, at every age,” Kristen Parisi, July 28, 2020, Today Show.

“Advocating in Plain Language, with Sara Luterman,” Haley Moss and Dr. Lori Butts, July 28, 2020, Spectrumly Speaking podcast.

“A Disability-Rights Consultant and Social Worker Explains How to Check Your Ableism Every Day,” Elizabeth Brodsky, July 27, 2020, Popsugar.

“‘Welcome to Our World’: Collection of Stories Sheds Light on Disabilities,” Eleanor J. Bader, July 27, 2020, The Progressive.

“10 Books Set to Become the New Feminist Classics,” Lily Herman, July 24, 2020, Shondaland.

“28 Ways to Learn About Disability Culture,” July 24, 2020, The New York Times.

“30 years of the ADA: Measuring progress and calling for improvements,” Anna Leahy, July 23, 2020, The Washington Post.

“7 Books to Read in Honor of the 30th Anniversary of the ADA,” Jaime Herndon, July 23, 2020.

“Interview with Alice Wong,” Kendra Winchester, July 22, 2020 Reading Women podcast.

“Disabled activist Alice Wong reflects on the Americans with Disabilities Act: ‘A law does not change the world overnight,’” Erin Donnelly, July 22, 2020, Yahoo.

The Curiosity Podcast with Dan Sterenchunk and Tommy Estlund, Episode 153 (audio and text transcript).

“Stories From The Disability Community,” Jana Schiels, July 14, 2020, Wisconsin Public Radio.

“True Stories of Living With Disability For Your TBR,” Kelly Jensen, July 13, 2020, Bookriot.

“Disability Visibility: First Person Stories from the 21st Century (Alice Wong, ed.),” Diane R. Wiener, June 2020, Volume 14, Issue 2, Wordgathering: A Journal of Disability Poetry and Literature.

“New & Noteworthy, From Craigslist Confessions to Toxic Outrage,” July 7, 2020, The New York Times.

“Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the 21st Century” Centers the Wisdom of Disabled People, Carrie Wade, June 30, 2020, Autostraddle.

“Review: Disability Visibility, Edited by Alice Wong,” Shir Kehila, June 30, 2020, Columbia Journal.

“My Joy Is My Freedom,” Keah Brown, June 30, 2020, Elle Magazine.

“Books to Watch,” June 30, 2020, Porchlight Books

“Q+A with Alice Wong on her new book, “Disability Visibility: First Person Stories from the 21st Century,” Linda Williams, June 30, 2020, Invisible Disability Project.

“New book is Alice Wong’s latest take on the ‘vastness’ of disability culture,” Louise Kinross, June 29, 2020, Bloom.

“BitchReads: 17 Books Feminists Should Read in June,” Evette Dionne, June 8, 2020, Bitch Media.

“June 2020 Reads for the Rest of Us,” Karla Strand, June 3, 2020, Ms. Magazine.

“New Works by Writers with Disabilities Hit Publisher Lists,” Alex Green, April 3, 2020, Publisher’s Weekly.

Contributors

Zipporah Arielle

Patty Berne

Keah Brown

Diana Cejas

Rebecca Cokley

Sky Cubacub

Jen Deerinwater

Wanda Díaz-Merced

June Eric-Udorie

Harriet Tubman Collective

Karolyn Gehrig

Haben Girma

Eugene Grant

Ariel Henley

Jamison Hill

Sandy Ho

Shoshana Kessock

Talila A. Lewis

Harriet McBryde Johnson

Reyma McCoy McDeid

Lateef McLeod

Stacey Milbern

Liz Moore

Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha

Mari Ramsawakh

A.H. Reaume

Keshia Scott

Ellen Samuels

Alice Sheppard

Elsa Sjunneson

Jessica Slice

s.e. smith

Ricardo T. Thornton, Sr.

Jillian Weise

Britney Wilson

Jeremy Woody

Maysoon Zayid

Infographic and image description by Elizabeth Hee

Infographic titled “Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century” with a yellow, pink, turquoise, pastel green, and pastel purple color scheme. A green circle next to the title reads “Staying alive is a lot of work for a disabled person in an ableist society.” Another green circle reads “About the editor - Alice Wong” is above a doodle of Alice Wong, an Asian American women in a power chair and a blue shirt with an organize, black, white and yellow geometric pattern, wearing a mask over her nose attached to a gray tube and bright red lip color; and a speech bubble reads “What I have always been opening to accomplish is the creation of community.” Text reads “In high school, Alice read an article in Time about accessible public transit and wrote a letter expressing her wish for it to expand” with a doodle of a hand with a blue pencil and purple nails.” An arrow points to text reading “The letter was published in a subsequent issue - the first time Alice advocated on record as a disabled person, and sparking curiosity for more stories” with a doodle of a Time Magazine cover with a bus with a wheelchair ramp. Another arrow points to text reading “In surrounding herself with these stories, Alice found and developed her own voice. Her collection led her to community” and another arrow points to text reading “In 2014, disabled people through the U.S. were preparing for the following year’s 25th anniversary for the A.D.A” and a doodle of a party hat that reads “Happy 25th Anniversary.” Another arrow points to “Partnering with Storycorps, Alice created the Disability Visibility Project, a way for disabled people to celebrate and preserve their stories” with an image of the cover the “Disability Visibility” book. Another arrow points to “These kinds of stores - the funny, personal moments in disability history - are just as significant as those about leaders and politicians. We need more of these stories.” A curly bracket points to text reading “What started as a small oral history project kept going and blew up into A Movement” with a doodle of a person in a purple wheelchair facing away from the reader and a sign in a cement bucket that reads “Rights for the Disabled - Sign 504 Unchanged!” A sub-header reads “Community is...” Text reads “Political” with a doodle of a ballot box with “#CripTheVote” written on it, “Magic” with a doodle of a blue book with white sparkles and “#CripLit” written on it, “Power” with a doodle of the yellow Disability Visibility podcast logo of Alice Wong, an East Asian woman with purple sunglasses, red headphones, and a mask over her nose attached to a gray tube, and “Resistance” with an image of the cover of “Resistance and Hope: Essays by Disabled People” (a dark blue cover with colorful fungi and the “o” in “Hope” is a moon, with addition text “Crip Wisdom for the people”). Another sub-header reads “Bringing all of these collaborations, connections, and joys to the page.” A blurb of text reads “Just in time for the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, activist Alice Wong brings together this urgent, galvanizing collection of contemporary essays by disabled people. For Harriet McBryde Johnson’s account of her debate with Peter Singer to original pieces by authors like Keah Brown and Haben Girma; from blog posts, manifestos, and eulogies to congressional testimonies, and beyond: this anthology gives a glimpse into the rich complex city of the disabled experience, highlighting the passions, talents, and everyday lives of this community. It invites their own understandings. It celebrates and documents disability culture in the now. It looks to the future and the past with hope and love.” A column of text titled “Being” lists contributing authors “Harriet McBryde Johnson, Tallis A. Lewis, Maysoon Zayid, Ariel Henley, Jen Deerinwater, June Eric-Udorie, Jeremy Woody as told to Christie Thompson, Jillian Weise, Liz Moore.” Text reads “When I first read Harriet McBryde Johnson’s ‘Unspeakable Conventions,’ about debating a Princeton prof. who believed people like her should not exist, it shook me to my core - she brilliantly outlined the lived experience of ableism in very real terms. I no longer felt alone in questioning and defending my work.” There is a doodle of Harriet McBryde Johnson, a light-skinned woman with long braid of brown hair, in a wheel chair wearing a red dress and smiling toward the camera. Another column titled “Becoming” lists authors “Ricardo T. Thornton Sr., Sky Cubacub, Haben Girma, Diana Cejas, Sandy Ho, Keah Brown, Keshia Scott, Jessica Slice, Elsa Sjunneson, Zipporah Arielle.” Another column titled “Doing” lists authors “A. H. Reaume, Rebecca Cokley, Alice Sheppard, Wanda Diaz-Merced, Mari Ramsawakh, Shoshana Kessock, Ellen Samuels, Reyna McCoy McDeid, Britney Wilson, Lateef Mcleod.” Text reads “In ‘The Beauty of Spaces Created For and By Disabled People,’ s. e. smith describes the transient alchemy that happens when disabled people come together in the same space - their writing leaves us steeped in the beauty, creativity, and ingenuity of disabled people. There is a doodle of a person with orange hair and purple shirt in a wheelchair on their back with their arms extended, balancing another person on their legs, the second person is in a wheelchair and wears a green shirt with their arms extended. A fourth column titled “Connecting” lists authors “Eugene Grant, Patty Berne as told to and edited by Vanessa Raditz, Harriet Tubman Collective, Karolyn Gehrig, Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, Jamison Hill, Stacey Milbern, s. e. smith.” A bottom section has text that reads “Plain language summary by Sara Luterman” with a doodle of a piece of paper with blue text and design and a blue pen; text reading “Discussion guide by Naomi Ortiz” with a doodle of two people talking, on with light skin wearing a black bandana and blue shirt, the other with light skin, short brown hair, and glasses wearing purple shirt and holding a green mug; and text reading “Audiobook narrated by Alejandra Ospina” with a doodle of Alejandra, a light-skinned Latina woman with glasses and headphones. Final text in a yellow circle with a doodle of a flower at the top reads “For more about the book: https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/book”; “Twitter: @SFDireWolf @DisVisiblity”; and “Published by Vintage Books.” On the far right side of the image in small text reads “art by @lizar_tistry.”
Infographic titled “Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century” with a yellow, pink, turquoise, pastel green, and pastel purple color scheme. A green circle next to the title reads “Staying alive is a lot of work for a disabled person in an ableist society.” Another green circle reads “About the editor – Alice Wong” is above a doodle of Alice Wong, an Asian American women in a power chair and a blue shirt with an organize, black, white and yellow geometric pattern, wearing a mask over her nose attached to a gray tube and bright red lip color; and a speech bubble reads “What I have always been opening to accomplish is the creation of community.” Text reads “In high school, Alice read an article in Time about accessible public transit and wrote a letter expressing her wish for it to expand” with a doodle of a hand with a blue pencil and purple nails.” An arrow points to text reading “The letter was published in a subsequent issue – the first time Alice advocated on record as a disabled person, and sparking curiosity for more stories” with a doodle of a Time Magazine cover with a bus with a wheelchair ramp. Another arrow points to text reading “In surrounding herself with these stories, Alice found and developed her own voice. Her collection led her to community” and another arrow points to text reading “In 2014, disabled people through the U.S. were preparing for the following year’s 25th anniversary for the A.D.A” and a doodle of a party hat that reads “Happy 25th Anniversary.” Another arrow points to “Partnering with Storycorps, Alice created the Disability Visibility Project, a way for disabled people to celebrate and preserve their stories” with an image of the cover the “Disability Visibility” book. Another arrow points to “These kinds of stores – the funny, personal moments in disability history – are just as significant as those about leaders and politicians. We need more of these stories.” A curly bracket points to text reading “What started as a small oral history project kept going and blew up into A Movement” with a doodle of a person in a purple wheelchair facing away from the reader and a sign in a cement bucket that reads “Rights for the Disabled – Sign 504 Unchanged!” A sub-header reads “Community is…” Text reads “Political” with a doodle of a ballot box with “#CripTheVote” written on it, “Magic” with a doodle of a blue book with white sparkles and “#CripLit” written on it, “Power” with a doodle of the yellow Disability Visibility podcast logo of Alice Wong, an East Asian woman with purple sunglasses, red headphones, and a mask over her nose attached to a gray tube, and “Resistance” with an image of the cover of “Resistance and Hope: Essays by Disabled People” (a dark blue cover with colorful fungi and the “o” in “Hope” is a moon, with addition text “Crip Wisdom for the people”). Another sub-header reads “Bringing all of these collaborations, connections, and joys to the page.” A blurb of text reads “Just in time for the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, activist Alice Wong brings together this urgent, galvanizing collection of contemporary essays by disabled people. For Harriet McBryde Johnson’s account of her debate with Peter Singer to original pieces by authors like Keah Brown and Haben Girma; from blog posts, manifestos, and eulogies to congressional testimonies, and beyond: this anthology gives a glimpse into the rich complex city of the disabled experience, highlighting the passions, talents, and everyday lives of this community. It invites their own understandings. It celebrates and documents disability culture in the now. It looks to the future and the past with hope and love.” A column of text titled “Being” lists contributing authors “Harriet McBryde Johnson, Tallis A. Lewis, Maysoon Zayid, Ariel Henley, Jen Deerinwater, June Eric-Udorie, Jeremy Woody as told to Christie Thompson, Jillian Weise, Liz Moore.” Text reads “When I first read Harriet McBryde Johnson’s ‘Unspeakable Conventions,’ about debating a Princeton prof. who believed people like her should not exist, it shook me to my core – she brilliantly outlined the lived experience of ableism in very real terms. I no longer felt alone in questioning and defending my work.” There is a doodle of Harriet McBryde Johnson, a light-skinned woman with long braid of brown hair, in a wheel chair wearing a red dress and smiling toward the camera. Another column titled “Becoming” lists authors “Ricardo T. Thornton Sr., Sky Cubacub, Haben Girma, Diana Cejas, Sandy Ho, Keah Brown, Keshia Scott, Jessica Slice, Elsa Sjunneson, Zipporah Arielle.” Another column titled “Doing” lists authors “A. H. Reaume, Rebecca Cokley, Alice Sheppard, Wanda Diaz-Merced, Mari Ramsawakh, Shoshana Kessock, Ellen Samuels, Reyna McCoy McDeid, Britney Wilson, Lateef Mcleod.” Text reads “In ‘The Beauty of Spaces Created For and By Disabled People,’ s. e. smith describes the transient alchemy that happens when disabled people come together in the same space – their writing leaves us steeped in the beauty, creativity, and ingenuity of disabled people. There is a doodle of a person with orange hair and purple shirt in a wheelchair on their back with their arms extended, balancing another person on their legs, the second person is in a wheelchair and wears a green shirt with their arms extended. A fourth column titled “Connecting” lists authors “Eugene Grant, Patty Berne as told to and edited by Vanessa Raditz, Harriet Tubman Collective, Karolyn Gehrig, Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, Jamison Hill, Stacey Milbern, s. e. smith.” A bottom section has text that reads “Plain language summary by Sara Luterman” with a doodle of a piece of paper with blue text and design and a blue pen; text reading “Discussion guide by Naomi Ortiz” with a doodle of two people talking, on with light skin wearing a black bandana and blue shirt, the other with light skin, short brown hair, and glasses wearing purple shirt and holding a green mug; and text reading “Audiobook narrated by Alejandra Ospina” with a doodle of Alejandra, a light-skinned Latina woman with glasses and headphones. Final text in a yellow circle with a doodle of a flower at the top reads “For more about the book: https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/book”; “Twitter: @SFDireWolf @DisVisiblity”; and “Published by Vintage Books.” On the far right side of the image in small text reads “art by @lizar_tistry.”
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