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Title details for Such a Pretty Girl by Nadina LaSpina - Available

Such a Pretty Girl

A Story of Struggle, Empowerment, and Disability Pride

by Nadina LaSpina
Jennifer Jill Araya
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
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This is Nadina LaSpina's story—from her early years in her native Sicily, where she contracts polio as a baby, a fact that makes her the object of well-meaning pity and the target of messages of hopelessness, to her adolescence and youth in America, spent almost entirely in hospitals where she is tortured in the quest for a cure and made to feel that her body no longer belongs to her and to her rebellion and her activism in the disability-rights movement. LaSpina's personal growth parallels the movement's political development—from coming together, organizing, and fighting against exclusion from public and social life to the forging of a common identity, the blossoming of disability arts and culture, and the embracing of disability pride. While unique, LaSpina's journey is also one with which many disabled people can identify. It is the journey to find one's place in an ableist world—a world not made for disabled people, where disability is only seen in negative terms. LaSpina refutes all stereotypical narratives of disability. Through the telling of her life's story, without editorializing, she shows the harm that the overwhelming focus on pity and on a cure that remains elusive has done to disabled people. Her story exposes the disability prejudice ingrained in our sociopolitical system and denounces the oppressive standards of normalcy in a society that devalues those who are different and denies them basic rights.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    May 12, 2020

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781666550795
      • File size: 325232 KB
      • Duration: 11:17:33

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Jennifer Jill Araya gives a spirited performance of this captivating memoir by disability rights activist Nadina LaSpina. LaSpina, who contracted polio as a baby in Sicily, moved with her family to the U.S. as a teenager. She recounts the time she spent in hospitals, the abuse she suffered at the hands of doctors, and her experiences as a leader in the disability rights movement. LaSpina's writing about disability culture is especially poignant, and Araya's narration beautifully captures her burgeoning sense of disability pride. Whether she's describing intimate moments between lovers or historic protests, Araya's smooth, musical voice is a pleasure to listen to. Her ability to capture emotions heightens the power of LaSpina's story. L.S. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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