November’s Discussion Post: Haben

[ID: A red book with a black woman in a blue dress on the cover. The book sits in front of a stack of books with the edges showing surrounded by baby’s breath flowers with a bookmark that says chronically iconic bookclub. Two pieces of blue glass are in front of the book and it all sits on a white shelf.]

“Disability is not something an individual overcomes. I’m still disabled. I’m still Deafblind. People with disabilities are successful when we develop alternative techniques and our communities choose inclusion.”

— Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law

@libraryofdreaming’s thoughts:

I enjoyed this memoir but somehow I didn’t love it. Haben has an engaging style that made me wish I had listened on audio. I learned a lot about her perspective as a Deafblind woman and I feel like she had many nuggets of wisdom for disabled folks like myself. However, I kept wishing that Haben had fleshed out the story a bit more. There were many events that got skipped over in favor of creating short, digestible chapters. I think this is a great basic intro to disability justice, but compared to the other disability nonfic I’ve read this year it just barely scratches the surface. I’m left wanting more. I hope that, maybe later in life, Haben returns to memoir writing to share more about her experiences. ⁣

Discussion Questions:

1. Did you like the book? How many stars did you rate it?

2. What was your favorite part of the book?

3. What was your least favorite?

4. What did you think of Haben’s decision to write the book in the present tense?

5. Had you ever heard about Eritrea’s history before this book? What was the most interesting thing you learned from Haben’s family history?

6. What did you think of Haben’s dynamic with Simone on the trip to Mali. Were you surprised by how their relationship developed?

7. Haben resists being called “inspiring” as she says people often use it as a disguise for pity. Have you ever thought about this before? When do you think it’s appropriate to call a disabled person inspiring without falling prey to this cliché?

8. Oh Haben’s website, she says that she’s often compared to Helen Keller but says having a “single disability story” is dangerous because it makes people expect people to conform to a single story. How do you think disabled role models help and hinder ideas about disabled people?

9. What did you think of Haben’s meeting with President Obama?

10. Are there any events or topics that you wished Haben had included or explored more?

Please share your thoughts in the comments below!

Thank you for joining and happy reading!