If you have a child or other family member with a disability, sharing children’s nonfiction books can be a great way to introduce the people who are close to you to the facts about a specific disability or simply to learn about disability in a realistic and supportive way.
Different types of nonfiction are useful in different situations: non-narrative books (that tell straight facts) work well with older children; third-person narratives (that aim to educate through telling the stories of people with disabilities by a narrator) and first-person narratives (that tell the story of a person with a disability with their own voice) read more like storybooks and can be very helpful for younger children.
Children’s Books that Focus on Disability Facts
Cerebral Palsy by Ruth Bjorklund (Health Alert series, Marshall Cavendish 2007) is an example of a non-narrative book. Although each book in this series begins with the brief story of several people living with disability, the focus of the text is on facts: the causes of cerebral palsy and the history of its treatment, assistive technology, and activities of daily living.
Similar titles include Susan Gray’s Living with Cerebral Palsy (The Child’s World 2003), and Disabled People by Peter White (Gloucester Press 1989). These are informative books designed for classroom use. The Disability Rights Movement by Deborah Kent (Children’s Press 1996) is also in this category, but its focus is on social issues rather than on disability itself.
Children’s Books that Highlight Disability Stories
A classic in third-person narrative is On Our Own Terms by Thomas Bergman (Gareth Stevens 1989), the story of a Swedish physical therapy center for children with disabilities. Simple black and white photographs illustrate the children’s determination to succeed in their physical therapy sessions.
Although the technology pictured might be outdated and today’s reader might frown on the idea of a live-in hospital for children with disabilities, the stories still provide an example of courage that children will find fascinating.
A more recent book on a physical therapy class is Lauren Thompson’s Ballerina Dreams (Feiwel and Friends 2007). This is the story of five girls with disabilities in a ballet class run by a physical therapist. Ballet is the means used to teach physical skills, but the story might be written for any little girl who longs to be a ballerina as it follows them through their practices and costume fittings.
Telling Stories about Disability for Kids
Second-person narratives like Maxine B. Rosenberg’s My Friend Leslie (Lothrop, Lee & Shepard 1983) lend a more personal feel through an appealing child narrator. Leslie’s friend Karin guides the reader through a day in their kindergarten, where Leslie is like any other exuberant five-year-old. Child narrators use simple words and sentences to speak to young readers, who will appreciate learning about children whose experiences may differ from their own before they are able to understand complicated facts.
Other second-person narratives include Sally Hobart Alexander’s Mom’s Best Friend (Macmillan 1992) and Jeanne Whitehouse Peterson’s I Have a Sister—My Sister is Deaf (HarperCollins 1977). Because these narratives are written with the intent of normalizing the disability experience, they will still appeal to today’s reader.
Although out-of-print titles might be hard to find, your local library or used bookstore are great resources for older books! And be sure to check with your local library for recommendations of other books that you and your family will enjoy reading together.
