Heather reviewed Deaf Utopia by Nyle DiMarco
Review of 'Deaf Utopia' on 'Goodreads'
Nyle DiMarco loves being Deaf. He is proud of his family, his culture, and his language. But that hasn't always been so for Deaf people. In this memoir he compares and contrasts the way different generations of his family have been treated by family members and the educational system.
I had seen a few of his posts of social media so I knew who he was prior to picking up this book. I wasn't aware though that he had been on - and won - both America's Next Top Model and Dancing with the Stars in the same year.
One of the things that learned about in this book is the differences in styles between ASL users. He writes about being able to tell fluent signers from new people. I watched a few episodes of a TV show that he produced with an all ASL-using cast. It was super evident …
Nyle DiMarco loves being Deaf. He is proud of his family, his culture, and his language. But that hasn't always been so for Deaf people. In this memoir he compares and contrasts the way different generations of his family have been treated by family members and the educational system.
I had seen a few of his posts of social media so I knew who he was prior to picking up this book. I wasn't aware though that he had been on - and won - both America's Next Top Model and Dancing with the Stars in the same year.
One of the things that learned about in this book is the differences in styles between ASL users. He writes about being able to tell fluent signers from new people. I watched a few episodes of a TV show that he produced with an all ASL-using cast. It was super evident once I knew what to look for.
He also covers a lot of the decisions that need to be made when raising a Deaf child. Do you want to pursue speech therapy? Should your schooling be in a Deaf school or a non-Deaf school? He tells the stories of several generations of his family to highlight when these decisions have been taken away from Deaf people and the trauma that can come from being told to suppress part of yourself.
Living in a hearing world means constantly advocating for yourself. He tells stories of times when that went well and when it didn't.
Even if you don't know Nyle DiMarco, I'd recommend this book for its loving look at the Deaf culture in the U.S.