Perspectives on Deafness. A Deaf American Monograph, 1991 ed. by Merv Garretson (review)

Perspectives on Deafness is necessary reading for anyone involved with or interested in deaf individuals and deafness. The articles it contains combine to make a powerful document, challenging both deaf and hearing individuals. Written by profoundly deaf, hard-of-hearing, and hearing people, including educators, parents, psychologists, and a lawyer, the articles provide insight into a rich array of important, timely issues related to deafness: personal experiences, Deaf culture, education, technology, political activism, and future prospects. The reader gains information from a sampling of nations, including Africa, Sweden, Yugoslavia, and Italy. Some discussions are amusing and some are frustrating, but all are thought-provoking and informative. In addition to the articles, poems and quotations interspersed in the monograph, add poignancy and beauty. The editor has arranged the articles alphabetically by author’s name, but they will be reviewed thematically below.