El Deafo by Cece Bell

I'll admit it, I deliberately started off the year with two graphic novels in order to get a quick jump on my reading list. In my defense, I don't read that many graphic novels in proportion to my general reading, and both books had been languishing in my stack since early December. They would soon need to be returned to the library.

El Deafo was discovered as part of the glut of titles I researched for my fiction involving disability reading ladder. When I originally grabbed it, I had no idea it was a graphic novel. It came as a little bit of a shock actually to open it up and be confronted with page after page of long eared bunnies.

In any case, this is the story of Cece who lost her hearing as a result of an illness while she was very young. Mostly, it's about adjusting to the disability and finding her place in a hearing community. It was surprising how much the book focused on how other people interacted with her. Specifically, how much well meaning people either did things that made it harder for her or even made her feel more isolated.

I have to admit, I didn't really connect to this one. It's nothing against the writing, but I just am not the intended audience and didn't get drawn in. However, it's a good book for young people, it conveys the feeling of isolation and frustration well, and does a lot to explain what it's like coping with a world filtered through a hearing aide.