When I was sitting in my adviser's office, registering for classes last week, I noticed she had a pile of the book "If a Tree falls". I asked her if the book was any good, and she said yes, and that she was assigning it as reading in one of her graduate classes. She asked if I would like to borrow a copy, and I said sure. I took it and had finished it in less than 24 hours.
I remember when this book was first published. It was 2010, and in the advertising it said that the parents had made a "controversial decision" about how to go forward with language and learning when they discovered that their to daughter were deaf, and deaf from a genetic condition that was throughout their family history. When I heard that, I was like, "Wow, they must decide to forgo the implant and use ASL." Well, nope. Don't mean to spoil it for anyone, but they end with with a CI, and listening and spoken language. I guess they would have been making the decision in 2004, so maybe it seemed more controversial then (but I doubt it). Plus, their older daughter was already attending Clarke Northampton, so it is not like they were alone on this journey, unable to find support or understanding for their choices...
Don't get me wrong, I fully understand how difficult a decision it is to implant your child. I mean, we did it just a few years ago! And I know how heart-wrenching decisions about language and schooling can be. Our family still struggles, and will until Miss Kat is old enough to decide for herself. But, to call choosing spoken language and cochlear implants "controversial" today? In the hearing world? I don't really think so.
Other than that, I thought the book was nice. It was an interesting story, very heart-felt and truthful. I could feel the emotions the mother was going through, and I ached for her. I would recommend it for anyone. It is a nice easy read, and a good introduction for people who have never been a parent of a deaf child, or if you are one, it is always lovely to hear the story of another!
