By Rachel Charlton-Dailey and Chloe Johnson
As it’s World Book day, we wanted to shine a light on some of the incredible disabled authors who are writing first-hand what it means to live their lives and offering support to others. It’s so important that these experiences are written by people who know what they’re talking about and we can’t wait to read all of these beauties.
Click the titles to preorder.
Non-Fiction
Living with Hearing Loss and Deafness by Samantha Baines – 27th April
Comedian and writer Sam brings us a guide to living with hearing loss and deafness that is packed full of advice and her trademark hilarious wit.
Some of Us Just Fall by Polly Atkin – 6th July
Combining memoir, pathography and nature writing to trace a fascinating journey from Polly’s childhood in Nottingham to her current home in the Lake District, where outdoor swimming is purported to cure all ills. Delving into the history of her two genetic conditions, Polly explores how these illnesses were managed (or not) in the past and how best to plan for her own future.
This is a book dealing with not getting better, but living better with illness, and will speak to those with chronic conditions struggling in a world that wants to cure us.
So, I’m Autistic by Sarah O’Brien – 21st June
Rachel may be biased here as Sarah (or Scaramouche as I know her) is one of their closest friends, but So I’m Autustic is set to be a go to handbook for anyone who has just been diagnosed with real life solutions. If you’re feeling lost after diagnosis or looking for help navigating the world, this is the book for you.
The View From Down Here by Lucy Webster – September
The highly celebrated journalist and activist is dropping her debut book, named after her newsletter of the same name that uses personal stories and observations from her life as a wheelchair user to empower people to be anti-ableist allies.
This book is an urgent call to arms in dismantling ableism and moving towards a truly inclusive feminism.
See Me Rolling: On Disability, Equality and Ten-Point Turns by Lottie Jackson – 1st June
‘The world was sadly not my lobster, it was a skimpy crayfish from a petrol station sandwich and it was on the turn.’
This hilarious memoir is as playful as it is heart-warming, as Jackson recounts the somewhat-hilarious, sometimes-bizarre experiences that able-bodied people won’t have had.
Moving Mountains edited by Louise Kenward – October
A brilliant, first of it’s kind anthology of nature writing by disabled and chronically ill authors. Louise says that it will “collate the relationship to the more-than human world from the perspective of those of us who cannot ignore the bodies that we live in”.
Poetry
Too Hot To Sleep by Elspeth Wilson – April (preorder link to come
The debut pamphlet by Elspeth Wilson uses pop culture as a vehicle to explore the experience of growing up in a traumatised boy, finding joy and hope in the gaps. This looks to be a hopeful but ultimately defiant work of poetry, and one to watch out for.
Lying In: Poems by Elizabeth Metzger – April 11th
This poetry collection explores grief, high-risk motherhood and the complicated relationship with our past and present self.
