The Deaf Musicians

Seeger, Pete and Duboise Jacobs, Paul

The Deaf Musicians

G.P. Putnam’s Sons. 2006

The Deaf Musicians is about a man named Lee. He played the piano and was very involved in music. He was a part of a band until his band mated noticed that his music was a little bit off. He had to tell them that he was losing his hearing, and when they found this out, one man said, “Who will listen to a deaf musician?” Lee then started going to a school for the deaf and here he found people who were deaf like him but who also had a passion for music. Lee made a new band of three deaf people who communicated through sign language, and one sing language interpreter, who sang for the band. Everyone loved Lee’s band’s music, even his old band mate who told Lee that no one would listen to his music.

Seeger and Duboise Jacobs discuss an issue of deafness that often isn’t discussed very much. They tackled a topic that dealt with a person’s passion instead of a topic of a deaf person having to learn sign language. This story never looked down on deaf people, but rather illustrated what people could do when they had a passion for something like music. The authors paint a great picture that things that someone loves doesn’t have to be given up when they find out they are losing their hearing. Instead of Lee giving up on music, he changed and adapted music to his new lifestyle. Seeger was knowledgeable about the topic of deafness because his father was deaf and every year he participates in a music festival where there are sign language interpreters. I would recommend this novel not only to families where there might be a deaf child, but to all families. It is a book of hope and inspiration that shows what can be done when you have such a passion for something.

I Have A Sister My Sister is Deaf.

Peterson, Jeanne Whitehouse. I Have A Sister My Sister is Deaf. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers, 1977.

I Have A Sister My Sister is Deaf is a story about a girl talking about her sister. She talks about how her sister likes to do all of these different things that all kids like to do, but her sister is a little different because her sister loves to play the piano but cannot hear the tune. Her sister cannot hear her yell "Look Out". She talks about how she tries to understand what it is like not to be able to hear. She talks about how they are both afraid and how they both can talk but in different ways. She talks about how she talks to her friends about her sister.This book is written by Jeanne Peterson, she is considered to be an insider because her sister was also deaf.

This book is interesting in many aspects, the first being that the sister is trying to show to her friends how her sister can do all of the things that all kids love to do, but she does them a little bit different because she cannot sing, hear tunes, or talk. She talks about how they share the same emotions but at different times. I do think that the book could be seen differently if the illustrations were in color, it makes it seem like everything they do is dull and something is missing. The other thing that is interesting is that the sister is always pointing out things that she cannot do at the same time that she is pointing out all of the things that she can do. But at the same time she is doing this, it seems like she is looking out for her sister and feeling bad for her because she will never get to experience some things in life that other people take for granted. Overall, there are a few things that I like in this book, it would be a good book to read to an older sibling who has a younger sibling who is deaf so they can learn that their brother or sister will not be able to experience some of the same things as they do but they will also experience them in a different way.

Mackinnon, Christy. Silent Observer. Washington, D.C.: Kendall Green Publications, 1993.

This book is about the author, Christy Mackinnon, and her childhood. She talks about what her life was like before she went to school, when she goes to school, then while she is in school. She became deaf at the age of 2 from whooping cough, and her closest sister, Sadie, was partially deaf from the same sickness. Through her childhood, Mackinnon met very famous people in the Deaf Community such as Alexander Graham Bell and Helen Keller. She talks about her struggles with accepting the fact that she was deaf and the everyday struggles that go along with being deaf in a hearing family.

I felt this book was absolutely amazing. I was interested in this book before I read it but once I started reading it, I was turning page after page. One of the best parts of the book for me was when all of a sudden she mentioned her neighbor, Alexander Graham Bell, like it was no big deal. I was in such awe that she knew him. Then, when she talks about her experiences in the Halifax School For The Deaf, she gets to meet Helen Keller!! I was so excited about that too because I am so fascinated with learning about how Helen Keller learned to communicate. I think it would be amazing to say I have met her, but Mackinnon talks about it in the book like it was almost not as amazing as I would picture it. If I got to meet Helen Keller, I would be announcing it to the world; it would be better than meeting some movie star to me. But Mackinnon doesn't emphasize how she felt about meeting Helen Keller in this book, which shocks me.

Overall, though, I felt this book was great. I absolutely loved it and would recommend it to anyone, deaf or hearing, child or adult. It was not the easiest book to find, but once you find it, it's worth it. Another fascinating thing about this book is how it came to be a published book. Christy Mackinnon wrote her story and drew her own pictures but never put the book together. It wasn't until her niece found these pages of her story and her wonderful pictures years later and decided to put them together as a book and have it published. This story tells history right from a person who lived it. And that is the best part!