Sean Randall reviewed She Is Not Invisible by Marcus Sedgwick
Review of 'She Is Not Invisible' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
“I learned to do a thousand things to help sighted people simply talk to me.”
This is an extremely powerful book. I finished reading it, and thought to myself that Had my daughter been blind, I would have been very lucky if she’d had half the fortitude, courage and resilience Laureth displays.
Sedgwick has depicted a blind teen quite convincingly. I found her a little fragile on occasion, but given what she’s doing during the book that’s to be expected, and it’s not overblown. I do have to remind myself that Laureth is female, and has loving, responsible parents who clearly take an interest in her wellbeing, which of course shapes her outlook.
I know that the author spent some time with blind people researching his character, and the benefits of that are manifold: the discussion of being guided, the pervasion of smells and sounds, the whole way the book …
“I learned to do a thousand things to help sighted people simply talk to me.”
This is an extremely powerful book. I finished reading it, and thought to myself that Had my daughter been blind, I would have been very lucky if she’d had half the fortitude, courage and resilience Laureth displays.
Sedgwick has depicted a blind teen quite convincingly. I found her a little fragile on occasion, but given what she’s doing during the book that’s to be expected, and it’s not overblown. I do have to remind myself that Laureth is female, and has loving, responsible parents who clearly take an interest in her wellbeing, which of course shapes her outlook.
I know that the author spent some time with blind people researching his character, and the benefits of that are manifold: the discussion of being guided, the pervasion of smells and sounds, the whole way the book is written positively resonates with me as a blind person. The one thing I really found interesting was that I didn’t feel that I’d missed out on description, even though Laureth is telling the story and can’t see anything. I enjoy good description – there’s a great visual introduction to Albus Dumbledore in [b:Harry Potter and the Philosopher s Stone|7568427|Harry Potter And The Philosopher´s Stone (Film) Fantasy, Adventure, Harry Potter And The Philosopher´s Stone, J. K. Rowling, Chris Columbus (Filmmaker), ... Series), Harry Potter (Character), Hogwarts|Frederic P. Miller|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1348821741s/7568427.jpg|9908069] which is great, really – but here, you don’t feel as if you’re lacking it.
There is also, almost inevitably, a scene where the blind person outdoes someone who can see, smashing light bulbs to give herself an advantage. It’s neatly written and cleverly executed, and provides that final adrenaline rush to cap off the story.
Not long, but with enough action to keep my interest and a main character who’s expertly written, this is a title certain to push the boundaries of blind people in fiction that bit further, whilst being a cracking story and broaching a subject that young adults would do well to learn more about. I’d read another Laureth story in the future were one to appear without doubt or reservation