Choose the Young Adult Novel or book which Portrays a Character with a Disability, then answer the question. See attached instructions. *Note: This does not need to be a paper or an essay, just though
Name:
Title of Book:
Evaluation Guide for Choice Book that Portrays a Character with a Disability
What did you think about the book your chose? What did you dislike about it? What did you like about it? What did you learn from it? What would you rate it, and why?
Emotional Impact:
Did this piece of literature make an impact on you? Why or why not?
Do you care about the characters and what happens to them? Give an example to justify your response.
Does the story make you laugh or make you feel happy or sad? Give an example to justify your response.
Does the story linger with you, making you want to rethink or re-experience parts of it? Give an example to justify your response.
Imaginative Impact:
What is original about this book?
Do you think about what will happen to the characters next, when the story is over? Give an example to justify your response.
Do you imagine what it would be like if you were in the main character’s situation? Give an example to justify your response.
Authenticity, Topic Information, & Author’s Involvement:
Did the author explain the kind of research he or she has done?
Does the author cite resources or provide background information?
Does the author explain what inspired him or her to write about the subject?
Characters with disabilities- Problematic Portrayals:
Are the characters with disabilities cast as victims and/or evoke pity, sorrow or sentimentality? Give an example to justify your response.
Are the characters with disabilities cast as objects of curiosity, rather than as developed characters with distinct lives and personalities? Give an example to justify your response.
Are the characters with disabilities defined by their disabilities and/or portrayed as sad, incomplete, bitter, or angry in disproportionate ways (rather than as distinctive individuals with the full human range of character traits)? Give an example to justify your response.
Are the characters with disabilities portrayed in stereotypically positive ways that “compensate” for their “deficiency,” such as having unusual emotional or physical characteristics, special spiritual or moral insights, superior intellectual abilities or wisdom, or unnaturally inspirational qualities? Give an example to justify your response.
Does the book represent the achievements or ordinary actions of people with disabilities as heroic? Give an example to justify your response.
Does the book portray people with disabilities as overly preoccupied with their conditions and consumed with the hope of recovery or cure? Give an example to justify your response.
Does the book utilize condescending or pejorative language (e.g., special, crazy, sick, slow, cripple, dumb, retarded, idiot), or not use people-first language? Give an example to justify your response.
Does the book only show people with disabilities in passive roles and never show them in active or leadership positions? Give an example to justify your response.
Does the book dwell on what people with disabilities can’t do rather than what they can do? Give an example to justify your response.
Does the book depict adolescent and adult people with disabilities as asexual and without the same emotional or sexual needs and attachments as other people their age? Give an example to justify your response.
Does the book portray allies to people with disabilities as inspirations or “saints” for helping them, or as especially wonderful simply for simply being their friends? Give an example to justify your response.
Characters with disabilities: Respectful Portrayals:
Does the book promote empathy and an overall feeling of understanding for people with disabilities, as well as provide accurate information about a specific disability? Give an example to justify your response.
Does the book demonstrate respect for and acceptance of people with disabilities, and depict them as more similar than different from other people (“one of us” rather than “one of them”)? Give an example to justify your response.
Does the book emphasize the successes of people with disabilities and show their strengths and abilities along with their disabilities? Give an example to justify your response.
Does the book represent people with disabilities from different racial and cultural backgrounds, religions, age groups, and sexual orientations? Give an example to justify your response.
Now that you have completed this evaluation guide, has your opinion about the book changed? Why or why not?
