The New York Times Bestseller, 2015 Newbery Honor, and still Amazon’s #1 non-fiction book for children and disabilities sets the bar high. Highlighting the glaring impact of her hearing loss by portraying everyone as bunnies and using speech bubbles to vividly depict her hearing as a range from emptiness to garbled babbling to clear speech, Cece Bell produced a graphic novel memoir that is compassionate, witty, sarcastic, and moving. It’s achieved success in both conventional and diverse outlets.
Cece Bell created a lovely illustrated guide into how and why she wrote the book, showcasing her mementos from her childhood, and explaining that she waited until 15 years into her career as a writer and illustrator before creating El Deafo in order to avoid being typecasted. She also provided more background in a Guardian interview, on YouTube, and a reflection published in Disability In Kidlit.
El Deafo works for many reasons. It is extremely relatable, while also being quite specific about Bell’s unique experiences. She never tries to speak for the entire Deaf population as a whole but continually makes it clear that these are her thoughts and feelings alone, with no stereotypes or broad generalizations. She provides specific details about the technology she used and how it works without weighing down the narrative with endless explanations and is honest about the pros and cons of everything she does to cope in a hearing world. The content is suitable for ages 8 and up yet still engaging for adults. There is no miracle cure, happy ever after, or board inspirational gesture yet the book still ends on a note of hope.
An interesting note- when the New York Times decided to publish a review of El Deafo, it was written by Katherien Bouton, an author with adult-onset deafness instead of by an individual who could only guess as to whether or not Bell’s portrayal was accurate. Representation matters.
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