SHE TOUCHED THE WORLD: LAURA BRIDGMAN, DEAF-BLIND PIONEER

She Touched the World: Laura Bridgman, Deaf-Blind Pioneer
by Sally Hobart Alexander and Robert Alexander
(Houghton Mifflin)

This is so good I'm going to quote the introduction in full:

If you had lived in 1841, the name Laura Bridgman would have echoed through your home, your school, your neighborhood. It would have rung out in the streets of Boston, in the halls of Congress, and across the ocean to England and Europe and beyond. By the time Laura Bridgman was twelve years old, she was that famous.

Like all children, you would have loved and admired her. You would have named your favorite doll after her....And then you would have poked out the doll's eyes.

I just love that!

You may not have heard of her (unless perhaps you've recently read a book called Miss Spitfire!) but without Laura Bridgman, there would have been no Helen Keller. Laura's education began to change the way the world saw disability, and it's a delight to see her getting the attention she deserves.

This is biography at its best - snappy, accurate writing with just the right amount of context. There are no imaginings or dramatizations here to sully the facts, yet the text is lively and engaging. Matter of fact, it didn't make a difference that I've already read and/or own most of the authors' sources on Laura; the information still felt fresh.

Oh, and did I mention that one of the authors is herself blind and hearing impaired? Yeah. The lady knows of what she speaks.

One last note: click here to see my very own authentic Laura Bridgman signature. It's proudly mounted on my wall alongside her compatriots Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan.