About the Book
The first major anthology by parents with disabilities.
How does a father who is blind take his child to the park? How is a mother with dwarfism treated when she walks her child down the street? How do Deaf parents know when their baby cries in the night?
When writer and musician Eliza Hull was pregnant with her first child, like most parents-to-be she was a mix of excited and nervous. But as a person with a disability, there were added complexities. She wondered: Will the pregnancy be too hard? Will people judge me? Will I cope with the demands of parenting? More than 15 percent of people worldwide live with a disability, and many of them are also parents. And yet their stories are rarely shared, their experiences almost never reflected in parenting literature.
In We've Got This, parents around the world who identify as Deaf, disabled, or chronically ill discuss the highs and lows of their parenting journeys and reveal that the greatest obstacles lie in other people's attitudes. The result is a moving, revelatory, and empowering anthology that tackles ableism head-on. As Rebekah Taussig writes, 'Parenthood can tangle with grief and loss. Disability can include joy and abundance. And goddammit -- disabled parents exist.'
About the Author :
Eliza Hull is a musical artist, writer, journalist, and disability advocate based in Victoria, Australia. Her podcast series on parenting with a disability, We've Got This, was one of Australia's most successful series of all time.
Rebekah G. Taussig US (Kansas City, MO) @sitting_pretty
Ricardo and Donna Thornton US ( Washington D.C.)
Daniela Izzie US (Virginia) @daniizzie
Kristen Witucki US (New Jersey)
Christa Couture (Canada) @christacouture
Marjorie Aunos (Canada) @MarjorieAunos
Nina Tame (England)
Sam Drummond Australia
Micheline Lee Australia
Lucy and James Catchpole England
Cathy Reay England
Jasper Peach Australia
Joanne Limburg England
Jax Jacki Brown Australia
Oscar and Estefani Arevalo
Debra Keenahan Australia
Jacinta Parsons Australia
Jaclyn and Garry Lynch
Pete Wharmby England
Brent Phillips Australia
Mandy McCracken Australia
Brian Edwards Australia
Neangok Chair Australia
Liel K. Bridgford Australia
Kristy Forbes Australia
Shakira Hussein (Australia)
Review :
"In this anthology, 30 parents with various mental and physical disabilities discuss the beauty and challenges of parenting and raising a family in an ableist society."
--The New York Times
"Parenthood can tangle with grief and loss. Disability can include joy and abundance. And goddammit--disabled parents exist."
--Rebekah Taussig
"Moving ... the essays are at their richest when the authors describe what ought to be mundane (for example, discussing how to adjust the height of a kitchen counter for a wheelchair) or when they are brutally honest."
--James Coney, The Sunday Times
"A brilliant, positive, and empowering read full of inspirational stories ... really eye-opening."
--Anita Rani, BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour
"Eliza is a legend--and a great advocate for our community. This book will help a lot of people!."
--Dylan Alcott, paralympian
"We've Got This is the book I needed many years ago when I was considering whether to have children. Now, as I embark on motherhood, these stories from these incredible parents will teach me so much"
--Nas Campanella, journalist
"All parenting is a leap of faith: with a disability it's a powerful affirmation of life--as the stories in We've Got This demonstrate."
--Virginia Trioli, journalist and radio/TV presenter
"We've Got This challenges the narrow stereotype of what disability looks like. It shows that disabled people are parents too--and bloody good ones at that! Thank you, Eliza, for disrupting the discourse."
--Lisa Cox, media professional and disability advocate
"We've Got This shows what's possible--that disabled people make brilliant parents. Eliza Hull is a skilful curator. This book should be mandatory reading for healthcare professionals, educators, and everyone wanting to be a better disability ally."
--Carly Findlay OAM, writer, speaker and appearance activist
"Eye-opening and heartwarming, We've Got This will make you laugh, cry, and rethink disability entirely. A must-read."
--Holly Ransom, public speaker and author of The Leading Edge
"Full of deep, beautiful, important stories. I've learnt so much from this book."
--Clare Bowditch, musician, actress and radio presenter
"The collection includes authors from a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences ... it also includes essays and interviews from parents with intellectual disabilities, a frequently missing discourse in disability spaces ... As a disabled parent, this was such an affirming and moving read for me, though I think all parents will benefit from reading it."
--Margaret Kingsbury, Book Riot
"[M]uch-needed ... [W]onderfully intersectional ... Eliza Hull has done a fantastic job of curating this book. The essays themselves are brilliant, written from the heart and are very informative ... The wealth of experiences, knowledge and sense of community that We've Got This offers is invaluable ... [A] necessary read."
--Heather T., Just Geeking By
"Every parent faces unique challenges, and these get even more complex when the parent is managing their own disability. We've Got This is in turns heart-warming, defiant, raw, and hopeful. The essayists include parents with physical, mental, and intellectual disabilities; parents from around the world; parents who are straight, gay, queer, single by choice. The diversity of these voices is much appreciated. A must-read for disabled and non-disabled people!"
--Sarah Smee
"When I found this book, I was elated, relieved, and thrilled. As a disabled parent myself, it is so easy to feel alone in the act of parenting. Even with a co-parent or spouse. I cried almost the entire time while reading this book. Mostly from relief that I'm not alone. This book is needed, has been needed for generations. Disabled people live full lives, despite what pop culture would have society believe. We live full lives as parents. This book proves it."
--Annie Carl, The Neverending Bookshop
"Beautiful."
--PosAbility Magazine
