I tightened the reins on my family’s extra spending in January, saying, “We can’t go on any trips if we keep buying stuff at Amazon.” So of course, my husband let out an audible groan when I bought another Kindle book, From Darkness to Triumph by Anastasia Charalambakos.
My first instinct when writing this review is to say, “Just read this!” You won’t regret it.” But that is not a good or fair way to write a review–not for Ana as the author and not for you as readers.
What strikes me most after reading this book is Ana’s ability to connect with people with diverse backgrounds. Yes, this is a blind woman’s memoir; and much of it has to do with how she lives with blindness. However, it is also a narrative about many other things. Ana is an engaging storyteller, and if you reject the book thinking it is a blindness memoir you will miss out on a great read.
In addition to sharing her story, Ana takes time to reflect about social trends, current events, and what she feels are important changes we must make in society. She speaks about blindness and other disability-related issues; but she raises other concerns that affect people with and without disabilities alike throughout her book, especially in her closing reflections. This is a memoir not only about blindness but also about living with family dysfunction and how a person thrives in spite of that. It is also a memoir about seizing opportunities, about making choices regarding when to let go of things that one holds dear, about encountering cultures that are very different from one’s own and coping with culture shock, and about reconciliation and forgiveness.
If you are a teacher, a social worker, a parent, or a person who is involved in any way with multicultural work, I highly recommend this book be next on your reading list.
- Learning From My Younger Self - February 10, 2024
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- On travel while at ITD: reflections after day 1 - June 27, 2023
- ITD day 1 - June 27, 2023
- ITD day 1 - June 27, 2023
- Job Descriptions, Inclusivity, and Equity for People with Disabilities - October 15, 2022
- Traveling without a Guide Dog: Experience with Cane and Walker - October 14, 2022
- Disability and Church, Intersection - June 11, 2022
- Review: When Chronic Pain and Illness Take Everything Away - June 11, 2022
- Grammar and Style Resources for Writers - June 9, 2022
