Disability Pride Month

This book list highlights books about disability that are instructive, own voices (written by people who have disabilities), or that have disability representation that isn't from the abled gaze (i.e. disability is not just a plot point to overcome, a curse, a punishment, or a sign that a character is evil or strange).

Disability pride is about embracing people with disabilities as fully human. Being proud to be disabled isn’t about liking your disability. It isn’t about pretending that disability doesn’t present challenges. Rather, claiming disability pride is a rejection of the notion that disabled people should feel ashamed their bodies or their disabilities. It’s a rejection of the idea that disabled people are less able to contribute and participate in the world.

Every July, the city of Lake Oswego, Oregon recognizes Disability Pride Month with events throughout the city.

Updated July 12, 2023
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Percentages and characteristics of adults with disabilities in Oregon compared to national estimates.
Watch documentaries about the history of the disability rights movement and meet artists and families whose stories examine their disability experiences.
I only recently learned that July is Disability Pride Month. Although not yet officially recognized in the United States, since 2004 Disability Pride Month has been celebrated with parades in cities including New York, Chicago, Madison, and Los Angeles.
A quiet kind of thunder
Barnard, Sara
Paper Book
A girl who can't speak and a boy who can't hear go on a journey of self-discovery and find support with each other in this gripping, emotionally resonant novel from bestselling author Sara Barnard. Perfect for fans of Morgan Matson and Jandy Nelson. Steffi doesn't talk, but...
El deafo
Bell, Cece
Paper Book
Cece Bell's #1 New York Times Bestseller graphic novel El Deafo is the origin story of a student with hearing loss and a hearing aid becoming a superhero. A John Newbery Medal Winner Now an Apple+ Animated TV Series! ...
No excuses : growing up deaf and achieving my Super Bowl dreams
Coleman, Derrick, Jr.
Ebook
Trailblazing Seattle Seahawks fullback Derrick Coleman Jr.--the first deaf athlete to play offense in the NFL--tells his inspirational journey of persevering through every obstacle, remaining dedicated to the hard work and a no-excuses attitude that ultimately earned him a Super Bowl victory....
Deaf utopia : a memoir-- and a love letter to a way of life
DiMarco, Nyle
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A heartfelt and inspiring memoir and celebration of Deaf culture by Nyle DiMarco, actor, producer, two-time reality show winner, and cultural icon of the international Deaf community Before becoming the actor, producer, advocate, and model...
How to be human : an autistic man's guide to life
Fleming, Jory
Audiobook
Ten steps to Nanette : a memoir situation
Gadsby, Hannah
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Multi-award-winning Hannah Gadsby broke comedy with their show Nanette. Now they take us through the defining moments in their life and their powerful decision to tell the truth--no matter the cost. Don't miss Hannah Gadsby's...
We're not broken : changing the autism conversation
Garcia, Eric
Paper Book
"This book is a message from autistic people to their parents, friends, teachers, coworkers and doctors showing what life is like on the spectrum. It's also my love letter to autistic people. For too long, we have been forced to navigate a world where all the road signs are written in another...
You're welcome, universe
Gardner, Whitney
Paper Book
A vibrant, edgy, fresh new YA voice for fans of More Happy Than Not and Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, packed with interior graffiti. When Julia finds a slur about her best friend scrawled across the back of the Kingston School for the Deaf, she covers it up...
The silence between us
Gervais, Alison
Paper Book
"The Silence Between Us is eminently un-put-down-able." (NPR) Schneider Family Book Award, Best Teen Honor Book 2020 "This is a great YA contemporary (clean) romance that follows Maya as she navigates a new school and plans for her future. The addition of...
The autistic brain : helping different kinds of minds succeed
Grandin, Temple
Paper Book
A cutting-edge account of the latest science of autism, from the best-selling author and advocate When Temple Grandin was born in 1947, autism had only just been named. Today it is more prevalent than ever, with one in 88 children diagnosed on the spectrum. And our thinking about it has...
Life on delay : making peace with a stutter
Hendrickson, John (Atlantic senior editor)
Paper Book
A NEW YORKER BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR. USA TODAY BOOK CLUB PICK . ONE OF AUDIBLE'S BEST BIOS AND MEMOIRS OF 2023 . "A raw, intimate look at Hendrickson's life with a stutter. It's a profoundly moving book that will reshape the way you think about people living with this condition."-...
Being Heumann An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist
Heumann, Judith.
Paper Book
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year for Nonfiction "...an essential and engaging look at recent disability history."-- Buzzfeed One of the most influential disability rights activists in US history tells her personal story of fighting...
Get a life, Chloe Brown a novel
Hibbert, Talia
Paper Book
The bride test
Hoang, Helen
Paper Book
Khai Diep has no feelings. Well he can't feel big emotions like love. He thinks he's defective. His mum knows that his autism means he just processes emotions differently, and goes to Vietnam to find him a wife. As a mixed race girl living in Ho Chi Minh City, Esme Tran has always felt out of place,...
The kiss quotient
Hoang, Helen
Paper Book
From the author of The Bride Test comes a romance novel hailed as one of The Washington Post's 50 Notable Works of Fiction in 2018 and one of Amazon's Top 100 Books of 2018! "This is such a fun read and it's also quite original and sexy and sensitive."--Roxane Gay,...
A curse so dark and lonely
Kemmerer, Brigid
Paper Book
A New York Times bestseller! "Has everything you'd want in a retelling of a classic fairy tale." - Jodi Picoult In a lush, contemporary fantasy retelling of Beauty and the Beast, Brigid Kemmerer gives readers another compulsively readable romance...
Always only you
Liese, Chloe
Audiobook
Not if I see you first
Lindstrom, Eric
Ebook
In the tradition of Gayle Forman and John Green comes this extraordinary YA debut about a blind teen girl navigating life and love in high school. Parker Grant doesn't need 20/20 vision to see right through you. That's why she created the Rules: Don't treat her any differently...
What doesn't kill you : a life with chronic illness-lessons from a body in revolt
Miller, Tessa
Paper Book
"Should be read by anyone with a body. . . . Relentlessly researched and undeniably smart." --The New York Times Named one of BuzzFeed's "Best Books of 2021" What Doesn't Kill You is the riveting account of a young...
A disability history of the United States
Nielsen, Kim E.
Paper Book
The first book to cover the entirety of disability history, from pre-1492 to the present Disability is not only the story of someone we love or the story of whom we may become; rather it is undoubtedly the story of our nation. Covering the entirety of US history from pre-1492 to...
The oracle code : a graphic novel
Nijkamp, Marieke
Paper Book
#1 New York Times bestselling author Marieke Nijkamp and artist Manuel Preitano unveil a graphic novel that explores the dark corridors of Barbara Gordon's first mystery- herself. After a gunshot leaves her paralyzed below the waist, Barbara Gordon undergoes physical and...
Unbroken : 13 stories starring disabled teens
Nijkamp, Marieke
Paper Book
This anthology explores disability in fictional tales told from the viewpoint of disabled characters, written by disabled creators. With stories in various genres about first loves, friendship, war, travel, and more, Unbroken will offer today's teen readers a glimpse into the lives of...
True biz : a novel
Novic?, Sara
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK * A "tender, beautiful and radiantly outraged" (The New York Times Book Review) novel that follows a year of seismic romantic, political, and familial shifts for a teacher and her students at a boarding school for the deaf,...
The future is disabled : prophecies, love notes, and mourning songs
Piepzna-Samarasinha, Leah Lakshmi
Ebook
Neurotribes : the legacy of autism and the future of neurodiversity
Silberman, Steve
Paper Book
This New York Times-bestselling book upends conventional thinking about autism and suggests a broader model for acceptance, understanding, and full participation in society for people who think differently. "Beautifully told, humanizing, important."--The New York Times...
Fortune Favors the Dead A Novel
Spotswood, Stephen.
Ebook
A wildly charming and fast-paced mystery written with all the panache of the hardboiled classics, Fortune Favors the Dead introduces Pentecost and Parker, an audacious new detective duo for the ages. "Razor-sharp style, tons of flair, a snappy sense of humor, and all the most...
Sitting pretty : the view from my ordinary resilient disabled body
Taussig, Rebekah
Ebook
A memoir-in-essays from disability advocate and creator of the Instagram account @sitting_pretty Rebekah Taussig, processing a lifetime of memories to paint a beautiful, nuanced portrait of a body that looks and moves differently than most. Growing up as a paralyzed girl during the 90s and...
A time to dance
Venkatraman, Padma
Ebook
Padma Venkatraman's inspiring story of a young girl's struggle to regain her passion and find a new peace is told lyrically through verse that captures the beauty and mystery of India and the ancient bharatanatyam dance form. This is a stunning novel about spiritual awakening, the power of...
Something to talk about
Wilsner, Meryl
Paper Book
Hollywood powerhouse Jo is photographed making her assistant Emma laugh on the red carpet and the tabloids declare them a couple. The so-called scandal couldn't come at a worse time - threatening Emma's promotion and Jo's new movie. The gossip starts to affect all areas of their lives; paparazzi are...
Disability visibility : first-person stories from the Twenty-first century
Wong, Alice
Audiobook
One in five people in the United States lives with a disability. Some disabilities are visible, others less apparent--but all are underrepresented in media and popular culture. Now, just in time for the thirtieth anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, activist Alice Wong brings together...
Year of the tiger : an activist's life
Wong, Alice
Paper Book
NATIONAL BESTSELLER . ONE OF USA TODAY'S MUST-READ BOOKS . This groundbreaking memoir offers a glimpse into an activist's journey to finding and cultivating community and the continued fight for disability justice, from the founder and director of the Disability Visibility Project ...

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