Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Book Mystery--- What's the Name?

I've been asked to help solve a mystery. While the book seems familiar, I just can't put my finger on it.

Here is what we know...

The novel is about a deaf doctor.

The doctor has been on a train and heading home after his father’s death (his father who was also a physician).

It may be set during the civil war.


The father had some sort of a relationship with a Native American Indian woman.
If you can help, please send me an email! yadeafcharacters@ gmail.com
UPDATE: This wasn't the book that was lingering somewhere in the back of my mind but apparently this one is the best fit.
Shaman (1993)by Noah Gordon
Paperback: 652 pages
ISBN-10: 0751500828
From Publishers Weekly
In the New World, young Scottish physician Rob J. Cole seeks the justice and tolerance that seemed missing in the Old. But in Boston in 1839, where he assists surgeon Oliver Wendell Holmes, he finds the same mixture of altruism and evil that informs all human pursuits. Joining the Union Army in civilian service, Rob J. moves to the wilderness of Illinois. Gordon ( The Rabbi ) deftly employs Rob J.'s diary, which is read by his son Shaman, also a doctor, after his father's death, to reveal the Coles's early family years. In doctoring and sheep farming, Rob J. builds a worthy life, marrying the beautiful and haunted Sarah. While dealing sensitively with Sarah's jealousy of his Indian soulmate, the female shaman Makwa-ikwa, and with Shaman's deafness, Rob J. often escapes into the demands and rewards of his practice. The search for Makwa-ikwa's murderer raises such issues as racial injustice, religious prejudice and pacifism. In serviceable, if curiously unemotional prose, Gordon tells a quietly absorbing story that should please a wide audience.

Saturday, April 19, 2008

Deaf Author Book signing at Gallaudet & Tagged

Patrick Kilgallon, a 1996 Gallaudet University graduate, will be signing his book entitled Gather the Weeds today from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. at Gallaudet Univeristy.

Gather the Weeds
Paperback: 372 pages
Publisher: AuthorHouse (April 6, 2006)
ISBN-10: 1418446386

Michael Poole, a culturally isolated deaf seventeen-year-old ward of the Gate, only wants few things in his life: a girlfriend, a chance to play hockey, and good times. But the blockheads and the Whysees who watch over him have other things in store for him. Like not going outside the Gate. Not getting into trouble. And to remain still and calmly wait for the day of his own taking. The story takes place in an alternative world where one of the many industrial military complexes contains the handicapped wards taken from all over the country. The novel explores the Gate in the depth of Michael Poole's mind, in silly riddles, messages on bathroom's walls and crude drawings only to discover the final health policy for the wards of the Gate, never welcomed by the general population of a perfect world.


I have been tagged!
Jodi (An American Mom in Tuscany http://rallycapsdotnet.blogspot.com/) Tagged Me!

Here's the deal:
1. The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player tags 5 people and posts their name, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they've been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

I have to answer questions and people I tag have to answer the same questions, so here I go.
What was I doing 10 years ago:
Ten years ago I had been taking American Sign Language classes for about a year and had finally been persuaded to enroll in Gallaudet's Deaf Education Masters of Arts program. I was in a very transitional time in my life. My best friend, Aslan (a fella with four paws and all the loyalty a girl could ask for) and I moved into a house in DC right across the street from the university. I'd like to consider 1998 the start of a new wonderful life.

Five Snacks I enjoy:In a perfect, non weight-gaining world1. apple crisp
2. anything chocolate
3. peanut butter and apples
4. peppermint cafe mocha beverages
5. Nehi Peach (it's a drink but I don't drink sodas so this would be a splurge)

In the real world:
1. peanut butter and apples
2. raw veggies (I really like veggies which is good for a vegetarian)
3. low-fat microwave popcorn4. Skinny Peppermint Mochas from Starbucks
5. Weight Watchers has this awesome chocolate smoothie mix. It's great with iced coffee.

Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
I love my life so I wouldn't buy a new house or a new car....
1. Pay off my student-loans and all the members in my graduating class who are still educators.
2. Invest in Amtrak so I could still commute to work without worrying about money
3. Establish a scholarship program for Deaf & Hard of Hearing youth
4. Establish a non-profit that distributes Deaf Characters books to young people (I'm actually working on this one)
5. Give money to my family

Five jobs that I have had:
1. Monorail Train Operator- I accidentally hit a Mute Swan and they mate for life...(she didn't die but tumbled down a hill... I still feel guilty because she had babies the following week)
2. Worked with African & Asian animals in a Wild Life Preserve. My favorite animal is the sitatunga.
3. Roller Coaster Supervisor
4. Human Resources Interview/Job Coach- Welfare to Workforce program5. Edgar A Poe Museum Historic Guide (tour guide- same concept)
Three of my habits:
1. Reading
2. Blogging
3. Purposely Embarrassing Friends in public (you didn't say "good" habits)

Five places I have lived:
1. Numerous places in the Greater Richmond area, VA
2. Washington, D.C.
3. Boston, MA
4. Charlottesville VA
Add one new part:
Name your irrational phobias: Clowns, Dolls, Closets (but boy do I love horror movies... and as a reformed goth girl (do we ever reform?) I practically lived in a graveyard in my youth.

Five People I Want to Get to Know Better:
1. Josh Swiller (http://cochbla.blogspot.com/) His Otis seems like my late Aslan. Dogs rule! Pretty sarcastic guy... I embrace sarcasm.
2. Moxie Mocha (http://moxie-mocha.livejournal.com/) We're friends but I wish we could spend more time together.
3. Sarah Miller (http://sarahmillerbooks.blogspot.com/) I'm sure we'd be great friends if we lived in closer proximity.
4. James Bucky Carter (http://ensaneworld.blogspot.com/) Bucky was one of my peers from UVa and is just a super smart and creative educator. He's really encouraged me to pursue my interest in graphic novels in the classroom.
5. Matt (no available profile so I hope he sees this post).... Matt makes comments on my blog. He's super witty, maybe a bit sarcastic (love it!) and enjoys a good comic book.

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Hard of Hearing Character in The Gollywhopper Games

The Gollywhopper Games by Jody Feldman, Victoria Jamieson (Illustrator)
320 pages
Reading Ages: 9-12
Publisher: Greenwillow (March 4, 2008)

Main character Gil Goodson hopes he is ready for the Gollywhopper Games which includes solving puzzles, performing stunts and answering trivia about the Golly Toy & Game Company. If he wins, his dad has promised the family can move out of Orchard Heights. Gil has been studying and he thinks he knows everything about the store's history and merchandise; yet, he has some formidable opponents, including Hard of Hearing character Thorn, who have their own special talents.
Thorn uses a high-tech hearing aid and lipreading to communicate. The book includes humor and brain-teasers.

Sunday, April 06, 2008

Silent Magic: Carmel's book on Deaf Magicians

If you're interested in magic or simply want to learn about Deaf and Hard of Hearing individuals who have been involved with magic, Silent Magic is the book for you.

To describe magic and magicians,
You would probably use such words as visual, patter, sound and music. But what if three of those items were gone? Poof! Vanished! Would there—could there—still be magic without “patter” and “sound” and “music?” You bet.


This book includes fifty-nine biographies of Deaf magicians in the United States from the 19th to the 21st centuries.

US $29.95 per copy + US $5.00 for postage and handling.
To purchase the book, you are welcome to email me and I will forward the ORDER FORM to you or you can contact the author:
Dr. Simon J. Carmel
SILENT MAGIC: Biographies of Deaf Magicians
9339 Bridgeport Drive
West Palm Beach, Florida 33411 SimonCarmel13@aol.com

"Dr. Simon J. Carmel’s book is not only a great historical resource, but also it illustrates many personal struggles and triumphs as well. These men and women all shared two very strong common interests: they are or were all deaf, and they all have or had a love for the art of magic. I learned much after reading each story. For instance, I never knew Okito was deaf and that was the reason he created a silent act to music. I applaud Dr. Carmel for all the inspiration and years of effort in creating this important work."
--Kevin James, Comedy Illusionist
Las Vegas, Nevada