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Disability Pride Reading List

group of people with diverse disabilities

Photo credit: iStockphoto.com (Maria Stavreva)

Note: This list will use both person-first and identity-first language to refer to the disabled community. This intentional decision is to be inclusive of the ways the disability community identifies. 

Our supporting organization, Diversability, suggests that where possible, ask a disabled person about their preferred terminology. We’ve followed the guidance of the National Center on Disability and Journalism Disability Language Style Guide in curating this list. 

Disability Pride Month, observed every July, commemorates the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on July 26, 1990. This landmark legislation was pivotal in breaking down barriers and ensuring greater inclusion for people with disabilities.

To help celebrate the month, we’ve curated this book list, which features authors and stories that reflect the diverse experiences of the disability community. 


Non-Fiction


Fiction

  • Unbroken: 13 Stories Starring Disabled Teens edited by Marieke Nijkamp: Anthology of stories featuring disabled teen protagonists, showcasing diverse experiences.
  • Run by Kody Keplinger: A young adult novel about a blind girl navigating high school and friendships.
  • Cursed by Karol Ruth Silverstein: A story about a teenage girl with arthritis finding her place in a new school.
  • A Room Called Earth by Madeleine Ryan: A novel about a neurodivergent woman navigating a night out in Melbourne.
  • True Biz by Sara Novic: A novel set at a school for the Deaf, following a teenager learning ASL and discovering her identity.
  • Sign for Home by Blair Fell: A novel about a DeafBlind man navigating love and independence.

Children’s

  • ABC Let’s Celebrate You and Me by Sugar Snap Studio: An alphabet book celebrating diversity and inclusion.
  • I Will Dance by Nancy Bo Flood and Julianna Swaney: A story of a girl with cerebral palsy who dreams of dancing.
  • Hello Goodbye Dog by Maria Gianferrari and Patrice Barton: A story about a therapy dog who helps a girl with disabilities.
  • Itzhak: A Boy Who Loved the Violin by Tracy Newman and Abigail Halpin: A biography of violinist Itzhak Perlman, who overcame polio to become a celebrated musician.

Young Adult

  • Ab(solutely) Normal edited by Nora Shalaway Carpenter and Rocky Callen: A collection of stories about mental health disorders written by diverse authors.
  • The Degenerates by Jennifer Ann Mann: Historical fiction set in the 1920s about institutionalized teens with disabilities.
  • El Deafo by Cece Bell: A graphic novel memoir about a girl with a hearing aid navigating childhood.
  • Meet Me in Outer Space by Melinda Grace: Romantic YA story of a girl with a learning disability exploring love and life.
  • Roll With It by Jamie Sumner: A story of a girl with cerebral palsy who dreams of becoming a baker.
  • The Silence Between Us by Alison Gervais: YA novel about a Deaf girl adjusting to a hearing school and new relationships.
  • Lila and Hadley by Kody Keplinger: A story about a girl losing her eyesight and finding solace in fostering a dog.
  • Planet Earth Is Blue by Nicole Panteleakos: A novel about a nonverbal autistic girl coping with the Challenger disaster.