Who Wants Normal? The Disabled Girls’ Guide to Life by Frances Ryan review – countering the stereotypes | Autobiography and memoir

WHen Frances Ryan started writing her second book, barely guessing that she will get a superior degree by publishing it in the wake of another program for another program of brutal discounts of the benefits of deficit, this time by the Labor Party government. For the first time, Ryan is famous 2019, The unemployed: austerity and the diabetic of the disabledThere was a piece of political reports that document the effects of austerity measures through the coalition and conservative governments, through a set of research and direct interviews with the disabled people whose experiences have shown the human cost behind the statistics.

Who wants normal? It takes a more conversation approach. The book studies hybrids-the preacher-preacher, the book studies more personal topics such as the image of the body, acquaintance and relationships, specifically because it relates to the disabled women. But if the character is always political for women, this goes ten times for women who suffer from disability; As Ryan appears, even an ordinary thing like going to a bar with friends can be a minefield for anyone who has limited navigation or sensory challenges or who uses a wheelchair. Each aspect of life is affected by almost disabled women by societal situations and basic infrastructure that can unite to deny access, from intimate matters of sex and clothes, to the most obvious structural issues of health care, education and acting, all of which are treated here with strong analysis and humor.

In recent years, Ryan has become one of the most reliable voices on acting and politics in terms of its connection with the disabled in the United Kingdom, although it is bridging the fact that it is repeatedly described as it Guardian “The Pillar of Disability Pillar”, “Despite this role that is not in the paper and my practical focus on politics.” As a wheelchair user from childhood, which now lives with the effects of chronic disease, Ryan writes from a perspective that is still perspective in the prevailing publications-as you notice in her separation of acting, “Women with disabled women in the media are similar to Superman and Clared Kent never: You do not see it in the room at the same time.”

It takes a wide definition of its topic, noting that nearly a quarter of people in the United Kingdom say they have a form of disability; Among the high -level people who have been interviewed, not only women who suffer from clear physical weakness, but people with “hidden” disabilities such as Crohn, me or endometrium, as well as bipolar disorder, depression and nervous recovery. “No one really talks about what she is a disabled woman, especially a young woman,” she writes, and in the chapter on relationships, she discusses the importance of finding a society that you can discuss – and laugh – shared experiences. This book is a way to present this society to readers, who will find stories here to inspire and encourage women who suffer from disabilities who have succeeded in transferring professions in politics, sports, entertainment, medicine, psychology and the media, and often despite the important barriers. But it would be a shame for the sub -title to deter unknown readers, because there are many accounts here that highlight issues that are still largely invisible for those who have not experienced them, and which need a collective solution.

Perhaps the most surprising side of the book is its festive dialect often. There is a lot that you should be angry with in the way the disabled women are treated, as Ryan’s deadly columns have shown since she showed recent luxury discounts, however Who wants normal? It is also a challenging invitation to embrace what you call “disabled joy”, to show the disabled women who live a full and happy life as a harmful to the stereotypes. Uncredited women can learn valuable lessons about self -acceptance and radical rejection of beauty standards from their separation from the image of the body, and the women she chose to meet them are a kind of models that Ryan says she wishes that she has grown up: the last chapter consists of the advice of life from both the main shareholders, who include Gamilla Jill, Katie Piper, Tani, Tani, Tani,

While disability continues to misunderstand, interrogate and defame it, Ryan provides a vision of the extent to which women who are already disabled in society contribute, and how possible it may be with a more imaginative transformation in perspective, individually and political.

• Who wants normal? By Francis Ryan published by Tign Tree (18.99 pounds). To support Guardian and observer Ask your copy in Guardianbookshop.com. Delivery fees may apply. The audio cuisine, which Ruth Madle read, is now off