.svg){kind=small}
We are big fans of books that center on the transition to listening devices.
But, we also want our daughter to have books featuring characters who happen to be deaf having adventures and doing regular kid things!
Here's a few we've come across in our travels! (We haven't read all of these yet, but we look forward to it.)
Mighty Mila
From the Publisher
Celebrate the power of believing in yourself with this multi-award winning, heartwarming and hilarious tale of a spunky deaf girl who’s determined to prove she can be a big kid!
Mila may be a kid, but she can act pretty grown up…at least that’s what she thinks. The trouble is, Mila’s parents still treat her like she’s little, so she’s decided to prove once and for all that she can do things “all on her own!” But when it turns out that being a big kid isn’t as easy as she thought, will Mila admit defeat, or will she find a way to prove just how big and mighty she really is?
Mighty Mila is now a multi-award winning book:
- Gold Winner of the IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award (Bill Fisher Award for Best First Book: Children's / Young Adult)
- Gold Winner of the Wishing Shelf Awards (Books for 6-8 Year Olds)
- Gold Winner of the Eric Hoffer Award (Children's Books)
- Winner of the Eric Hoffer First Horizon Award (for superior work by debut authors)
- Eric Hoffer Award Grand Prize Finalist
- Readers Favorite 5-Star Review Recipient
We love that Mighty Mila is written by an LSL parent!
Ada and the Helpers
From the Publisher
Be bold! Be brave! Let you be you... and let's help others, too!"
That's Ada's motto.
Ada is a dancing, deaf fox with cochlear implants who loves to help others. On her way to dance in a talent show one day, she meets three other creatures who are each facing a physical challenge or disability of their own. She decides to help each of her new friends to see past their challenges and discover their natural, God-given strengths. But can they help her in return? Ada's a bit nervous about the talent show!
Will she be able to hear the music clearly?
Will everyone laugh at her?
Pick up a copy of Ada and the Helpers today and follow Ada and her new friends on an exciting new adventure that inspires friendship, helping others, inclusion, and finding your strengths. Plus, your child can learn the ASL alphabet at the same time! The rhyming nature of the story is welcoming for hearing kids, but is especially helpful for young children who are hard-of-hearing.
Ada and the Helpers is also written by an LSL parent! It also incorporates some ASL signs, and Ling sounds.
Daisy Bell's Review
Ada and the Helpers is cute! The illustrations are pretty and cheerful. The story rhymes, which is great for working on rhythm and rhyming sounds. It cleverly works in some Ling sounds, and also includes some signs.
We love that Ada dances and enjoys music!
The plot goes beyond "character gets hearing aids," which we really appreciate. While Ada's hearing loss is an aspect of the plot, the overall story is closer to a book that "happens" to have a deaf main character, rather than focusing entirely on her deafness. We love that Ada helps others.
The first few pages do address Ada's transition to listening devices. That might be very helpful for some families. We could also see skipping over those pages if your child has already adapted to their devices by the time this book is age appropriate. In that case, we could see just starting the story when Ada ventures into the forest.
One note we have is that Ada is worried that kids will laugh at her. As parents of a very young baby, we wouldn't want to telegraph that listening devices are something that kids might laugh at. So for now, we would change that language to just have Ada being nervous to perform on stage alone. Of course, our take on that might change as we encounter different social dynamics.
We would also tread carefully with the scene where Ada helps the stuttering bird to sing. Since stuttering is a very tough challenge for some, we would want to treat it with the seriousness it deserves, and not make it seem "silly."
Overall, it's great to have Ada and the Helpers as an option. Even just seeing a cute fox wearing cochlear implants is so refreshing, and a valuable addition to the bookshelf.
Looking for a book for someone older? Check out our list here!
