What do you think?
Rate this book
Dancing After TEN
In late 2004, Vivian Chong’s life was changed forever when a rare skin disease, Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN), left her with scar tissue that would eventually blind her. As she was losing her sight, she put down as many drawings on paper as she could to document the experience. In Dancing After TEN, Chong teams up with cartoonist Georgia Webber—whose graphic autobiography, Dumb, chronicled her own disability—to trace her journey out of the darkness and into the spotlight.
162 pages, Hardcover
First published June 2, 2020
1 person is currently reading
762 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 125 reviews
October 19, 2022
***SPOILERS HIDDEN***
One day in 2004, while on a trip to St. Martin with her ex-boyfriend and his sister, author Vivian Chong wasn't feeling well and did what countless sufferers do: took ibuprofen. So began her trip to hell. She experienced a rare side effect called Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (the “TEN” of the title), an agonizingly painful skin condition that starts as extreme itchiness and is equivalent to being burned. She developed disfiguring scar tissue and blindness.
I didn’t know about TEN before reading this sequential-art memoir, so Chong’s book was a (frightening) education--but more so about what it’s like to live with the disease, particularly what it’s like to live blind. Sight is such an essential sense. So much of the joy we get out of life we get because we can see, so life can be terribly isolating and boring when you’re blind. Basic things such as completing chores, cooking, going out in public, and caring for yourself suddenly require time-consuming “adaptive training” taught by an assistant.
The book is also about the social toll. Chong’s dirtbag ex-boyfriend dumped her in a hospital in St. Martin, then lied to everyone after coming home by saying she’d decided to prolong her vacation. Her then-boyfriend . Her parents lived in China and weren’t able to spend much time with her at her home in Canada. At a dance class, she asked many to dance and was rejected by most. She went out in the world, to make some music with a bandmate and to go to a yoga class and the aforementioned dance class . It’s a heartbreaking account.
Chong compiled this book shortly after getting a cornea transplant that temporarily restored twenty percent of her sight, so as is to be expected, the drawings are messy and sometimes chaotic--but this messiness gets across the disorientation of sudden blindness. (She completed the book with the help of another illustrator.) The actual account could have been improved, though. The memoir is structured too loosely, with the chronology sometimes confusing. It’s told through illustration and word bubbles only, but between the loose structure and messy drawings, it’s hard to always understand what’s happening. As so many authors of these memoirs do, Chong explained more in the afterword, but her explanation could have been folded into the story so that the illustrations wouldn’t have to do so much heavy lifting and would be more of a complement to the text. More explanation also would have made the memoir heftier, especially if it had included an education about TEN itself. What it does now is humanize someone with a disability (definitely needed in an ableist society) and put TEN on more people’s radars.
One day in 2004, while on a trip to St. Martin with her ex-boyfriend and his sister, author Vivian Chong wasn't feeling well and did what countless sufferers do: took ibuprofen. So began her trip to hell. She experienced a rare side effect called Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (the “TEN” of the title), an agonizingly painful skin condition that starts as extreme itchiness and is equivalent to being burned. She developed disfiguring scar tissue and blindness.
I didn’t know about TEN before reading this sequential-art memoir, so Chong’s book was a (frightening) education--but more so about what it’s like to live with the disease, particularly what it’s like to live blind. Sight is such an essential sense. So much of the joy we get out of life we get because we can see, so life can be terribly isolating and boring when you’re blind. Basic things such as completing chores, cooking, going out in public, and caring for yourself suddenly require time-consuming “adaptive training” taught by an assistant.
The book is also about the social toll. Chong’s dirtbag ex-boyfriend dumped her in a hospital in St. Martin, then lied to everyone after coming home by saying she’d decided to prolong her vacation. Her then-boyfriend . Her parents lived in China and weren’t able to spend much time with her at her home in Canada. At a dance class, she asked many to dance and was rejected by most. She went out in the world, to make some music with a bandmate and to go to a yoga class and the aforementioned dance class . It’s a heartbreaking account.
Chong compiled this book shortly after getting a cornea transplant that temporarily restored twenty percent of her sight, so as is to be expected, the drawings are messy and sometimes chaotic--but this messiness gets across the disorientation of sudden blindness. (She completed the book with the help of another illustrator.) The actual account could have been improved, though. The memoir is structured too loosely, with the chronology sometimes confusing. It’s told through illustration and word bubbles only, but between the loose structure and messy drawings, it’s hard to always understand what’s happening. As so many authors of these memoirs do, Chong explained more in the afterword, but her explanation could have been folded into the story so that the illustrations wouldn’t have to do so much heavy lifting and would be more of a complement to the text. More explanation also would have made the memoir heftier, especially if it had included an education about TEN itself. What it does now is humanize someone with a disability (definitely needed in an ableist society) and put TEN on more people’s radars.
June 28, 2021
In late 2004, Vivian Chong got a rare skin disease, TEN (Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis), from taking ibuprofen, a kind of very rare allergic reaction. Scar tissue from the event--she was in a coma for two months--would eventually blind her. As she was losing her sight she began to draw as fast as she could, documenting her experience. And yes, even after blindness Chong draws.
Then she was joined in collaboration by cartoonist Georgia Webber (who wrote her own graphic medical memoir, Dumb, about her own loss of speech). Part of a series of work in graphic medicine. Chong also does theater and dance pieces to try and document her experience. Scary stuff, and inspiring Fantagraphics production, over-sized book.
I am just struck by how clueless two different boyfriends were in the process, so disappointing. Useful for seeing her range of encounters with the medical establishment, as they too encounter this strange condition few had heard of. The point is not (to me) to learn more about this rare condition so much as it is to see how Chong copes with tragedy.
Eight sample pages:
https://www.fantagraphics.com/product...
Then she was joined in collaboration by cartoonist Georgia Webber (who wrote her own graphic medical memoir, Dumb, about her own loss of speech). Part of a series of work in graphic medicine. Chong also does theater and dance pieces to try and document her experience. Scary stuff, and inspiring Fantagraphics production, over-sized book.
I am just struck by how clueless two different boyfriends were in the process, so disappointing. Useful for seeing her range of encounters with the medical establishment, as they too encounter this strange condition few had heard of. The point is not (to me) to learn more about this rare condition so much as it is to see how Chong copes with tragedy.
Eight sample pages:
https://www.fantagraphics.com/product...
September 9, 2020
A young Chinese Canadian woman — an artist and musician — on vacation in the Caribbean has a headache and pops an ibuprofen only to find herself having an extreme and rare reaction called toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN). Her skin itches and begins peeling off and her body starts to shut down. She awakes from a coma months later to find her body covered in scar tissue that is encroaching on her sight and hearing.
Through these terrifying events and a long, slow recovery, Vivian Chong's whole world seems to shrink and go away, but she is determined to redefine herself and continue to express herself through her creativity. I am horrified by what she has endured and in awe of what she continues to accomplish in the face of so many challenges.
Through these terrifying events and a long, slow recovery, Vivian Chong's whole world seems to shrink and go away, but she is determined to redefine herself and continue to express herself through her creativity. I am horrified by what she has endured and in awe of what she continues to accomplish in the face of so many challenges.
January 7, 2021
in late 2004, vivian chong’s life was changed forever when a rare skin disease, TEN (Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis), left her with scar tissue that would eventually blind her. as she was losing her sight, she put down as many drawings on paper as she could to document the experience - vivian then collaborated with georgia webber to come up with this graphic memoir.
this was such a raw and moving read, im so glad to pick this up!!! its also my first time hearing about TEN and i really admire the combined art works between vivian & georgia, so beautifully done. as much as it shares about vivian's personal struggles, it also shares about her bravery of overcoming hardships. i wished this book covers a lot more about in the perspectives of her loved ones. this is definitely not all happy memories - humiliations of treatment, loneliness, deteriorating mental health, worsening symptoms etc. until it talks about vivian's recovery which is SO important. it makes me realized that its also important to focus on what people can do and not what they cant do - to see the person and not the disability. and recovery takes time and it happens in tiny increments and that, we should celebrate even the smallest of steps. vivian is such an inspiring individual, where her blindness didnt stop her from doing things that she loves. she is currently an artist, a writer, stand-up comedian and dancer.
"TEN did not take away my ability to draw, just my ability to see my drawings"
"freedom is trusting your insight. freedom is making new experiences"
this was such a raw and moving read, im so glad to pick this up!!! its also my first time hearing about TEN and i really admire the combined art works between vivian & georgia, so beautifully done. as much as it shares about vivian's personal struggles, it also shares about her bravery of overcoming hardships. i wished this book covers a lot more about in the perspectives of her loved ones. this is definitely not all happy memories - humiliations of treatment, loneliness, deteriorating mental health, worsening symptoms etc. until it talks about vivian's recovery which is SO important. it makes me realized that its also important to focus on what people can do and not what they cant do - to see the person and not the disability. and recovery takes time and it happens in tiny increments and that, we should celebrate even the smallest of steps. vivian is such an inspiring individual, where her blindness didnt stop her from doing things that she loves. she is currently an artist, a writer, stand-up comedian and dancer.
"TEN did not take away my ability to draw, just my ability to see my drawings"
"freedom is trusting your insight. freedom is making new experiences"
February 8, 2023
Wow. This graphic memoir of a musician and artist, who develops a rare condition after taking a headache tablet on vacation, is moving, harrowing and so heartbreaking. Such a scary story, as ‘friends’ abandon her abroad, she goes into a coma, loses her sight, at some point her hearing and develops a terrible skin condition. As she briefly regains some sight and races against time to collaborate on this memoir, i felt for her so much. Inspiring.
July 29, 2020
I read this in one sitting, and then read it again immediately in the same sitting. What Vivian went through -- and how she set out to embrace her new life -- is by turns heartbreaking and breathtaking. I'm so glad to have seen it through her eyes.
July 17, 2023
So many people struggle with issues that we often have never heard of. This graphic memoir is about a young girl who had a rare reaction to medication that caused her to suffer burns all over her body, go into a coma and eventually lose her sight and hearing. The writing and illustrations invoked so many frustrating and sad emotions as she struggled with every aspect of life. After she had a cornea transplant she drew as many pictures as she could about the experience before she eventually lost her sight again. Many years later she was able to compile the drawings and add her story to create this brilliant graphic novel.
August 5, 2020
"Inside a dog is pure joy. Listening patiently with awareness. Mindfully living in the moment. Leash tug, arched back. Bag in hand. Squish. Sometimes life is messy. I can handle it."
"You can't add more time to your life, but you can add more life to your time."
"You can't add more time to your life, but you can add more life to your time."
March 23, 2025
In 2004, Vivian Chong treated herself to a trip to St. Martin with her ex-boyfriend and roommate, Seth, and his sister. During this trip, she suffered from a rare drug reaction, TEN (Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis) syndrome which causes her skin to peel off (thus requiring skin grafts for her entire body) and includes complications such as scar tissue forming in the corneas (resulting in blindness).
This graphic memoir depicts Chong's story and emotions of being hospitalized (and abandoned by her 'friends'), and living with TEN. This graphic memoir also did an incredible job portraying Chong's feelings of loneliness, sadness, helplessness, frustration, and despair through art.
What really stood out to me about this graphic novel is the art - it consists of a blend of Chong's own chaotic sketches and Georgia Webber's clearer illustrations. Both art styles compliment one another very well and Chong's messy abstract scrawls (drawn during the brief moment when her sight returned as a result of a cornea transplant) adds to the panicked emotions that Chong must have been feeling while left blinded, alone, hospitalized, and struggling to survive.
*** #8 of my 2024 Popsugar Reading Challenge - A book by a blind or visually impaired author ***
This graphic memoir depicts Chong's story and emotions of being hospitalized (and abandoned by her 'friends'), and living with TEN. This graphic memoir also did an incredible job portraying Chong's feelings of loneliness, sadness, helplessness, frustration, and despair through art.
As scar tissue grew over my corneas, I could see less and less; I drew with my face an inch away from the paper. The rough, chaotic feeling of my drawings reflects the mental and physical state of going blind and running out of time to draw.
What really stood out to me about this graphic novel is the art - it consists of a blend of Chong's own chaotic sketches and Georgia Webber's clearer illustrations. Both art styles compliment one another very well and Chong's messy abstract scrawls (drawn during the brief moment when her sight returned as a result of a cornea transplant) adds to the panicked emotions that Chong must have been feeling while left blinded, alone, hospitalized, and struggling to survive.
*** #8 of my 2024 Popsugar Reading Challenge - A book by a blind or visually impaired author ***
October 11, 2024
I've been wanting to check out Dancing After TEN for awhile, and I'm kicking myself for not getting to it sooner. It's excellent as disability literature, graphic memoir, and graphic medicine.
Dancing After TEN tells the story of Vivian Chong, a Chinese Canadian woman who developed Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN) as a severe reaction to medication while on vacation. The book follows her developing TEN, the ages she spent in the hospital recovering, and the years since where she has had to adjust to going blind (her sight was temporarily restored by corneal transplant but scar tissue from TEN made that short lived), deaf (her hearing was mostly restored by surgery), and dealing with the aftermath of her serious illness. It touches on the people who abandoned her as a result of her illness, particularly the friend who was with her on vacation and abandoned her when she was hospitalised. It's an emotionally intense read that covers what were a lot of traumatic experiences, as well as portraying the more clinical side of things to explain her syndrome and what happened to her because of it. She also talks a lot about the ways she has been able to adapt, the journey to getting her service dog Catcher (a photo of Vivian and Catcher is included at the beginning of the book), developing blind accessible yoga classes, and more.
I'm so glad I got the chance to read this one. I would definitely recommend Dancing After TEN.
Dancing After TEN tells the story of Vivian Chong, a Chinese Canadian woman who developed Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN) as a severe reaction to medication while on vacation. The book follows her developing TEN, the ages she spent in the hospital recovering, and the years since where she has had to adjust to going blind (her sight was temporarily restored by corneal transplant but scar tissue from TEN made that short lived), deaf (her hearing was mostly restored by surgery), and dealing with the aftermath of her serious illness. It touches on the people who abandoned her as a result of her illness, particularly the friend who was with her on vacation and abandoned her when she was hospitalised. It's an emotionally intense read that covers what were a lot of traumatic experiences, as well as portraying the more clinical side of things to explain her syndrome and what happened to her because of it. She also talks a lot about the ways she has been able to adapt, the journey to getting her service dog Catcher (a photo of Vivian and Catcher is included at the beginning of the book), developing blind accessible yoga classes, and more.
I'm so glad I got the chance to read this one. I would definitely recommend Dancing After TEN.
September 10, 2024
This is an incredible graphic memoir “drawn” by blind author Vivian Chong who as a young adult suffered burns over her entire body, fell into a coma and lost sight and hearing due to a rare reaction to medication (Toxic epidermal necrolysis syndrome, or TEN). Post recovery, Vivian was always looking for a way to get back to her passion for drawing when she met and collaborated with artist Georgia Webber who worked to bring Vivian’s life story to light. Webber drew images based on Vivian’s descriptions! Vivian also added her own drawings - she could still draw despite not being able to see her work. An astonishing work of art!
January 28, 2021
4.5 - Visually inventive comics memoir about a woman, Vivian Chong, who loses her sight due to a rare reaction to ibuprofen. Her story is very inspirational (and, at times, angering), and she (along with helping illustrator Georgia Webber) uses the comics format and the visuals to, paradoxically, capture her emotional inner life and struggles with sight.
September 4, 2021
For as harrowing as this story is, when thinking how to describe the book itself, "feel-good" comes to mind. People can be such complete huge bags of sh*t, it's hard to let go of dark feelings when thoroughly feeling wronged. Picking oneself up, over and over again, trying new things, different things, and building networks that bring you joy... Vivian does it, and maybe we should try doing it too.
December 31, 2020
Interesting but disjointed. The author not only suffered a horrible disease but also a lack of supporting friends. I had trouble keeping most of the men in her life apart except the total jerk of a boyfriend. I admire her courage and determination to not only adjust her life to her new circumstances but to also produce this memoir, some of which she drew herself.
April 22, 2022
I picked up this graphic novel from the library just because of the title and the cover. I had no idea what it might be about but wow, I am so so glad that I picked it up.
This graphic novel is Vivian Chong's memoir and specifically focuses on how she had a severe medical reaction that caused toxic epidermal necrolysis syndrome (TEN). TEN severely impaired her vision and so this is her journey of how she went though the experience of losing her vision but also how she was able to find new ways to experience and live her life.
It shows how the medical system and the assistance given by many services can be really dehumanizing; how, if one doesn't advocate for themselves, they can simply be neglected and/or abused.
The art throughout the graphic novel is really something beautiful, depicting the despair, loneliness, and just about every emotion that Vivian went through. I found it beautiful that the authors were able to marry drawings from Georgina Webber along with Vivian's own drawings of her experience.
I absolutely recommend this book!
This graphic novel is Vivian Chong's memoir and specifically focuses on how she had a severe medical reaction that caused toxic epidermal necrolysis syndrome (TEN). TEN severely impaired her vision and so this is her journey of how she went though the experience of losing her vision but also how she was able to find new ways to experience and live her life.
It shows how the medical system and the assistance given by many services can be really dehumanizing; how, if one doesn't advocate for themselves, they can simply be neglected and/or abused.
The art throughout the graphic novel is really something beautiful, depicting the despair, loneliness, and just about every emotion that Vivian went through. I found it beautiful that the authors were able to marry drawings from Georgina Webber along with Vivian's own drawings of her experience.
I absolutely recommend this book!
December 31, 2022
3.5, really! I’ve read Georgia Webber’s memoir “Dumb,” which was really well done but I found underwhelming— her style is just so tidy, whereas Vivian’s contributions in this book are just so much more willing to be vivid and ugly and harsh.
But both books were really profound and spoke to how little people understand disability or know how to react to it. I feel like so many disabled narratives expect people to be thankful to all those who helped them along the way— Vivian dedicated this book to her eyes instead! Fuck all of the cruel doctors and strangers and carers, and men who leave their female partners after disability and who should die, maybe :)
Seeing their two styles next to each other really highlighted the things I don’t love about Webber’s work, but I love that these two found each other and brought this to life together.
But both books were really profound and spoke to how little people understand disability or know how to react to it. I feel like so many disabled narratives expect people to be thankful to all those who helped them along the way— Vivian dedicated this book to her eyes instead! Fuck all of the cruel doctors and strangers and carers, and men who leave their female partners after disability and who should die, maybe :)
Seeing their two styles next to each other really highlighted the things I don’t love about Webber’s work, but I love that these two found each other and brought this to life together.
January 15, 2021
“Freedom is trusting your instinct. Freedom is making new experiences.”
What an ordeal this woman went through. A real life nightmare scenario which results in a coma and near death experience due to TEN (Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis syndrome) after taking some ibuprofen.
Health care that doesn’t always place an emphasis on care, or health, and a friend who is closer to an enemy are just some of the awful things she has to endure on top of her health struggles and then there is the general public and how insensitive and cruel they can be. Chong’s positivity and determination allow her to make the most of her situation and overall she is a truly inspiring woman.
“You can’t add more time to your life, but you can add more life to your time.”
April 12, 2022
Perhaps being a musician and an adventure-seeker led Vivian from Hong Kong to Toronto and to St Martin and to her eventual recovery and celebration of her life and experiences after TEN (toxic epidermal necrolysis) dramatically changed her body. The story of how she and Georgia Webber, along with Kathleen Rea, created the book makes it worth another read. It’s really a complete story and yet as I write this I think, I want to know more about the relationships and the feelings. (Though maybe not the two men in her life early on… hm.) Apologies to anyone who doesn’t enjoy pondering in a book review.
February 9, 2021
As someone with a chronic illness myself, I have a soft spot for medical memoirs and the way they can foster empathy in the reader. But in this horrifying (and redemptive) tale of an artist struggling with a debilitating and disabling condition, I was most struck by the inhumanity of the people in her life. Holy shit, toxic relationships can literally kill you. Talk about a cautionary tale!!
I recognized the name Georgia Webber but didn't realize until the end that she authored her own memoir about disability ("Dumb"), which I read last year. I enjoy her style and I think it was put to better use here. I would like to eventually see graphic memoirs branch out from always using monochrome and scribbles to depict the experience of disability?? I dunno, just a thought.
Beautiful print by Fantagraphics, as usual. Worth checking out.
I recognized the name Georgia Webber but didn't realize until the end that she authored her own memoir about disability ("Dumb"), which I read last year. I enjoy her style and I think it was put to better use here. I would like to eventually see graphic memoirs branch out from always using monochrome and scribbles to depict the experience of disability?? I dunno, just a thought.
Beautiful print by Fantagraphics, as usual. Worth checking out.
November 15, 2021
I had never heard of TEN before reading this book, and it is horrific. The art style is very sketchy, reflecting Chong's original drawings she created when losing her site. This does make it hard to interpret what is going on at times, but it also fits well with the story. The people surrounding Chong are all verging on cruel. I have complete and total admiration for how Chong adapted to a life after TEN and would be interested in seeing her dance show based on this story.
September 18, 2021
This was amazing. So eye-opening (pun not interested) about what chronically ill people deal with holistically. And so empowering! I cheered and cried victorious tears for Vivian. Her story will uplift anyone in anyone they’re struggling with.
I am grateful to Vivian for sharing her story and experiences.
I am grateful to Vivian for sharing her story and experiences.
May 10, 2021
Such an amazing and inspiring story with beautiful art and insight. Would highly recommend!
December 8, 2022
This book was so beautiful! I loved the art in it and the way the art and narrative interacted to tell the story throughout was so beautiful. A tear jerker in the best way :,)
May 12, 2023
Read Harder 2023 - Task #18 ALT
May 8, 2020
When Vivian Chong goes blind as a result of a rare skin disorder (referred to as TEN), she must overcome her anger and depression and learn to live again.
The book combines art by both Chong and Georgia Webber and depicts a beautifully honest account of what it's like to lose your sight, but gain a new life.
The book combines art by both Chong and Georgia Webber and depicts a beautifully honest account of what it's like to lose your sight, but gain a new life.
February 24, 2024
Dang, this woman has been through Hell! Chong gets sick on vacation—maybe food poisoning?—and the 💩iest ex-boyfriend/roommate in the world gives her some pill he thinks is ibuprofen from his mom’s medicine cabinet and leaves her behind to go party on New Year’s Eve. The pills triggers a horrible (and permanent!) reaction called Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis Syndrome (TENS). (Yes, it could happen to you!) So, 💩face abandons her in a coma in a foreign country while her skin peels off and she becomes blind (and eventually also loses her hearing—although a surgery restores that). Being such a standup guy, 💩head tells all her friends that she was “having too much fun” and is still on vacation. It takes months before people begin to question what has really happened to her. 💩rents out her room and a bunch of her stuff gets stolen… which doesn’t matter much since she’s so emanciated when she gets out of the hospital, none of her clothes would fit anyway. The nerve!
I think I would have just felt my way to the nearest gun store and blown my head off after being abandoned and with my world turned upside down like that, but somehow Chong not only maintains her will to live, she continues making art. (Oh yeah, she was an ARTIST and she went blind!) She uses her creativity and intelligence to find ways to dance, practice yoga, cook, and make pottery. She stands up to rude people who tell her she can’t bring her guide dog into places (uhh, yes she can!) or who refuse to dance with a blind partner (really!!!) and tell her to “just go home!”, the naïve wannabe-helpers who assume she can read Braille, the heartless who refuse to help her read signs when she’s looking for an address… Somehow, she finds a way to forgive… even the 💩 person who left her for dead.
I assume that to let such a toxic 💩 in her life, she must have had boundary or self esteem issues, but blindness gives her no choice: if she wants to live life, then she has to put herself out there, be vulnerable, and face failure, rejection, and danger.
The loss of her sight is incredibly tragic and heartbreaking, the scars both physical and emotional… It’s hard to read about all that pain she went through, yet I kept turning the pages, staying up past my bedtime… It’s truly fascinating to learn how she was able to adapt and thrive!
Vivian Chong was an artist before she lost her sight and would have made interesting work if she hadn’t gone through all this. (Abled people sometimes try to view a disability as some kind of “gift” so they can feel less sympathy for the person who has had to go through so many trials and tribulations, that the disabled exist to “inspire” the able-bodied, artless attempts to make sense in a world filled with unfairness.) Chong’s storytelling ability generously gives this gift to US: this amazing experience of how she survived and then thrived, this window into another world of literally constant unforeseen challenges and how she adapted.
A heart-wrenching, beautifully told memoir that is sure to leave readers with more compassion in their hearts, new appreciation for their own gifts and the fragility of life, and new wisdom and insights into what it is like to lose your ability to see. I can’t say enough good things about it.
I think I would have just felt my way to the nearest gun store and blown my head off after being abandoned and with my world turned upside down like that, but somehow Chong not only maintains her will to live, she continues making art. (Oh yeah, she was an ARTIST and she went blind!) She uses her creativity and intelligence to find ways to dance, practice yoga, cook, and make pottery. She stands up to rude people who tell her she can’t bring her guide dog into places (uhh, yes she can!) or who refuse to dance with a blind partner (really!!!) and tell her to “just go home!”, the naïve wannabe-helpers who assume she can read Braille, the heartless who refuse to help her read signs when she’s looking for an address… Somehow, she finds a way to forgive… even the 💩 person who left her for dead.
I assume that to let such a toxic 💩 in her life, she must have had boundary or self esteem issues, but blindness gives her no choice: if she wants to live life, then she has to put herself out there, be vulnerable, and face failure, rejection, and danger.
The loss of her sight is incredibly tragic and heartbreaking, the scars both physical and emotional… It’s hard to read about all that pain she went through, yet I kept turning the pages, staying up past my bedtime… It’s truly fascinating to learn how she was able to adapt and thrive!
Vivian Chong was an artist before she lost her sight and would have made interesting work if she hadn’t gone through all this. (Abled people sometimes try to view a disability as some kind of “gift” so they can feel less sympathy for the person who has had to go through so many trials and tribulations, that the disabled exist to “inspire” the able-bodied, artless attempts to make sense in a world filled with unfairness.) Chong’s storytelling ability generously gives this gift to US: this amazing experience of how she survived and then thrived, this window into another world of literally constant unforeseen challenges and how she adapted.
A heart-wrenching, beautifully told memoir that is sure to leave readers with more compassion in their hearts, new appreciation for their own gifts and the fragility of life, and new wisdom and insights into what it is like to lose your ability to see. I can’t say enough good things about it.
June 5, 2021
This is certainly a book I've wanted to pick up for some time, but sticking to the constraints of my schedule (one of the ways I'm coping with the pandemic) it's been a minute.
What kinds of keywords came to mind while reading this book? Toxic people, Toronto, memoir, accessibility, hospitals, travel, relationships, music, adaptation, self-expression, and comedy.
The text aspect of the book was good. I particularly liked the low key diversity of speech bubbles. I wasn't really ever left guessing if something was said or thought etc. and maybe I could find some pattern if I re-read with just this aspect in mind. But there are shifts, where we sometimes have dashed lines, sometimes solid; mostly black text, with some text in blue; white background on most bubbles, but sometimes a splash of the blue. Pointy angle brackets are used to denote not English dialog. I really liked how Vivian used expressive strings of cursive l's to denote general chatter that was proverbially not in focus.
The artwork, arguably one of the selling points of the book, was also excellent. Was some of it harder to parse then others? Sure. The parts by Georgia and the parts by Vivian did look different, but they both served important purposes in telling the story of Vivian's life and felt very expressive. The collaboration process was also pretty interesting to read about, and seemed like it could prove useful to setting a precedent for accessibility, which would be cool. This particular iteration of a very strict colour pallet was used beautifully. I really liked the shade of blue.
Moving into the representation side of thing, this book obviously exceeds my generally very low expectations of disability representation. With the general line being people are either fully able bodied (or in the case of superheroes, super able bodied) or dead, Vivian telling her own story brings some much more nuance to the experience of disability, with the obvious caveat that disability is not a monolith and this story is just Vivian's. As an outsider looking in, I really appreciated how Vivian really took up space by both sharing a lot of difficult emotions but also in her determination to live on her own terms.
Which is definitely something I appreciate seeing whenever a woman expresses themselves, so I obviously think the gender representation was good too. The cast of supporting characters in Vivian's life each stood out with their own distinct qualities, although some of them were extremely self absorbed to say the least.
Vivian's past relationships with men was covered in the book, but I wouldn't say that sexuality really played a huge roll in the book.
To conclude, I might be over reacting because this felt like a bit of an oases in the middle of a desert - a somewhat self-imposed desert to be honest, although certainly helped by general publishing trends - but I will be rating this book five out of five stars. If you can't get your hands on this book right away, I would also recommend the interview that VanCaf did last year with both Vivian and Georgia https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8T9Cd...
What kinds of keywords came to mind while reading this book? Toxic people, Toronto, memoir, accessibility, hospitals, travel, relationships, music, adaptation, self-expression, and comedy.
The text aspect of the book was good. I particularly liked the low key diversity of speech bubbles. I wasn't really ever left guessing if something was said or thought etc. and maybe I could find some pattern if I re-read with just this aspect in mind. But there are shifts, where we sometimes have dashed lines, sometimes solid; mostly black text, with some text in blue; white background on most bubbles, but sometimes a splash of the blue. Pointy angle brackets are used to denote not English dialog. I really liked how Vivian used expressive strings of cursive l's to denote general chatter that was proverbially not in focus.
The artwork, arguably one of the selling points of the book, was also excellent. Was some of it harder to parse then others? Sure. The parts by Georgia and the parts by Vivian did look different, but they both served important purposes in telling the story of Vivian's life and felt very expressive. The collaboration process was also pretty interesting to read about, and seemed like it could prove useful to setting a precedent for accessibility, which would be cool. This particular iteration of a very strict colour pallet was used beautifully. I really liked the shade of blue.
Moving into the representation side of thing, this book obviously exceeds my generally very low expectations of disability representation. With the general line being people are either fully able bodied (or in the case of superheroes, super able bodied) or dead, Vivian telling her own story brings some much more nuance to the experience of disability, with the obvious caveat that disability is not a monolith and this story is just Vivian's. As an outsider looking in, I really appreciated how Vivian really took up space by both sharing a lot of difficult emotions but also in her determination to live on her own terms.
Which is definitely something I appreciate seeing whenever a woman expresses themselves, so I obviously think the gender representation was good too. The cast of supporting characters in Vivian's life each stood out with their own distinct qualities, although some of them were extremely self absorbed to say the least.
Vivian's past relationships with men was covered in the book, but I wouldn't say that sexuality really played a huge roll in the book.
To conclude, I might be over reacting because this felt like a bit of an oases in the middle of a desert - a somewhat self-imposed desert to be honest, although certainly helped by general publishing trends - but I will be rating this book five out of five stars. If you can't get your hands on this book right away, I would also recommend the interview that VanCaf did last year with both Vivian and Georgia https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8T9Cd...
September 14, 2020
It's every emotion. Sadness, pity, fear, pain, hatred, disgust, happiness, joy, love, elation, relief. The drawings are full of power and emotion.
November 28, 2024
My heart ached for her as I turned the last page. Then, I felt liberatingly happy with her reinvention and redefinition of her joyful life. A must read for all. There is strength, beauty, determination and will flowing through the pages.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 125 reviews