Q7: Writing With Grace

“”My grandfather,” she says, her voice low. He said Down, right to my face! Jeez! …Anger floods out from her, washing over the table, her notebook, me… I hate that word.” P.33

…David’s father, he told David to put Grace in an institution. To forget her.” P. 38

Grace’s family is from Taiwan. Grace has been exposed to another culture’s way of understanding disability. It has influenced how Grace reacts to the word Down. How does your child understand and react to Down syndrome?

After the book launch, the Chen family travels to Taiwan to visit Grace’s grandfather.  Grace resists the visit, but her parents may have an ulterior motive.

“Grace refuses to see him. But now – “

She doesn’t add what I think she’d like to say. That now they have something to show David’s father; something that might convince him he was wrong about Grace.” P. 143

It is difficult to read about Grace’s relationship with her grandfather and the word Down.  Grace’s book and interview seem to change David’s father’s understanding of his granddaughter. Have you ever had to educate someone about the possibilities of people with Down syndrome? If so, what did you use as evidence?

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