Feedback on the Power of Disability
Feedback welcome
I’d love to get your feedback. Please let me know whether my book has been helpful and in what way. I also don’t mind your criticisms or friendly challenges. And how I can make the book better. Share your feedback.
"The Power of Disability celebrates the way people with disabilities can change the world—not in spite of their disability but because of it. It spoke deeply to me because I have a disability called depression. I don’t know how I came through three major bouts with this mental illness and lived to tell the tale. But I do know this: when you’ve had such an experience, you want to make meaning of it by sharing hope with others who suffer. This book is filled with the stories of many kinds of ‘wounded healers,’ told wonderfully well by Al Etmanski. I’m very grateful to the author and all whose stories he tells for reminding me, once again, of the power to be found in the places where we feel most vulnerable.”
J. Palmer
Author of On the Brink of Everything, Let Your Life Speak, and Healing the Heart of Democracy
“Hopefully the universal lessons in this book will not only empower all of us to trampoline to our highest potential but will also move the global disability rights movement to achieve the success it fully deserves- so we can all live in a more just and equitable world”
Susan Sygall
Disability activist & MacArthur fellow
“Etmanski engages every reader, whether new to the world of disability or an old hand, with thoughtful insights on the value of difference. This book made me laugh, made me cry, made me proud.”
Yazmine Laroche
Former Chair, Muscular Dystrophy Canada
"Etmanski mines rich wisdom from the disability world and makes it accessible to a general audience. In a world increasingly divided and polarized, this book will unite, while changing perception of disability from illness needing only charity, to a normal human condition only needing opportunity.”
Carol Glazer
President, National Organization on Disability
"This is a landmark book. It opens the door to a vibrant world we hardly know and seldom think about—the world of disability—and reveals disability to be the invisible force that has shaped the world. Yes, there is power in disability. There is also wisdom, passion, and practical advice for navigating the turbulent times we live in. The Power of Disability is an instruction manual for becoming truly human and a manifesto for transcending all our differences and creating a world where everyone thrives. The stories are readable and highly compelling, suitable for young and old. There should be copies in every school and business on the planet.”
Caroline Casey
Founder of The Valuable 500, disability activist, inclusion advocate
"This book challenges the dominant discourse that persons with disabilities are incapable by focusing on their collective achievements. It is well researched and full of many moving stories of people who have made a difference despite the structural barriers and inequities they faced.”
Catalina Devandas
UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
“In a world defined by accelerating change and interconnection, those who recognize their differences and give themselves permission to make a difference have a powerful advantage. The stories in this book illustrate how people with disabilities are seizing their power. They will help all of us see and seize ours.”
Bill Drayton
CEO, Ashoka
“This book is a who’s who of fascinating people who say adapting to disability— their own or that of a loved one—is a wellspring of their creativity and ability to think flexibly. It will change the way you see the world.”
Louise Kinross
BLOOM Editor and Special Projects Manager, Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital
"I know Al from two contexts: as a thinking partner for our overlapping work on social change and as a family friend when my beautiful grandson Sinai was born with Down syndrome. This brilliant book shows us Al at his best: incisive, humble, loving, tenacious, practical. He helps us all recognize and reach for what is best in the world.”
Adam Kahane
Director, Reos Partners, and author of Collaborating with the Enemy and Power and Love
“The Power of Disability invites us to examine how the lives of people with disabilities can and should be more integrated into the regular flow of society. The book is informative and introduces practical ways for us to engage in conversation about disability in ways that bring us all together as humans. It’s a one-of-a-kind read.”
Steve Hanamura
President, Hanamura Consulting
"Al Etmanski is a master storyteller. This book is fun to read, inspiring, and filled with a remarkable wisdom for everyday life. Reading it will make you a better caregiver and a better leader and most importantly will compel you to be a better person.”
Paul Born
Co-CEO, Tamarack Institute