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Accidents of Nature
I'm in the middle of a full-blown spaz-attack, and I don't care. I don't care at all. At home I always try to act normal, and spaz-attacks definitely aren't normal. Here, people understand. They know a spaz-attack signals that I'm
excited. They're excited too, so they squeal with me; some even spaz on purpose, if you can call that spazzing . . .
An unforgettable coming-of-age novel about what it's like to live with a physical disability
It's the summer of 1970. Seventeen-year-old Jean has cerebral palsy, but she's always believed she's just the same as everyone else. She's never really known another disabled person before she arrives at Camp Courage. As Jean joins a community unlike any she has ever imagined, she comes to question her old beliefs and look at the world in a new light. The camp session is only ten days long, but that may be all it takes to change a life forever.
Henry Holt published Harriet McBryde Johnson's adult memoir, Too Late to Die Young , in April 2005. Ms. Johnson has been featured in The New York Times Magazine and has been an activist for disability rights for many years.
excited. They're excited too, so they squeal with me; some even spaz on purpose, if you can call that spazzing . . .
An unforgettable coming-of-age novel about what it's like to live with a physical disability
It's the summer of 1970. Seventeen-year-old Jean has cerebral palsy, but she's always believed she's just the same as everyone else. She's never really known another disabled person before she arrives at Camp Courage. As Jean joins a community unlike any she has ever imagined, she comes to question her old beliefs and look at the world in a new light. The camp session is only ten days long, but that may be all it takes to change a life forever.
Henry Holt published Harriet McBryde Johnson's adult memoir, Too Late to Die Young , in April 2005. Ms. Johnson has been featured in The New York Times Magazine and has been an activist for disability rights for many years.
241 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 2, 2006
36 people are currently reading
1327 people want to read
About the author
Harriet McBryde Johnson
7 books31 followersHarriet McBryde Johnson was an American author, attorney, and disability rights activist. She was disabled due to a neuromuscular disease and used a motorized wheelchair.
Johnson, who was born in eastern North Carolina, lived most of her life in Charleston, South Carolina.
In 2002, Harriet Johnson debated Peter Singer, challenging his belief that parents ought to be able to euthanize their disabled children. "Unspeakable Conversations," Johnson's account of her encounters with Singer and the pro-euthanasia movement, was published in the New York Times Magazine in 2003.
She wrote Too Late to Die Young in 2005 and Accidents of Nature in 2006.
During her career as an attorney she specialized in helping people who couldn't work get Social Security benefits. She was also chairwoman of the Charleston County Democratic Party. She once described herself as a "disabled, liberal, atheistic Democrat". She expressed support for Congress during the Terri Schiavo case.
In 1990 she drew national attention for her opposition to the annual Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Telethon. Lewis told the Chicago Tribune he had no intention of making peace with opponents such as Johnson. He likened the idea of meeting with them to entertaining Hezbollah or insurgents in Iraq. Johnson described the telethon as "the charity mentality" and decried its "pity-based tactics".
In 2003 Johnson was named Person of the Year by New Mobility.
Johnson died at home on June 4, 2008.
Johnson, who was born in eastern North Carolina, lived most of her life in Charleston, South Carolina.
In 2002, Harriet Johnson debated Peter Singer, challenging his belief that parents ought to be able to euthanize their disabled children. "Unspeakable Conversations," Johnson's account of her encounters with Singer and the pro-euthanasia movement, was published in the New York Times Magazine in 2003.
She wrote Too Late to Die Young in 2005 and Accidents of Nature in 2006.
During her career as an attorney she specialized in helping people who couldn't work get Social Security benefits. She was also chairwoman of the Charleston County Democratic Party. She once described herself as a "disabled, liberal, atheistic Democrat". She expressed support for Congress during the Terri Schiavo case.
In 1990 she drew national attention for her opposition to the annual Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Telethon. Lewis told the Chicago Tribune he had no intention of making peace with opponents such as Johnson. He likened the idea of meeting with them to entertaining Hezbollah or insurgents in Iraq. Johnson described the telethon as "the charity mentality" and decried its "pity-based tactics".
In 2003 Johnson was named Person of the Year by New Mobility.
Johnson died at home on June 4, 2008.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 144 reviews
December 18, 2014
This is an odd choice for me & not likely one I'll repeat. I'm a norm (pretty much, anyway) & don't really even know anyone who isn't. I don't know why this even came to my attention, but it did & I read the author's bio - she was disabled & very active in the community. She didn't like the Jerry Lewis telethon, called it demeaning. Why?
I had my suspicions & they turned out to be correct. Kids that are born with MLS, CP, or some other debilitating disease or defect look different so people treat them differently & they don't like the pity & condescension that usually accompanies it. Sure, some allowances have to be made, but their condition is normal to them. Being held up as a poster child for pity sucks, especially when the person has a highly intelligent mind.
Johnson did a great job of bringing this point home with very real, likable characters for all their teen idealism & confusion. Even the annoying ones were understandable. That's a bit of a trick since most were teenage girls. (I'm a middle aged guy &, although I helped raise a girl to adulthood, make no claims to understanding the gender, especially during the teen years.)
The setting is a 'camp for crips' in 1970 & is probably very autobiographical, hence the 'sort-of-nonfiction' shelving. The different ways the kids deal with the camp activities, their issues, & the norms is enlightening & a bit gritty. One reviewer says something about this being set in a 'pre-awareness era'. I doubt there is an era where the majority will ever be aware of such a different minority in any meaningful way. This is a good way of getting a bit of education though. It applies in many other situations, too. Most of us have or deal with something similar (e.g., alcoholism, dyslexia, etc.) so can relate on that level.
The author had a great way of making her points real, understandable, & easy to swallow. She didn't browbeat me, but took me on a journey through another's eyes. It was interesting & often light. I loved the joking about the group of norm girls that didn't constantly talk about boys - they talked about horses. I married a girl like that. Raised one, too.
I'd highly recommend this for everyone. We all have our issues & can probably relate to the characters. Read some of the other reviews. How & why each reviewer related is interesting. A few reviewers wouldn't recommend it to school libraries or younger kids. Whatever. There is some frank talk about sexual urges & other bodily functions, but nothing that any pubescent kid isn't already dealing with. IMO, folks might as well get it out in the open & deal.
I had my suspicions & they turned out to be correct. Kids that are born with MLS, CP, or some other debilitating disease or defect look different so people treat them differently & they don't like the pity & condescension that usually accompanies it. Sure, some allowances have to be made, but their condition is normal to them. Being held up as a poster child for pity sucks, especially when the person has a highly intelligent mind.
Johnson did a great job of bringing this point home with very real, likable characters for all their teen idealism & confusion. Even the annoying ones were understandable. That's a bit of a trick since most were teenage girls. (I'm a middle aged guy &, although I helped raise a girl to adulthood, make no claims to understanding the gender, especially during the teen years.)
The setting is a 'camp for crips' in 1970 & is probably very autobiographical, hence the 'sort-of-nonfiction' shelving. The different ways the kids deal with the camp activities, their issues, & the norms is enlightening & a bit gritty. One reviewer says something about this being set in a 'pre-awareness era'. I doubt there is an era where the majority will ever be aware of such a different minority in any meaningful way. This is a good way of getting a bit of education though. It applies in many other situations, too. Most of us have or deal with something similar (e.g., alcoholism, dyslexia, etc.) so can relate on that level.
The author had a great way of making her points real, understandable, & easy to swallow. She didn't browbeat me, but took me on a journey through another's eyes. It was interesting & often light. I loved the joking about the group of norm girls that didn't constantly talk about boys - they talked about horses. I married a girl like that. Raised one, too.
I'd highly recommend this for everyone. We all have our issues & can probably relate to the characters. Read some of the other reviews. How & why each reviewer related is interesting. A few reviewers wouldn't recommend it to school libraries or younger kids. Whatever. There is some frank talk about sexual urges & other bodily functions, but nothing that any pubescent kid isn't already dealing with. IMO, folks might as well get it out in the open & deal.
September 12, 2016
I learnt so much reading this! I admire Harriet McBryde Johnson so much and all that she did in her life to educate people and fight for equality for people with disabilites!
June 23, 2011
*mild spoilers ahoy*
Loved this book. Well, okay, some of it rubbed a bit too raw, and the scene of the counselors teasing the campers sexually made me absolutely sick to my stomach, but only because it was so true. It's gritty and sharp and smart and mean, but it's also real and sort of sweet, in it's way. The scene with Robert yelling about the canoe made me cheer right along with the campers, and though I found Sarah an insufferable know-it-all about as often as Jean did, she was also so realistic in her insecurities and her anger, and she, like every other character was so darned LIKABLE that I could forgive her transgressions. Jean's attitude toward herself and her disability, and the transformation the book wrought was painstaking and honest.
I'm a member of the exclusive 'crip' club myself, and I've been to the camps, and reading this book was a sometimes painful reminder of my own strange, often agonizing, adolescence. The primary feeling, from me, after reading this book is that this is EXACTLY why enabled people should not write books about us. A book this honest is much too rare. I want every time I read about disabilities for it to ring as true as this book.
This is the book that I should have read at fifteen, and then passed on to every single person who ever said to me, "But *I* don't see you that way at all!"
Loved this book. Well, okay, some of it rubbed a bit too raw, and the scene of the counselors teasing the campers sexually made me absolutely sick to my stomach, but only because it was so true. It's gritty and sharp and smart and mean, but it's also real and sort of sweet, in it's way. The scene with Robert yelling about the canoe made me cheer right along with the campers, and though I found Sarah an insufferable know-it-all about as often as Jean did, she was also so realistic in her insecurities and her anger, and she, like every other character was so darned LIKABLE that I could forgive her transgressions. Jean's attitude toward herself and her disability, and the transformation the book wrought was painstaking and honest.
I'm a member of the exclusive 'crip' club myself, and I've been to the camps, and reading this book was a sometimes painful reminder of my own strange, often agonizing, adolescence. The primary feeling, from me, after reading this book is that this is EXACTLY why enabled people should not write books about us. A book this honest is much too rare. I want every time I read about disabilities for it to ring as true as this book.
This is the book that I should have read at fifteen, and then passed on to every single person who ever said to me, "But *I* don't see you that way at all!"
January 9, 2019
I will write a real review of this book when I've had some time to think about it, but all I can say about it right now is wow!
UPDATE:
This was easily one of the most surprising reads of the last year. In a media and literary environment filled with YA romances tainted in tragedy and so-called "overcoming" narratives, this book is a welcome and much needed alternative. This book is explicitly not interested in appeasing people who like to belittle or treat disabled folks of all sorts like they have zero agency or right to self-determination or worse, that "cripping up" is the best way for a non-disabled actor to get accolades. The story revolves around the Jean's experiences at Camp Courage, a summer camp for disabled kids, in the 1970s. She came to the camp as a telegenic kid with cerebral palsy. Through the course of her time at the camp, Jean begins to see how corrupt and demeaning most treatment of disabled people is. Each chapter is the story of one day and by the time you get to the end, you see how formative these kinds of experiences can be especially for someone who comes in believing that "courage" and "overcoming hardship" are the key to happiness for disabled kids.
The book uses a ton of language that disability activists have been using among themselves for decades but that are not allowed by everyone else and apparently that has upset some reviewers. I am of the opinion that marginalized people get to choose for themselves what language to use with each other, but please do not use this book as an excuse to use derogatory language. The book is also frank about sexuality. Since it was written by one of the great disability advocates of the last few decades, these details make sense. Still, the book is truly moving if you can get on board with a disabled person telling it like it is. If that's not for you, it's probably best to move on.
UPDATE:
This was easily one of the most surprising reads of the last year. In a media and literary environment filled with YA romances tainted in tragedy and so-called "overcoming" narratives, this book is a welcome and much needed alternative. This book is explicitly not interested in appeasing people who like to belittle or treat disabled folks of all sorts like they have zero agency or right to self-determination or worse, that "cripping up" is the best way for a non-disabled actor to get accolades. The story revolves around the Jean's experiences at Camp Courage, a summer camp for disabled kids, in the 1970s. She came to the camp as a telegenic kid with cerebral palsy. Through the course of her time at the camp, Jean begins to see how corrupt and demeaning most treatment of disabled people is. Each chapter is the story of one day and by the time you get to the end, you see how formative these kinds of experiences can be especially for someone who comes in believing that "courage" and "overcoming hardship" are the key to happiness for disabled kids.
The book uses a ton of language that disability activists have been using among themselves for decades but that are not allowed by everyone else and apparently that has upset some reviewers. I am of the opinion that marginalized people get to choose for themselves what language to use with each other, but please do not use this book as an excuse to use derogatory language. The book is also frank about sexuality. Since it was written by one of the great disability advocates of the last few decades, these details make sense. Still, the book is truly moving if you can get on board with a disabled person telling it like it is. If that's not for you, it's probably best to move on.
March 30, 2012
This book is set in 1970 from the POV of a teen girl with cerebral palsy who is attending a summer camp for disabled teens for the first time. She has always striven to be considered "normal" and when faced with a camp full of others with disabilities and a militant camper versed in Marxist theories, she begins to question her long-held beliefs. The subject matter is important for young people. Having grown up in a world of disability awareness and personal rights, it was uncomfortable to see the attitudes of the camp personnel during this pre-awareness era. The campers were exploited, ignored, and patronized and it was brutal to see it. As the main character, Jean, comes to feel that maybe fitting in isn't the right thing to do, her whole foundation is shaken because her entire existence is based on being one of the gang. But she comes to see that she will never "fit in", and maybe that's fine, if somewhat miserable. The book is for older readers, as it has some fairly graphic portrayals of life with disabilities, as well as a fair amount of strong language.
June 4, 2016
Apropos to this time of year, Accidents of Nature is all about summer camp. Camp Courage is for children with a variety of special needs. The campers have labelled these needs themselves with names like "Spaz, crip, para, quad, Ausie, and walkie-talkie." Jean, who has Cerebral Palsy, has been raised in a "normal" school. Her first ever summer camp is also her first exposure to other kids with disabilities. Luckily, she meets Sarah right away. Sarah has been to Camp Courage for eight straight years and not only understands the system but has views about how it should be. Part teenage slice of life and part treatise on the place of those who are different, Accidents of Nature is a funny and poetic challenge to all of us -- no matter in what way we aren't quite normal -- to think more deeply about inclusion.
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May 3, 2011I LOVE THIS BOOK!!!!!!!!! MY FAVORITE BOOK EVER!!
June 2, 2025
This book was a provocative, emotionally layered exploration of disability, identity, and institutionalization (spelling that took me way too many tries...) that doesn't flinch away from uncomfortable truths.
What really shines is its portrayal of disability culture. Sara's fiery critiques of systemic ableism and Jean's gradual awakening to her own internalized biases, feels authentic. The summer camp setting is a brilliant microcosm for bigger debates about autonomy, dignity, and what it means to refuse pity.
And I'd like to end there, but there was also a "blink and you'll miss it" racist thought from Jean (courtesy of her parents) that is dropped in the narrative without critique. There's little reflection and in a book that is otherwise dedicated to challenging, and even dismantling prejudice, its casualness felt jarring. Was it meant to show Jean's sheltered upbringing? Maybe, but I can't seem to shake the feeling that it wasn't one of those "that's the point" moments.
Despite this, the book remains a valuable and thought-provoking read. Is it a flawed story? Yes. But that doesn't detract from the fact that it confronts ableism head-on, and I suppose that is the point.
What really shines is its portrayal of disability culture. Sara's fiery critiques of systemic ableism and Jean's gradual awakening to her own internalized biases, feels authentic. The summer camp setting is a brilliant microcosm for bigger debates about autonomy, dignity, and what it means to refuse pity.
And I'd like to end there, but there was also a "blink and you'll miss it" racist thought from Jean (courtesy of her parents) that is dropped in the narrative without critique. There's little reflection and in a book that is otherwise dedicated to challenging, and even dismantling prejudice, its casualness felt jarring. Was it meant to show Jean's sheltered upbringing? Maybe, but I can't seem to shake the feeling that it wasn't one of those "that's the point" moments.
Despite this, the book remains a valuable and thought-provoking read. Is it a flawed story? Yes. But that doesn't detract from the fact that it confronts ableism head-on, and I suppose that is the point.
April 6, 2011
Jean has cerebral palsy, but likes to think of herself as normal. Then she is sent to Camp Courage, aka Crip Camp, and meets Sara, another girl with CP who feels very strongly about the way the "Norms" treat the "Crips." As Jean observes the other campers, she begins to question whether it is better to identify as Norm or as Crip.
I could not help to compare this book to Izzy, Willy-Nilly, which I read last month for the same book club. Izzy and Jean seem to have similar personalities and thoughts: both do their best to please their families and present a cheerful face to their condition. Jean has been a poster child for telethons, being a pretty, blond, crippled child. They both also have it ingrained that they will be married when they get older, and both have to revise their expectations of love and marriage due to their conditions - this view probably being due to both books taking place in the 70s and early 80s. However, Izzy, Willy-Nilly felt very old-fashioned, being written back then, and was essentially a problem novel about a girl who is in a terrible accident that leaves her with an amputated leg. Accidents of Nature is much more complex than the problem novel I imagined it would be.
Part of this is that due to the book's description, I imagined, going in, that Jean was very close to "normal." However, she is wheelchair-bound and needs people to feed, clothe, and bathe her. Jean has always thought of herself as "normal," which is why she is so shocked to find that she is one of the more disabled campers next to others who might be an amputee like Izzy, or a girl who has seizures, or someone who has bad asthma. Even the MR campers seem more abled than Jean, and I as a reader was brought along as Jean realizes this different reality of her condition. It was also disconcerting for me, both as a "normal" and as someone who is used to political correctness, to hear terms that I've been taught are not PC thrown around so casually. Campers are generally called "Crips" and campers with CP are generally referred to as "spazzos" or as having a "spazz attack." MR or mildly disabled campers are called "walkie-talkies" (as they can walk and talk), and autistic kids are called "aussies." There is a description of a camp dance where the counselors dance with the campers, and a discussion about how some counselors flaunt their "normal" sexuality and whether this is because they don't even see the campers as having any sexual urges at all or because they feel powerful to have this sexual power over the campers.
While searching for discussion questions for the book club before reading the book, I discovered that the author is also disabled, and most of her life was focused on protesting the treatment of the handicapped (in particular, Jerry Lewis's telethons). The character of Sara is clearly based on herself. This could be a powerful book for a "Crip" to read as it does not condescend to them or treat their condition as a problem to be solved. This is, however, a more mature read. There is some strong language, sex is discussed, and there is one scene where Jean imagines what it would be like to have sex - nothing graphic though.
I could not help to compare this book to Izzy, Willy-Nilly, which I read last month for the same book club. Izzy and Jean seem to have similar personalities and thoughts: both do their best to please their families and present a cheerful face to their condition. Jean has been a poster child for telethons, being a pretty, blond, crippled child. They both also have it ingrained that they will be married when they get older, and both have to revise their expectations of love and marriage due to their conditions - this view probably being due to both books taking place in the 70s and early 80s. However, Izzy, Willy-Nilly felt very old-fashioned, being written back then, and was essentially a problem novel about a girl who is in a terrible accident that leaves her with an amputated leg. Accidents of Nature is much more complex than the problem novel I imagined it would be.
Part of this is that due to the book's description, I imagined, going in, that Jean was very close to "normal." However, she is wheelchair-bound and needs people to feed, clothe, and bathe her. Jean has always thought of herself as "normal," which is why she is so shocked to find that she is one of the more disabled campers next to others who might be an amputee like Izzy, or a girl who has seizures, or someone who has bad asthma. Even the MR campers seem more abled than Jean, and I as a reader was brought along as Jean realizes this different reality of her condition. It was also disconcerting for me, both as a "normal" and as someone who is used to political correctness, to hear terms that I've been taught are not PC thrown around so casually. Campers are generally called "Crips" and campers with CP are generally referred to as "spazzos" or as having a "spazz attack." MR or mildly disabled campers are called "walkie-talkies" (as they can walk and talk), and autistic kids are called "aussies." There is a description of a camp dance where the counselors dance with the campers, and a discussion about how some counselors flaunt their "normal" sexuality and whether this is because they don't even see the campers as having any sexual urges at all or because they feel powerful to have this sexual power over the campers.
While searching for discussion questions for the book club before reading the book, I discovered that the author is also disabled, and most of her life was focused on protesting the treatment of the handicapped (in particular, Jerry Lewis's telethons). The character of Sara is clearly based on herself. This could be a powerful book for a "Crip" to read as it does not condescend to them or treat their condition as a problem to be solved. This is, however, a more mature read. There is some strong language, sex is discussed, and there is one scene where Jean imagines what it would be like to have sex - nothing graphic though.
January 24, 2015
Actual rating: 2.5
Agh.... I'm very conflicted with how I feel about this book. On one hand, I think it was very well written. Because Harriet McBryde Johnson has actually "been there done that" she was able to write on a level no "norm" would have been able to. Her words speak truths beyond just fictional storytelling. Jean's thoughts, opinions, fears, desires, all of that was further believable to the audience because the author had experience with it. There is something about the realness that I really appreciate. It was, at times, written very poetically, and the reader was really able to understand Jean completely.
But then on the other hand, there was something about this book that really bothered me, and I can't even really pinpoint what it is. At first, I thought it was how moldable Jean was - how Sara could make any suggestion and Jean would automatically agree to it. At times, I thought "Come on Jean. You have your own opinions and thoughts and there is nothing wrong with them... why are you changing them just because Sara says so?" but the problem is, even while I felt that way, I was pleased with how she was being exposed to things that were slowly opening her eyes to how things really were and was giving her a new perspective.
So here I sit, slightly confused on how I actually feel about this book. It was well written, and I really appreciate the perspective Ms. Johnson was able to give to her main character...but something about this book bothered me and made me wish it was over far sooner than it was. I can't put my finger on what it was, but it was there... and still is even after a day of sitting on it and trying to figure out what it was.
It's not that I disliked the book. I think I just wished it was better and more interesting. But I would recommend it to others. So I am truly conflicted. I'd say give it a read for yourself and see how you feel. It's not a bad book, but to me, it also isn't a great book.
Agh.... I'm very conflicted with how I feel about this book. On one hand, I think it was very well written. Because Harriet McBryde Johnson has actually "been there done that" she was able to write on a level no "norm" would have been able to. Her words speak truths beyond just fictional storytelling. Jean's thoughts, opinions, fears, desires, all of that was further believable to the audience because the author had experience with it. There is something about the realness that I really appreciate. It was, at times, written very poetically, and the reader was really able to understand Jean completely.
But then on the other hand, there was something about this book that really bothered me, and I can't even really pinpoint what it is. At first, I thought it was how moldable Jean was - how Sara could make any suggestion and Jean would automatically agree to it. At times, I thought "Come on Jean. You have your own opinions and thoughts and there is nothing wrong with them... why are you changing them just because Sara says so?" but the problem is, even while I felt that way, I was pleased with how she was being exposed to things that were slowly opening her eyes to how things really were and was giving her a new perspective.
So here I sit, slightly confused on how I actually feel about this book. It was well written, and I really appreciate the perspective Ms. Johnson was able to give to her main character...but something about this book bothered me and made me wish it was over far sooner than it was. I can't put my finger on what it was, but it was there... and still is even after a day of sitting on it and trying to figure out what it was.
It's not that I disliked the book. I think I just wished it was better and more interesting. But I would recommend it to others. So I am truly conflicted. I'd say give it a read for yourself and see how you feel. It's not a bad book, but to me, it also isn't a great book.
February 25, 2010
Harriet McBryde Johnson may have looked at her life as being "too late to die young;" however, she died younger than she should have and her unique, powerful voice was lost to us. I tend to be skeptical about freshman novels, skeptical about the first person, skeptical about authorial self-inserts and skeptical about manifestos parading as novels. Accidents of Nature falls into all of the above categories; however, it is transcendent.
First and foremost, for a lawyer with no formal training on creative writing, Johnson has an unbelievable knack with characterization. Her characters are understated, but unique; flawed but sympathetic. Even characters that disagree with her point of view are granted strengths. The message in Accidents of Nature is very similar to that of "Too Late to Die Young;" however, in novel format, it is somehow easier to understand -- that Johnson is suggesting an approach that is taken to all people with disabilities, not just razor sharp Southern ADA lawyers who happen to be disabled. And while groups such as Disability is Natural are beginning to champion similar movements, Johnson is one of the first and one of the loudest to take her approach to the disability movement. Accidents of Nature is guaranteed to challenge how all of us think disability and Johnson makes it clear, by inserting a caricature of herself, that even she is not above reproach.
I read this in a sitting, but it will stay with me for a long, long time.
First and foremost, for a lawyer with no formal training on creative writing, Johnson has an unbelievable knack with characterization. Her characters are understated, but unique; flawed but sympathetic. Even characters that disagree with her point of view are granted strengths. The message in Accidents of Nature is very similar to that of "Too Late to Die Young;" however, in novel format, it is somehow easier to understand -- that Johnson is suggesting an approach that is taken to all people with disabilities, not just razor sharp Southern ADA lawyers who happen to be disabled. And while groups such as Disability is Natural are beginning to champion similar movements, Johnson is one of the first and one of the loudest to take her approach to the disability movement. Accidents of Nature is guaranteed to challenge how all of us think disability and Johnson makes it clear, by inserting a caricature of herself, that even she is not above reproach.
I read this in a sitting, but it will stay with me for a long, long time.
September 9, 2020
A must read for people with disabilities and our allies...teens and adults, and parents who want to guide their children with disabilities into a positive future equipped to live full lives of dignity and choice.
Harriet McBryde Johnson "gets it" and explains it to the rest of us through the thoughtful and passionate Jean, a young woman with cerebral palsy staying for the first time at a sleep-over camp for "cripples." Set in 1970, Jean meets the militant, the meek, and everything in between amongst fellow campers - aussies (autistic), limp gimps, MRs (mentally retarded), quads, paras, twisted and scared, blind, deaf, walkie-talkies, and spazzos like herself. With great affection that can only emerge from brutal honesty, Johnson shows real teenagers who know they are square pegs who will never fit into round holes. They each have different strategies and dreams, though, few of their dreams are of the telethon variety.
And to save us all from uneducated benevolence...a must read for anyone interested in helping/working with people with disabilities...especially camp counselors and directors, special education professionals, physical and occupational therapists, vocational rehabilitation counselors, and fundraisers for charitable organizations.
Let me know what you think! My head has been full of this stuff since I was 13!
Harriet McBryde Johnson "gets it" and explains it to the rest of us through the thoughtful and passionate Jean, a young woman with cerebral palsy staying for the first time at a sleep-over camp for "cripples." Set in 1970, Jean meets the militant, the meek, and everything in between amongst fellow campers - aussies (autistic), limp gimps, MRs (mentally retarded), quads, paras, twisted and scared, blind, deaf, walkie-talkies, and spazzos like herself. With great affection that can only emerge from brutal honesty, Johnson shows real teenagers who know they are square pegs who will never fit into round holes. They each have different strategies and dreams, though, few of their dreams are of the telethon variety.
And to save us all from uneducated benevolence...a must read for anyone interested in helping/working with people with disabilities...especially camp counselors and directors, special education professionals, physical and occupational therapists, vocational rehabilitation counselors, and fundraisers for charitable organizations.
Let me know what you think! My head has been full of this stuff since I was 13!
September 1, 2020
“Tell the people what it’s like to live with a horrible condition like normalcy.”
Set in 1970 at a summer camp for disabled teens, Accidents of Nature tells the story of a young woman with Cerebral Palsy. Jean has always thought of herself as aspiring to and succeeding at being “normal” - until a week at camp with some radical new friends flips her worldview on its head.
The books challenges mainstream narratives about disability in an authentic, accessible, and sometimes tough way. I especially liked the book in the context of the author’s background as a disability rights activist and the character of Sara, who I’d wager is modelled after the former.
A quick and worthwhile read!
Set in 1970 at a summer camp for disabled teens, Accidents of Nature tells the story of a young woman with Cerebral Palsy. Jean has always thought of herself as aspiring to and succeeding at being “normal” - until a week at camp with some radical new friends flips her worldview on its head.
The books challenges mainstream narratives about disability in an authentic, accessible, and sometimes tough way. I especially liked the book in the context of the author’s background as a disability rights activist and the character of Sara, who I’d wager is modelled after the former.
A quick and worthwhile read!
May 8, 2010
Seventeen-year-old Jean has lived with cerebral palsy her entire life, attends "normal school" and does not think of herself as "different" until she goes to Camp Courage (nicknamed Camp Crip). For the first time in her life, Jean is confronted with differently-abled peers. Her new friend, Sara's caustic humor and in-your-face attitude spark internal changes in Jean.
This book's characters are quirky, strong, and believable. The plot moved quickly and kept me fascinated. The main character is not the only person with a rich emotional arc and changes by book's end. The book opened my eyes to possible perspectives of people who live with a variety of disabilities.
ACCIDENTS OF NATURE is smart, funny, has a strong sense of place and time (1970s), and lets us watch several characters grow and change. My only quibble is an unnecessary epilogue which changes the focus of the book and makes no sense to me.
This book's characters are quirky, strong, and believable. The plot moved quickly and kept me fascinated. The main character is not the only person with a rich emotional arc and changes by book's end. The book opened my eyes to possible perspectives of people who live with a variety of disabilities.
ACCIDENTS OF NATURE is smart, funny, has a strong sense of place and time (1970s), and lets us watch several characters grow and change. My only quibble is an unnecessary epilogue which changes the focus of the book and makes no sense to me.
June 11, 2009
This book is extremely good in it's own right, but definitely the best that I have read that falls into the genre about disabilities (not that I've read many, and not that many even exist). I think that it's well worth its while for anyone to read for an honest, funny, sharp novel about that gives insight into the disabled community/culture. The novel isn't sentimental, and impressed me with its non-Pollyanna-type ending and the author's description of the main character's sudden coming-of-age moment, one that everyone who's left home and returned changed can empathize with, even if it's not complicated by the realization that Norms, even the ones who love you, can never truly understand what it's like to be a Crip.
February 15, 2010
The story of handicapped teens at a summer camp. The talk of "Crips" "MRs", "Norms" and "Spazes" was weird at first; the author suffered from a neuromuscular disease and clearly had first hand knowledge of what life was like for these teens. I liked that it showed a population that is hardly ever featured in books. I liked that they showed these teens having the same kinds of feelings and desires that all teens have. It focused on the campers day as they participated in the way that they were able. But other than that, there wasn't much of a story. Well-meaning and worth teens reading if just to better understand the difficulties faced by some of their peers.
May 18, 2010
Nuanced and engaging portrait of that moment in time before people got that telethons suck. Also before people got that "mixing the races" was no big deal. The narrator's syrupy southern accent was a bit distracting, as were the Mary Sue tendencies of Sara, but overall I enjoyed the story of Jean's awakening. I dug the insight into the struggles of Jean, who has CP, to communicate, and how it felt when her body didn't go along with the wishes of her mind.
January 18, 2026
An honest, unsympathetic portrayal of teens with disabilities. The audio book version is very well done. A compelling read.
November 13, 2008
In the summer of 1970, a seventeen year old Jean, has cerebal palsy. She visits her first camp, Camp Courage, and is forver changed after ten days there. A depressing story, but well worth reading.
March 31, 2013
Marvelous story about handicapped people. Recommend it.
December 7, 2014
No review.
November 19, 2015
Such a heartwarming read
January 21, 2025
Funny serious stuff. Loved the protagonist. Sad the author died.
2025 Book Bingo square for The Protagonist is Differently Abled'.
2025 Book Bingo square for The Protagonist is Differently Abled'.
September 5, 2020
So... I really don't know where to begin with this book.
First, I want to say thank you to Harriet McBryde Johnson for having written this book. I understand that she had a physical disability and wanted to write a book from an honest perspective.
I also understand that this book is set in the 70s, and as someone born in the late 90s there is only so much that I'm going to be able to relate to it all. On one hand I understand why the book is set in the 70s, but on the other hand I wonder why because when this book was published (2006) a lot of things had changed and teens with disabilities wouldn't really relate to much that was being written. I don't know how much older disabled people who have experienced the change of disabled culture in the 70s would've wanted to read this book, but perhaps the number was/is higher than I realize.
Now, to the book:
The main character is a 17 year old named Jean. Jean has cerebral palsy, and this is her first time going to summer camp. This is her first time truly being surrounded by others with disabilities as she has spent all of her life up until that point just living with and assimilating with non-disabled people.
The book follows Jean's experiences as she becomes acquainted with all of the other campers. As I read the book, it made me feel as if I were reading about an initiation to disability culture. A Disability Culture 101, if you will. Jean as a character took a backseat to virtually every situation that she was in. In fact, the character Sara was actually in the driver's seat for the majority of this book. She lead everything, as if Jean was at a college orientation.
I don't know how to describe it other than it just feeling very... weird. Characters are introduced by their disabilities, and they're highly characterized by them. For example, there's one character who is introduced to us by calling her retard*d and throughout the entire book her interactions are characterized by how retard*d she is. She doesn't have a personality other than being retard*d. There's another character who's introduced and characterized by having a disability that makes him essentially an eyesore. Many characters are introduced and characterized by their race as well. Well, at least the Black characters, anyway. They were simply "Black." It goes on and on. ("Yvonne, the one-leg amputee", "a black MR girl", etc.)
Sara, who's supposed to be a side character, makes up a lot of the dialogue in this book. Sara is an atheist who has a lot of knowledge about the Bible and talks extensively in academic language. She rants a lot and orders people around as if they're her servants.
The book actually ends many years after their summer camp experience with a letter from Sara to another (side?) character. In the end, the readers know what happened to Sara and this other "side" character however we have no idea what happened to the supposed main character. Absolutely no clue. I think perhaps because the main character wasn't really the main character after all. She was just the "lens."
★★☆☆☆
First, I want to say thank you to Harriet McBryde Johnson for having written this book. I understand that she had a physical disability and wanted to write a book from an honest perspective.
I also understand that this book is set in the 70s, and as someone born in the late 90s there is only so much that I'm going to be able to relate to it all. On one hand I understand why the book is set in the 70s, but on the other hand I wonder why because when this book was published (2006) a lot of things had changed and teens with disabilities wouldn't really relate to much that was being written. I don't know how much older disabled people who have experienced the change of disabled culture in the 70s would've wanted to read this book, but perhaps the number was/is higher than I realize.
Now, to the book:
The main character is a 17 year old named Jean. Jean has cerebral palsy, and this is her first time going to summer camp. This is her first time truly being surrounded by others with disabilities as she has spent all of her life up until that point just living with and assimilating with non-disabled people.
The book follows Jean's experiences as she becomes acquainted with all of the other campers. As I read the book, it made me feel as if I were reading about an initiation to disability culture. A Disability Culture 101, if you will. Jean as a character took a backseat to virtually every situation that she was in. In fact, the character Sara was actually in the driver's seat for the majority of this book. She lead everything, as if Jean was at a college orientation.
I don't know how to describe it other than it just feeling very... weird. Characters are introduced by their disabilities, and they're highly characterized by them. For example, there's one character who is introduced to us by calling her retard*d and throughout the entire book her interactions are characterized by how retard*d she is. She doesn't have a personality other than being retard*d. There's another character who's introduced and characterized by having a disability that makes him essentially an eyesore. Many characters are introduced and characterized by their race as well. Well, at least the Black characters, anyway. They were simply "Black." It goes on and on. ("Yvonne, the one-leg amputee", "a black MR girl", etc.)
Sara, who's supposed to be a side character, makes up a lot of the dialogue in this book. Sara is an atheist who has a lot of knowledge about the Bible and talks extensively in academic language. She rants a lot and orders people around as if they're her servants.
The book actually ends many years after their summer camp experience with a letter from Sara to another (side?) character. In the end, the readers know what happened to Sara and this other "side" character however we have no idea what happened to the supposed main character. Absolutely no clue. I think perhaps because the main character wasn't really the main character after all. She was just the "lens."
★★☆☆☆
February 24, 2024
I really enjoyed this book. It was so refreshing to see a story written about disabled people from someone with a disability. Too often, I get frustrated because the heroes in books are too able-bodied and I never see myself in those stories. The characters were all interesting and fun to read, although there were a lot of characters to keep track of and I sometimes forgot who had what disability. I loved that they did the reverse telethon, because so often able-bodied people think disabled people are inspirational and pitiful, just for being alive, and that's not fair or respectful of anyone. We never got a choice and the Jesus Freaks get to praise their god because they're not like us. I want to read more of Harriet McBryde Johnson's work. It's sad to me that this book took her 12 years to write and it came out two years before she died. But she was a powerhouse in her own right. She fought for things that mattered and was a lawyer. I respect and admire her so much.
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February 6, 2021Harriet McBryde Johnson is a legend in the disability community and I really admire her message in this book. However, the language and attitudes of the book (while historically accurate for 1970) were incredibly difficult to read. I'm also unsure about the way race is discussed here. Again, it may be accurate for 1970 but this book was published in 2006. We're having much better conversations today and I think we owe our young readers better too.
June 3, 2019
Round up to 4.5 stars.
October 1, 2016
Written by disability-rights activist Harriet McBryde Johnson, who had muscular dystrophy, this novel is set in a summer camp for disabled people, in 1970. I have never before read a book where all major characters are disabled: usually, novels about disabled people focus on the protagonist trying to interact with and fit into the abled world. But this novel is about throwing that idea away: it's about how the disabled body is something to celebrate, and disabled people do not have to change to be respected and valued. The world should accept them as they are. Seeing the social theory of disability explained and discussed in a book for teenagers is thrilling.
The story focus on Jean, a teenager with cerebral palsy, who uses a wheelchair, and is the first disabled student to attend her high school. She has rarely met other disabled people, and at first seeing other disabled teenagers is frightening and overwhelming for her. She meets Sara, who has muscular dystrophy (and, the reader infers, is a version of McBryde Johnson) and Sara talks about the ableism she faces, both in the world at large and in the patronising treatment she experiences from the camp leaders and counselors. It's the first time Jean has been exposed to the concept of ableism, and she finds Sara's attitude, with her bitterness, anger and rebellion, hard to handle, but also compelling. The reader sees Jean's attitude towards the people around her change: she grows to see beauty in the other campers, and realises that disabled bodies are just as worthy of respect and celebration as any other body.
One of my problems with this book is that the empowerment and respect for disabled people seems to be limited for those who do not have an intellectual disability, or autism. Frequently, the characters who are ID/DD and/or autistic are treated as something lesser. That said, Margie, who has an intellectual disability is shown as a character in her own right, and there are instances when the narrative celebrates the autistic characters speaking up for and expressing themselves. The main focus of this book though, is on disabled bodies, and physically disabled people being celebrated for who they are, without being forced to change or put themselves throw pain in order to walk or seem more like other people. And that's wonderful: this book is incredibly important, and continues to feel revolutionary, even decades after the year (1970) in which the story takes place.
I recommend this book for anyone, especially people who have not thought much about disability before. It is easy to read and understand, and the ideas it contains are vital.
The story focus on Jean, a teenager with cerebral palsy, who uses a wheelchair, and is the first disabled student to attend her high school. She has rarely met other disabled people, and at first seeing other disabled teenagers is frightening and overwhelming for her. She meets Sara, who has muscular dystrophy (and, the reader infers, is a version of McBryde Johnson) and Sara talks about the ableism she faces, both in the world at large and in the patronising treatment she experiences from the camp leaders and counselors. It's the first time Jean has been exposed to the concept of ableism, and she finds Sara's attitude, with her bitterness, anger and rebellion, hard to handle, but also compelling. The reader sees Jean's attitude towards the people around her change: she grows to see beauty in the other campers, and realises that disabled bodies are just as worthy of respect and celebration as any other body.
One of my problems with this book is that the empowerment and respect for disabled people seems to be limited for those who do not have an intellectual disability, or autism. Frequently, the characters who are ID/DD and/or autistic are treated as something lesser. That said, Margie, who has an intellectual disability is shown as a character in her own right, and there are instances when the narrative celebrates the autistic characters speaking up for and expressing themselves. The main focus of this book though, is on disabled bodies, and physically disabled people being celebrated for who they are, without being forced to change or put themselves throw pain in order to walk or seem more like other people. And that's wonderful: this book is incredibly important, and continues to feel revolutionary, even decades after the year (1970) in which the story takes place.
I recommend this book for anyone, especially people who have not thought much about disability before. It is easy to read and understand, and the ideas it contains are vital.
November 13, 2012
Reviewed by Mechele R. Dillard for TeensReadToo.com
Jean feels fantastic about her place in the world. Why shouldn’t she? She’s seventeen, an honor student at Crosstown High School, her friends are great, and her family supports all of her dreams. But this summer, Jean spreads her wings, away from the cocoon of her parents, friends, and her small town, and spends time at Camp Courage--“Crip Camp,” as the campers sarcastically refer to it--a camp for children with physical and mental disabilities, and she finds her confidence is shaken. For the first time, Jean must admit that, because of her cerebral palsy, she is different from the other kids at her high school.
Set in 1970 with an epilogue to bring the reader into the year 2000, ACCIDENTS OF NATURE is an excellent overview of how kids with a range of challenges--cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, amputations, autism, asthma, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy--feel condescended to by the world. For example, to make sure no one feels bad at the camp carnival, everyone
wins a prize at the games. Jean and her friend Sara refuse to play, on the basis that there is no challenge in playing a game if one is certain to win. The games then become a metaphor for Crip life, as Jean muses:
"When the games are rigged, does it make everyone a winner--or no one? … I believe in competition. The program seems to be that handicapped people aren’t up to it; we can only pretend to be winners. I don’t want to pretend. I want to achieve, really achieve. Or I will take my disappointments just like anyone else."
Johnson captures the pain, anger, and fear of being shunned by the “normal” world in the character of Sara, and explores the naiveté of thinking that no one notices one’s differences in the character of Jean. Weaving the two together through the bond of friendship, Johnson creates a captivating, educational storyline.
The overwhelming negative of this book--and the reason I am awarding four stars instead of five--is the epilogue. Without giving away the ending, I’ll say that I’m not sure what the author was thinking when she wrote this epilogue; I can think of no other way to describe it but as frustrating, aggravating, and absolutely annoying. Ms. Johnson, what were you thinking?
Still, ACCIDENTS OF NATURE is an excellent book, overall, and well worth a reader’s time; I recommend it with a strong four stars.
Jean feels fantastic about her place in the world. Why shouldn’t she? She’s seventeen, an honor student at Crosstown High School, her friends are great, and her family supports all of her dreams. But this summer, Jean spreads her wings, away from the cocoon of her parents, friends, and her small town, and spends time at Camp Courage--“Crip Camp,” as the campers sarcastically refer to it--a camp for children with physical and mental disabilities, and she finds her confidence is shaken. For the first time, Jean must admit that, because of her cerebral palsy, she is different from the other kids at her high school.
Set in 1970 with an epilogue to bring the reader into the year 2000, ACCIDENTS OF NATURE is an excellent overview of how kids with a range of challenges--cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, amputations, autism, asthma, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy--feel condescended to by the world. For example, to make sure no one feels bad at the camp carnival, everyone
wins a prize at the games. Jean and her friend Sara refuse to play, on the basis that there is no challenge in playing a game if one is certain to win. The games then become a metaphor for Crip life, as Jean muses:
"When the games are rigged, does it make everyone a winner--or no one? … I believe in competition. The program seems to be that handicapped people aren’t up to it; we can only pretend to be winners. I don’t want to pretend. I want to achieve, really achieve. Or I will take my disappointments just like anyone else."
Johnson captures the pain, anger, and fear of being shunned by the “normal” world in the character of Sara, and explores the naiveté of thinking that no one notices one’s differences in the character of Jean. Weaving the two together through the bond of friendship, Johnson creates a captivating, educational storyline.
The overwhelming negative of this book--and the reason I am awarding four stars instead of five--is the epilogue. Without giving away the ending, I’ll say that I’m not sure what the author was thinking when she wrote this epilogue; I can think of no other way to describe it but as frustrating, aggravating, and absolutely annoying. Ms. Johnson, what were you thinking?
Still, ACCIDENTS OF NATURE is an excellent book, overall, and well worth a reader’s time; I recommend it with a strong four stars.
January 24, 2018
In the book “Accidents of Nature” By Harriet McBryde Johnson, there is a character named Jean. Jean has cerebral palsy and has a voice problem. She went to a normal school and was the only crippled kid there. During the summer her parents brought her to a camp called “Camp Courage”. “Camp Courage” is a camp that was specifically made for kids that are crippled, mentally retarded, and kids with disabilities. She was sent to camp for 10 days and she changed a lot. At camp Jean met a couple of kids that were in her cabin. Sara, another cripple, was Jeans main friend. Sara was sarcastic, lazy, and sometimes mean. She would never participate in any activities and would always draw while waiting. At the beginning of the story Jean always thought that she was just the same as everyone else but towards the end she realized that she’s crippled and nothing can change that. She then realizes she’s not like everyone else and decides to call herself a “Crip”. During camp she learns a lot of things. One thing she learns is that when a normal person sees a crippled person, the normal person always feels that the cripples person is unable to do anything and is always sad. For example, during the story senator Bob, the owner of the camp, always made everyone a winner so everyone feels that they achieved something. The carnival games at the camp were made so everyone is a winner. Through that experience Jean and Sara noticed that they mean nothing.The book chapters that were split up by the days she was at the camp. This book made me think a lot about things and made me stop and reflect. One part was when Sara told Jean that she is a Crip and she should be happy about it. I believe that the author wrote this book to tell the reader the struggle that crippled people get and that we should know that. Some people make fun of crippled people but if they read this book it would probably make them feel bad for them. This book impacted me in this way. It made me feel bad for Jean and about all the struggles she had to live through in the book. The book “Accidents of Nature” is a thought changing story and I would recommend to anyone that likes reading books that tells a relaxing story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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