Author Description

"The story of Jamie Berube's journey to adulthood and a meditation on disability in American life Published in 1996, Life as We Know It introduced Jamie Berube to the world as a sweet, bright, gregarious little boy who loves the Beatles, pizza, and making lists. At four, he is like many young people his age, but his Down syndrome leads most people to see him only in terms of his disability. Twenty years later, Jamie is no longer little, though he still loves the Beatles, pizza, and making lists. In Life as Jamie Knows It, Michael Berube chronicles his son's growth and his growing love of the world, writing as both a disability studies scholar and as a father. He follows Jamie through the transitions within his family and home life, through his school years, through the complicated process of entering the workforce with a disability. In a book that joins stirring memoir and sharp philosophical inquiry, Berube guides us through the labyrinth of ethical issues surrounding how we approach disability and uses Jamie's story to argue for a deeper understanding of disability that challenges us to move toward a more just, more inclusive society"--