John Rockwell, a former arts critic for the New York Times, reviews the memoir of German bass baritone Thomas Quasthoff.

The work documents Quasthoff’s life, both as an internationally recognized artist and as a person with a disability. Quasthoff was one of thousands of children born with deformities after their mothers took the drug thalidomide during pregnancy.

An excerpt:

He suffered sadistic experiences as a child, perpetrated by a society that wanted to shut him and other disabled people out of sight, out of mind, even out of earshot.

He triumphed, as an artist and a person. Yet understandably he does not want to be known as a gnome or a dwarf – as he sometimes refers to himself in “The Voice,” his complex and touching memoir – who happens to sing. He wants to be admired as an artist, not a human-interest freak.

And he should be … “Luck has never been shy with me,” Quasthoff proclaims. And after this tale of initial terrible luck, then pain, then triumph, you believe him.

The first chapter of Quasthoff’s book can be read here.

Earlier reviews are here.

A video of a Quasthoff performance of “Gute Nacht” by Franz Schubert is here.

From the Dallas Morning News:

Eighteen-year-old Kristin Pass (center, left) was voted homecoming queen by members of the senior class at Aledo High School in Aledo, Texas, just west of Fort Worth. Kristin has Down syndrome.

“Oh my gosh! I was sitting in the student section and everyone stood up, crying and cheering for Kristin,” said longtime friend and fellow senior Meaghan Geary, 17, who first met Kristin in the third grade. “It was great!”

… Kristin doesn’t care what’s on the outside, Meaghan said. She’s friends with everyone, and everyone admires that.

“She’s the person we all want to be,” Meaghan said.

See also: Special teen crowned homecoming queen at Aledo — Ft. Worth Star-Telegram

Guest editorial by Andrew Monkelban in Wired Magazine. Monkelban is an avid player of video games who says he has “always received strange looks” from other gamers. An excerpt:

I was born with cerebral palsy, a non-progressive condition that affects the part of the brain that handles the limbs and fine motor functions. I’m unable to talk or walk, which confines me to a wheelchair. I only have full use of my right arm, but I can play one-handed. Playing certain games one-handed can be challenging, and there are some games that I cannot play, but I’m always up for a good challenge. It’s part of what makes me, or anyone else, a gamer.

… Sometimes, I’m still a little surprised that the fact of my being a one-handed, physically challenged gamer amazes people. When I go out, such as to an arcade, people look down on me. It’s like me being in a wheelchair automatically makes me a bad gamer. But once they see what I can do, they’re left in awe. In my mind, I’ve never been any different from other gamers.

…   Much like girl gamers before us, challenged gamers are becoming a larger part of the gaming community. So, if I can show others that just because we’re “handicapped” doesn’t mean that we’re to be taken lightly, I’d feel satisfied. This is one reason why my motto on Xbox Live is “Seeing Is Believing”. I may not be the best gamer in the world, but I’m certainly not the worst. Underestimate me, and it’s very likely I’ll kick your butt.

From the New York Times:

Heba Said Ahmed (left) won a gold medal for power lifting at the recent Paralympic Games in Beijing, and broke a world record.

But when she left Beijing and returned home to Egypt, Ahmed once again faced a society that views her as a second-class citizen because she cannot walk, a disability caused by a childhood bout of polio. An excerpt:

“I want to prove to society that I am better than what they think of me,” she said. “In Egypt, they think a handicapped person should just stay in bed.”

It is hard to overstate how different Ms. Ahmed is from many of those around her. It is all about attitude. Egypt is filled with people who face adversity, most often a function of poverty and systemic indifference. It is a class-based society with an unwritten contract that many people believe condemns them to live as they were born, poor and marginalized. There is a pervasive feeling of impotence, a collective belief that fighting back is futile.

But Ms. Ahmed never refers to fate; she talks about choices. She does not talk about obstacles; she talks about challenges.

… “There is no such thing as a handicap,” she said. “A handicap is in your thinking, or in your heart.”

From CNN:

Nineteen-year-old Zach Wincent of St. Charles, Illinois, has a satisfying life. He was prom king in high school, now attends community college and works at Target. Zach’s life demonstrates the improved circumstances of people with Down syndrome in the United States, thanks to advances in education and medical care.

An excerpt:

Life with Down syndrome has changed dramatically in the past century. In 1929, the average life expectancy for a person with the condition was 9 years, but today, it is 58 to 60, said Nicole Schupf, associate professor of clinical epidemiology at Columbia University Medical Center.

(more…)

Writing in NPR’s ‘This I Believe’ section, Penn State University English Professor Gregg Rogers explores his reaction to his daughter’s prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome. Rogers and his wife were overwhelmed by fear and anxiety at the thought of raising a child with a disability, he says, but were transformed when their daughter Genevieve burst into their lives.

I now believe Genevieve is here for everyone. I believe Genevieve is taking over the world, one heart at a time – beginning with mine. I believe that what was once our perceived damnation has now become our unexpected salvation.

… On my right wrist, I wear a simple silver chain with three little beads on it. I used to say the three beads signified the third chromosome that results in trisomy 21, Down syndrome. Now when I look at those beads, they simply remind me that I don’t ever know as much as I think I do, but I’m always capable of more than I think I am.

Rogers and his wife Lucy host a website for other families in their area who have children with Down syndrome.

From the [UK] Independent:

UK equestrian Lee Pearson won his third gold medal in his third successive Paralympic games this week. He was born with arthrogryposis multiplex congenita, a muscle and joint condition that left him with small, twisted limbs, and has undergone 15 operations to untangle his joints. He controls his horse, Gentleman, with his lips.

When he was born, doctors all but gave up on him. Hospital personnel put his crib in a “broom cupboard.” An excerpt:

“I suppose I was not a pretty sight,” Pearson would later say. “My right foot was wrapped round my left knee, my left foot was wrapped round my right knee, my arms and hands were horribly twisted and I had an ugly birthmark covering half of my face and the top of my head. Mum took a gulp, picked me up and gave me the first of a million cuddles”.