Shane Burcaw

In this book, Burcaw talks about various experiences as he lives with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). Some of these include moments from his childhood, but the majority are events from in his 20s.

The individual chapters read more like episodic essays (not terribly surprising when one considers that Burcaw more or less started his writing career as a blogger), although they do progress linearly and occasionally reference back to a previous chapter. Throughout, Burcaw uses humor to talk about show more the various situations, even if he also sometimes expresses fear, embarrassment, annoyance, etc. His tone feels rather conversational, thus drawing the reader in.

I had previously read Burcaw's book for children (and never his blog) so I was initially a bit surprised to find the crass language in this title, although it is clearly used for comedic effect. The overall theme is actually quite similar to his children's book -- to show that people with disabilities are "not so different" from able-bodied people and have similar hopes and dreams and concerns.

To wit, "From the earliest days I can remember, my body, society, and the world around me have been feeding me the same message: You are sick and different and your existence is a pity. People are programmed to feel bad for me, knowing nothing about the quality of my life. At times, the outside perception that my life is negative and sad became so powerful that I internalized it and developed harmful beliefs that I was a burden to even the people who love me most.
It was largely my responsibility to shake off that idea and prove my worth, to show people that I am just as funny, intelligent, sexy, hardworking, adventurous, and successful as anyone else. My friends, family, and girlfriend played a crucial role in helping me achieve a healthy mind-set about society's misperceptions and my place within in it."

While Burcaw is just one voice in the disability community so his views may not express everyone's opinion, I think it is worthwhile for those without disabilities to read this book (and/or others like it) to check their own privilege and how they respond to those who look differently from themselves. show less

It took me a few days to let this one marinate before writing a review. I know that my opinion of it is different than most others here on goodreads, but it left a sour taste in my mouth. Shane (and friends) considers himself to be a champion for disabled people, a breath of fresh air, etc. But throughout the book, he reiterates that he does not like other disabled people. In fact, they sicken him. After a little internet searching, I found that the feeling is mutual. His "fresh air" show more actually works to steal the legitimate voices of those fighting for their rights. By pushing so hard to make "normal" the "cool" way for disabled people to act, he makes others look like whiners to the outside world, when they have real, important concerns. And, when they can't come off as "cool" as he does, he makes them seem sickening to others as well.

It's incredibly sad. If he could have paired his insightful, funny, candid style with real compassion, this book would have been a home run. As it stands, he is Regina George for people with disabilities. And that is decidedly uncool. show less

At first I felt kind of bad even wanting to read this book, because I didn't want to be disrespectful of anyone who deals with challenges that I can't even imagine, but once I started, I had a hard time stopping reading it! His voice is so strong and funny and insightful, and guess what...he is sharing it with us. He is a typical young man, with a heavy dose of muscular dystrophy, that is positive and fun-loving. He cusses, masturbates, falls in love, shares his experiences as a young man show more and one who is considered "other." I literally laughed out loud and then got misty-eyed. This is a must read for all therapists and teachers, in my opinion. Everyone can wait for their copy next. I am very interested in following his blog now...just as a person of age I will need to figure that out first. His parents and family are amazing too. Thank you Shane! show less

The first time I ever heard of Laughing at my Nightmare was in an Unshelved strip about a month ago, which can be found here . It piqued my interest and I checked it out of the library. And man, I'm glad I did. This is one of the funniest, uplifting, and delightfully disgusting memoirs I've read in recent memory.

Shane Burcaw has SMA (spinal muscular atrophy). One night, he wrote a blog with the same title as his book to show how he injects humor into a horrifying situation. His messages show more about looking at your problems, laughing them off, and being positive are always great to read about, especially when this book is so freaking funny. The passages about riding the bus to school with students who had differing mental disabilities and getting drunk with his cousin had me laughing out loud when I was reading this on my commute to my internship. And...laughing to yourself on the Light Rail pretty much guarantees no one will sit next to you.

This book doesn't shy away from the awkward, frustrating, painful parts of having a disability. And I respect and like this book much more for it. I am also do not mind some of the more disgusting imagery presented in this book. It's not for the squeamish, as there are some pretty graphic, visceral images of broken femurs and how his bodily functions are managed. But, I would highly recommend this book to people looking for a very, very funny memoir with an uplifting message. show less