Ann Clare LeZotte

Gr 3–7—Mary Lambert is struggling with guilt due to her brother's accidental death and also seeks to find her place
in her tight-knit Martha's Vineyard community. When an outsider comes to study the deaf community and kidnaps
her as a "live specimen," Mary must find strength within herself to escape. LeZotte packs this historical fiction novel
with cultural information regarding 19th-century Martha's Vineyard, addressing treatment of Native Nations,
disability, grief, and prejudice in this slow-burn, occasionally dark #OwnVoices novel.… (more)

I enjoyed this book and Mary's unbreakable spirit. I didn't really understand the book's ending, but that may be because I was reading an ARC -- so while it felt vague me, that might be because I wasn't reading the finished story. On the whole, I think the book was a great balance between Mary's seeking heart and the hardships imposed upon her by the hearing world. I'm glad that it felt like she really grows as a person seeking her path and figuring out what she wants to do in the world.

Advanced Reader's Copy provided by Edelweiss.… (more)

LeZotte brings the reader into a deaf world but this is not a book about the disabled – it’s about a vibrant community where many of the residents happen to the deaf. --"Deafness is not an affliction. The only thing it stops me from doing is hearing." p.95

Show Me A Sign is the story of Mary Lambert’s life on Martha’s Vineyard – her family tragedy, her friends, the people in her tight knight community. Mary’s life has been a contented one until she and her parents (in particular her mother) have to cope with grief from a family tragedy. Her mother lashes out at Mary and her father (we a mother who is not perfect). Then a visitor to the island and shows Mary another view of her community (where they are “deaf and dumb”) – one she finds both baffling and infuriating.
The novel starts at an easeful pace with lots of great historical detail and descriptive language and switches to a thriller midway. It also allows the reader to explore their own ideas about ability and prejudice. This is teased out in different characters’ ideas about the Wampanoag, freed slaves, the role of women, and the deaf community on Martha’s Vineyard.
I would recommend this to an upper elementary student. I like that the author provides historical information as an addendum to the novel for those readers curious to learn more about events, people, and cultures introduced in the novel.
… (more)

I really enjoyed LeZotte's first novel Show Me a Sign and was hopeful this sequel would be equally engaging. Mary is scarred from her experience in the previous novel and still experiences nightmares and anxiety related to her kidnapping. She is weary, more wary of others, and is unsettled. When she has an opportunity to help another girl learn sign language, she sees this as a opportunity to grow and as a step to becoming a teacher. Little does she know this experience will become one that is perilous rather than purposeful. The situation of her charge is both mysterious and terrifying and Mary does not feel up to the task of helping her when the other adults in the household abuse and neglect the girl.
The author does a wonderful job of explaining deaf culture, she also tackles racism, sexism, and other issues. It almost feels as if the author trying to address too many social issues in one book. While the story is suspenseful the ending is not as satisfying as the first book.… (more)