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Finding Zoe Summary

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The book I chose to read is called Finding Zoe: A Deaf Woman’s Story of Identity, Love, and Adoption by Brandi Rarus and Gail Harris. Brandi lost her hearing at the age of 6 due to spinal meningitis. Her mother wanted her to continue to be oral, so she was mainstreamed. As she got older, she began to realize that something was missing in her life, but she couldn’t figure it out what it was. She yearned to be around deaf people with whom she could communicate more with and yet at the same time felt a huge pull toward the hearing world, her family and friends. Her freshman year of high school, Brandi decided to switch schools and go to the school with the deaf program. While there she still avoided the deaf program, but had a few classes with other deaf students. …show more content…

This was the first time she had 100 percent accessible communication. This is also where she came to the realization that being deaf was okay and it could be something good. After high school, Brandi attended the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) and explored many areas of the deaf culture. She became Miss NTID, Miss Deaf Illinois, and Miss Deaf American. She marched with students of Gallaudet down to the Capitol in support of the Deaf President Now. Brandi began dating and later married Tim Rarus and felt part of the Deaf Culture. They had three hearing boys, but Brandi longed for a girl like her. Tim and Brandi were able to adopt a deaf baby girl named Zoe, and now Brandi feels fulfilled in life. She saw how all of her decisions and experiences had been grooming her to be Zoe’s mother and to teach Zoe how to be a confident and self-accepting of who

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