Deer Run Home by Ann Clare LeZotte

Summary:Effie is Deaf, and no one in her family speaks sign language, her language. This heart-filled story of survival and found family is inspired by a true court case. Effie and her older sister, Deja, have recently moved into their father’s trailer after an incident at their mom’s house. Daddy communicates with Effie by pointing, stomping on the floor, and making thoughtless jokes. Even if they could understand each other, could Effie tell the terrible secret she carries when telling feels impossible-and dangerous? But what if telling is the only way to be seen?

A gorgeous story, told through spare and powerful imagery. LeZotte brings the stark realities of language deprivation—a common experience for many deaf children in hearing families—to light through Effie’s sensitive and observant perspective. And she makes one thing clear: kids dealing with a world that refuses to communicate with them are no less smart, capable, or empathetic than their peers with full language access. The author shows how COVID-19 only exacerbated the effects of the hearing world’s indifference. A standout image: Effie and her mom go to the school to pick up printed worksheets, to find the packet out of order and riddled with blank pages: “Mom yelled at a woman/in the office who was watching/us from behind a window, but/she just went back to typing.” LeZotte is extraordinary at using the rhythms of American Sign Language, Effie’s native language, to create striking imagery in this English language verse novel. And lest readers think the lack of access to information that Effie experiences are exaggerated: as a longtime counselor and director at a Deaf Camp, I nodded in recognition when Miss Kathy, the one adult who could communicate with Effie, had to explain to her the order of shampoo and conditioner, and when it was revealed that Miss Kathy, not her parents, had had to explain about menstruation. Been there. I hope that readers will learn from this story about the extraordinary resilience of deaf kids—and how much of the burden of communication they are unfairly forced to take on by the apathetic hearing world. And I hope hearing readers will question why the judge clearly sees the physical neglect that Effie experiences from her parents, and whether her case would even have made it to court if her physical needs were met but still not the need for communication access.

DEER RUN HOME is out now.

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