"All the Ways I Hear You" first introduces our young hard of hearing narrator, Sy, and his neat hearing aids. From there, Sy goes on to introduce his diverse group of friends who are deaf, hard of hearing or deafblind and their own hearing technology and communication styles, like cochlear implants, bone anchored hearing systems, communication boards/tablets and sign language. The book also introduces other children in familial and support roles, namely a hearing sibling and a child of deaf adults.
This is the first book written by Stephanie Marrufo, who is Sy's mom. When Sy was diagnosed with hearing loss as a 2-year-old, Stephanie began searching for children's books that featured or included deaf and hard of hearing characters and found this type of resource to be extremely lacking. Once she decided to write her own, she realized the importance of being as inclusive as possible, and following that decision, this unique story came to life.
"All the Ways I Hear You" is beatifully illustrated by Priscila Soares, an artist with hearing loss who wears bone anchored hearing systems, and mother to a child born deaf who now has cochlear implants. She uses her talents to advocate for people with hearing loss by sharing their stories through her mixed media work.
If you are a d/Deaf or hard of hearing person, the parent or family member of a d/Deaf or hard of hearing child, an educator, a daycare provider, a medical or support professional providing services to d/Deaf and hard of hearing people, a community organization supporting d/Deaf and hard of hearing people, or if you are simply interested in adding inclusive resources to their children's book shelf... This is the book you've been waiting for!