Today, I'm celebrating the release of Monica Byrne’s novel, The Actual Star. Before I share my review, I have to admit I’m a bit biased. Novelist, playwright, activist, and futurist Monica Byrne is a dear friend. A year ahead of me at our small Catholic high school in central Pennsylvania, she was essentially the person I wanted to be when I grew up. For several years, I've been a supporter of Monica's work through Patreon . Rather than simply buying a book after it’s published, patrons send a small amount of money each month to support the author directly at every stage of project development. In return, we get a behind-the-scenes look at the entire creative process. When Monica was writing about a society in the distant future, she wanted groups who are often ignored or excluded today to be more accurately represented tomorrow. I was one of many expert readers she hired for that purpose. I’ll say more about my work as a disability consultant in future posts, but I hav
Exploring disability identity and representation