My Thirteenth Winter: A Memoir : A Memoir

Rating:
Summary: A Heart Wrenching Read!
Review: As a teacher of fifth and sixth graders, this book really touched my heart. I have three special needs children in my class of thirteen kids. I feel that this book has given me a better understanding of what life must be like for people with disabilities. My heart just wanted to reach out to this child that was terrified of going to school everyday because she couldn't do the work, particularly math, no matter how hard she tried.

Samantha Abeel does an exemplary job in showing that all people have talents and gifts. I know it is very frustrating to work with a student every day that just can't seem to "get it." Samantha reminds us that even if someone is not good with math, she might be able to write. Never give up on the child.

I recommend this book to all children, parents, and especially teachers. This book will remind you that life can be very frightening for people that don't think or learn like the majority of people.

Rating:
Summary: My Thirteenth winter
Review: Samantha Abeel has a gift of magical words. Her poetry book, "Reach for the Moon", is art and delight. But "My Thirteenth Winter" describes the other side of her coin, and the price she pays for this gift.
The world of learning disability unfolds through her memories as she describes her journey through the education system. The story is engrossing, even for someone not involved in educating children. Sam has that kind of charm, that you want to finish the story. But when you put the book down and try to imagine life in that way, where numbers simply don't and won't ever make sense, the enormity of what she faces is amazing. And you can imagine it, because she shows it to you from the inside.
This book is like a key into the world of disabilities of all kinds, but especially the learning disabilities that look invisible except for the effects they have on peoples' lives.
This book would seem to be required reading for anyone who tries to help anyone learn - that includes a lot of people.

Rating:
Summary: True and compelling story told with wisdom beyond her years.
Review: Samantha Abeel is a wonderful writer who has a special talent for making words come to life. As a teacher who teaches thirteen-year-olds, this book made me even more aware of the struggles some of my students must face everyday as they are asked to complete tasks that many don't even have to think about before completing them. Anyone who teaches, works with children, or has a family member who is learning disabled would benefit from reading this book! Her way with words is magical and makes the reader feel as if Samantha is there, speaking to the reader.There are so many passages in the book that I just had to highlight and share with others. I plan on sharing this book with other teachers and friends and I'm sure my copy of the book will be worn out before I get it back! Thanks Samantha for opening my eyes and the eyes of so many others to the difficulties some people face daily with your story.

Rating:
Summary: A Mind Opening Experience
Review: Samantha Abeel not only wrote My Thirteenth Winter, but lives it. This book opens up your eyes and makes you aware of the stuggles that thousands of people go through.
Samantha went through many depressing moments throughout her educational life. Most of the dicouraging times were due to a learning disability that was not discovered until after her life had been negatively affected by it. Samantha was bewildered by the fact that she could be so skilled in writing but drop to rock bottom when it came to math skills. Her social life was a struggle. Each day was another not to enjoy, but push through and finish. Even when her learning disability was discovered, Samantha was oblivious to the fact that her life still had more secrets to reveal and challenges to overcome. This book offered a realistic perspective as to what people with learning diabilites go through. My Thirteenth Winter really shows an indepth look into the lives that many people live.

Rating:
Summary: A very fine autobiography of courage and frustration
Review: Samantha Abeel's story is a memoir with reads with all the smoothness, drama and pointed observations of a novel. Her math-related learning disability sets her apart from others and until she is diagnosed in 7th grade, her life is one big struggle. My Thirteenth Winter is a very fine autobiography of courage and frustration.

Rating:
Summary: My Thirteenth Winter-a Review
Review: Samatha Abeel's autobiography should be read by every parent of a learning disabled child and by every teacher who has learning disabled children in the classroom.
As an elementary student, Samatha excelled in language and social studies, but she also had a harrowing secret: she could not understand or do the math her classmates did-she could not even tell time!
It is not until she is thirteen that Samatha is finally diagnosed with dyscalculia, a math related learning disability.
The book covers both Samatha's triumphs like working with artist Charles Murphy to produce "Reach for the Moon" and her difficulty dealing with the outside world where most people do not understand how her dyscalculia shows itself in her daily life.
This is the story of her persistence and her ultimate sucess. For as Samatha writes,"...we are stronger than we think we are."
I highly recommend this story of a courageous young woman and her struggle to deal with her disablility.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful and Thought- provoking
Review: This book is an absolute must-read for teachers, parents, and kids with learning disabilities (LD) and other special needs. Beautifully written, honest and very open about what life is like for a child with learning disabilities. This is especially important reading for those who don't understand that a child can be both intellectually gifted and LD, and that no one is "too smart" to have a learning disability.

As someone who works with families of gifted/special needs children, I will be recommending this book widely.

Rating:
Summary: An amazing book
Review: This book is an absolute must-read for teachers, parents, and kids with learning disabilities (LD) and other special needs. Beautifully written, honest and very open about what life is like for a child with learning disabilities. This is especially important reading for those who don't understand that a child can be both intellectually gifted and LD, and that no one is "too smart" to have a learning disability.

As someone who works with families of gifted/special needs children, I will be recommending this book widely.

Rating:
Summary: provocative and unforgettable
Review: This is one of the best memoirs I have ever read. Although not formally diagnosed when in school, I believe that I, like the author, am both gifted and learning disabled. (The gap between my verbal and math SATs would convince anyone of this.) The descriptions of what it is like as a young student who most people consider smart to "fake it" in one's problem areas are the most painfully accurate I have ever read. The narrator's disabilities extend far beyond what most of us think of as having "problems with math." Making change, following directions on a map, and telling time are all part of the narrator's disability. In this book, she shows how the inadequate research done on this disability, coupled with her impressive masking skills, and prejudice on her teachers' part as to what a "dumb" kid looks and behaves like, all made her school years more difficult than they should be for anyone. Luckily, parents who insisted on speaking up to the school system, as well as Sam's own gifts helped her graduate and complete college.

Another thing that intrigued and angered me was a comment one admissions' officer made to Sam's (the narrator's) mother as they were researching colleges: "Our students are perfect in every way." i.e. we couldn't possibly consider your daughter. Really? I worry about a college that weeds out applicants in that manner, especially given that the narrator had already published a book.

If you have ever seen a movie or TV program on adults who cannot read but who have managed to negotiate and even excel in daily life, you will have some idea of what life was like for the narrator during her youth. What makes the book so compelling is that it's not just written by someone who wants to talk about a disability, but also by a poet and gifted writer who can convey what it is like to have her particular disability perfectly.