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The Country of the Blind

The Country of the Blind

Hey, hey, hey! I'm excited to give away 10 copies (hardcover, large print, or audiobook) of a new memoir by Andrew Leland, The Country of the Blind: A Memoir at the End of Sight available now from Penguin Press.

The cover of The Country of the Blind by Andrew Leland shows the book's title, subtitle and author--"The Country of the Blind / A Memoir at the End of Sight /Andrew Leland." It also depicts blind people of varying ages, abilities, and ethnicities, nearly all of them blind, holding either white canes or guide dogs in harnesses, going about their business in a chill happy aspect: some are carrying groceries, one has a baby strapped to her chest in a carrier. There's a blind skateboarder and a pair of rollerskaters. A white woman in a wheelchair reads a braille book in her lap, and a bearded Black man using a walker has a cane at his side.

ABOUT THE BOOK

We meet Andrew Leland as he’s suspended in the liminal state of the soon-to-be blind: he’s midway through his life with retinitis pigmentosa, a condition that ushers those who live with it from sightedness to blindness over years, even decades. He grew up with full vision, but starting in his teenage years, his sight began to degrade from the outside in, such that he now sees the world as if through a narrow tube. Soon—but without knowing exactly when—he will likely have no vision left.

Full of apprehension but also dogged curiosity, Leland embarks on a sweeping exploration of the state of being that awaits him: not only the physical experience of blindness but also its language, politics, and customs. He negotiates his changing relationships with his wife and son, and with his own sense of self, as he moves from his mainstream, “typical” life to one with a disability. Part memoir, part historical and cultural investigation, The Country of the Blind represents Leland’s determination not to merely survive this transition but to grow from it—to seek out and revel in that which makes blindness enlightening.

Thought-provoking and brimming with warmth and humor, The Country of the Blind is a deeply personal and intellectually exhilarating tour of a way of being that most of us have never paused to consider—and from which we have much to learn.
The author photo is of Andrew Leland. He is wearing jeans and beige button up shirt with a black shirt underneath. He is wearing glasses and smiling with his hands clasped, as he sits on a bench outdoors with a tree and building blurred in the background.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Andrew Leland’s writing has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker, McSweeney’s Quarterly, and The San Francisco Chronicle, among other outlets. From 2013-2019, he hosted and produced The Organist, an arts and culture podcast, for KCRW; he has also produced pieces for Radiolab and 99 Percent Invisible. He has been an editor at The Believer since 2003. He lives in western Massachusetts with his wife and son.

DETAILS

1) Any disabled person in the US is eligible for this giveaway. You do not need to disclose any details about your disability.

If you already received a book from one of my previous giveaways, please consider letting other people have a chance.

2) The first 10 people will receive a hardcover, large print, or audiobook. If you do not receive a reply that means the books have been claimed or you did not include all the required information.

3) Send an email to DisabilityVisibilityProject@gmail.com with ‘Andrew Leland Giveaway’ in the title of the message. Do not reply to this post!!

4) Include the following information in your message:

  • First and last name
  • Mailing address
  • Preferred format: hardcover, large print, or audiobook

Please note: I will send this information along with your email address to the publisher. They are responsible for confirming your details and sending you the book. Please be patient!

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Published by:

Alice Wong

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