Literature Review

Literature Review

Future Reflections Special Issue1989, Vol. 8 No. 4
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LITERATURE REVIEW
BUSINESS IS LOOKING UP
The Kids on the Block Book Series
Written by Barbara Aiello and Jeffrey Shulman
Published by
Twenty-First Century Books, 1988
--Reviewed By: Barbara Cheadle
One thing the daughter of a country preacher
learns, if nothing else, is her Bible. I was no
exception. Although I can no longer quote verses
by memory, I shall never forget the many
parables and stories I learned from my Sunday
School teachers in the little country churches
where my Dad preached.
I especially remember the parable of the
sower. In this parable, a man goes out into his
fields with his sack of seed and scatters the seed
over the field. Some of the seeds fall on rocky
ground and never take root. Other seeds fall
among weeds or in poor soil. These seeds sprout,
but soon die. Some of the seed, however, falls on
good ground, and from that seed comes the new
harvest of grain.
The older I get the more I understand and
appreciate the message in that parable. I have
learned that it doesn't matter whether, as a
Federationist, I am trying to plant seeds of understanding
and new attitudes about blindness, or,
as a parent, I am trying to plant the seeds of
tidiness, good manners, and sound moral values
in three rowdy children; there is only one way to
success--patience and persistence --for one
never knows what word or action will make your
message take root and grow.
Year after year at the National Center for the
Blind we receive thousands of telephone calls,
and greet hundreds of visitors. These people
come to the National Federation of the Blind
because they need to learn, for whatever reason,
something about blindness. We give each caller
and visitor the best information we can, along
with, we hope, a better understanding of blindness.
However, we often never know if our words
have fallen on rocky ground or fertile soil. But we
don't give up, and once in a while we do, as Paul
Harvey says, find out "the rest of the story."
As you've guessed by now, there is a story
behind this review of the book, Business Is Looking
Up. It began with a phone call sometime
around the first of the year in 1987. A publisher
in Maryland was taking on a project for a
children's book that featured a blind character.
The publisher was contacting various blindness
organizations to get information. We sent literature
and arranged a tour for the publisher's
children's book editor.
The tour went well, and the editor said that
she wanted someone in the Federation to review
the book for accuracy when the manuscript was
ready. And that was all we heard for almost a
year. Then, a letter and a manuscript arrived. The
editor really did want our input.
As it turned out, not only did I review the
manuscript for "its merit as an engaging story and
its accuracy as a depiction of a blind child," but
the Federation was able to contribute in other
ways to the accuracy of the book. The artist
needed models for the illustrations, so we sent
several of the necessary items- such as a child
size NFB white cane, and a slate and stylus. When
the editor mentioned that they would like to list
in the book a source from which children could
get a free Braille Alphabet Card, the Federation
volunteered to do it.
Patience and persistence. Sometimes those
who come to the Federation and say they want to
learn about blindness, don't really mean it. They
merely come because it's good policy nowadays
to say, "We consult with the consumers." They
will not learn. Sometimes those who come have
a vested, personal interest in maintaining the
myth of blindness (that is, blindness as inferiority
and dependency). They cannot learn. But more
and more those who come truly do want to
learn--and can learn.
Now that you've heard the "rest of the story,"
here is the book review.
Published by Twenty-First Century Books, a
company based in Frederick, Maryland, Business
Is Looking Up was the first in a series of children's
books based upon the Kids on the Block puppet
characters. The Kids on the Block puppet program
was founded in 1977 by Barbara Aiello
(co-author of Business Is Looking Up) in an attempt
to help children understand and accept
people with disabilities. Today, over 1,000 Kids
on the Block puppet groups perform for children
in every state in the United States and in many
foreign countries.
Business Is Looking Up is a delightfully lively
and entertaining book. Renaldo Rodriguiz, the
central character in Business Is Looking Up is an
aggressive, fun-loving, creative, and sometimes
just a little bit lazy, fifth-grade boy. Oh, he is also
blind. But we soon discover that blindness is just
one of the many characteristics that make up the
appealing personality of Renaldo Rodriguiz.
Mostly, Renaldo is just what he seems--a typical
fifth-grader who loves pizza and hates to make
his bed ("Yuck!"). It is Renaldo's budding
entrepreneurial talent~not his blindness-which
makes him special and is also the theme of the
story's spirited plot.
The authors of Business Is Looking Up have
succeeded in portraying that rare creature in fictional
literature--a blind character based on
reality, not myth. Renaldo is neither a super blind
kid who believes it is praise to be told that others
forget that he is blind; nor is he a tragic figure
constantly struggling to overcome his handicap.
No one in the story forgets that Renaldo is blind
anymore than they forget that he is a boy; it's just that it is no big deal. Peppered throughout the
story are references to his blindness, but in very
ordinary ways --just as it is in real life for real
blind people.
" 'I don't think I can do the marketing research
on an empty stomach. How about a business
lunch?' I was tapping my cane toward the sweet
smell of Polotti's."
Business Is Looking Up, however, was written
to be more than an entertaining story with a
realistic approach to blindness. It was written to
educate children about blindness and to help
them understand that, as Renaldo says at the end
of the book, "Everyone is different in some way. And that means we're all the same, too. Get it!"
To do this, it follows the same format as the Kids
on the Block puppet shows. Performance (story)
first, then a question and answer segment. In Business Is Looking Up, the illustrated story ends
on page 29, and questions and answers, also with
illustrations, make up the last 19 pages.
The question and answer segment poses questions
children commonly ask about blindness,
such as, "How do you get dressed?", "How do you
eat?", and "How do you read?"
I must admit that I didn't particularly like the
way the question about eating was handled
(Renaldo says that he uses the clock method--you
know, meat at one o'clock, peas at six o'clock,
etc.), mostly because it is the kind of technique
that the professionals always teach but blind
people never use outside the classroom. But this
is a minor objection, indeed, in light of the overall
positive and accurate message about blindness
which is conveyed throughout Business Is Looking
Up.
The discussion of Braille and other ways in
which Renaldo reads (talking books and live
readers) is excellent, and I liked the way the
question about a guide dog was handled. (A few
people may not appreciate the humorous crack
about his cat in that section, but kids love it--at
least, my sons did.)
The part that, for me, really captured the spirit
of Renaldo and this book, was Renaldo's answer
to the question, "How do you get dressed?" Feisty
Renaldo tells the reader that he gets dressed the
same way you do, "the legs go in the pants holes;
the arms go in the arm holes; and the feet go in
the socks." The message is clear--blind people
are just normal people, like you and me.
Business Is Looking Up may be purchased
directly from Twenty-First Century Books by
single copy, or in quantities. The cost of a single
copy is $12.95 plus $2.90 for shipping. For bulk
purchase discount rates, please write or call
Twenty-First Century Books for more information.
Currently, Business Is Looking Up is only
available in print. Send orders and requests for
information to:
Marketing Director
Twenty-First Century Books
38 South Market Street
Frederick, Maryland 21701.
You may also call Twenty-First Century
Books at this toll free number: 1-800-421-0021.
For those interested in learning more about
the Kids on the Block puppet groups, you may
write to, or call:
The Kids on the Block
9385-C Gerwig Lane
Columbia, Maryland 21046
1-800-368KIDS.
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