Brilliantly Dyslexic

Like many children diagnosed with dyslexia, Elizabeth Trudeau’s young daughter did not understand how she could be smart yet struggle to read. That explanation just didn’t make sense to her.  Too often, Trudeau heard “I’m dumb, I’m stupid,” as her daughter compared herself to other kids.

      “One day, when she said it as I was driving, I said ‘No, there are tons of amazing people who are dyslexic—inventors, scientists, artists!’”  said Trudeau. 
      “Like who?” was her daughter’s reply.
       They went home and did some internet research.  “I realized that these people’s stories had more credibility with her than anything else I could tell her.”  
  Trudeau assumed that a children’s book that highlighted successful dyslexic individuals already existed, but to her surprise, she could not find one.   
  With a full-time San Francisco-based job in design and product development, writing such a book was not something Trudeau had planned on. Nonetheless, she started researching and drafting stories when her daughter was in third grade. 
 “Those first stories needed lots of editing and rewriting,” remembers Trudeau, but she shared them with 15 families and five teachers and reading specialists, who provided overwhelmingly positive feedback.  
  The end result, to be published this summer, is a colorfully illustrated book of stories. Each highlights the childhood struggles and adult accomplishments of 20 people with dyslexia from a range of backgrounds and professions. “I want every child to be able to find themselves in this book and to know that what they are going through will get easier,” said Trudeau. Targeted to students ages 7-11, the book has a rich vocabulary and is designed to be read aloud with an adult.  The stories average 500 words each and can be used by reading specialists and tutors to discuss the strengths of people with dyslexia, said Trudeau. In addition, the back of the book includes a section that explains what dyslexia is in simple, kid-friendly terms. Because they start with the person’s childhood experiences, the stories can be a great conversation prompt to discuss feelings.  One early story, about a dancer with Britain’s Royal Ballet who hid in the closet as a child, prompted Trudeau’s daughter to confess that “Yeah, I want to hide sometimes.”       

     All the stories are designed to be inspirational and build confidence. About half involved personal interviews, and half were based on publicly available information. Almost all those she interviewed told her “I wish this book had existed when I was a child.”  
     For more information about Brilliantly Dyslexic, and to obtain a free sample of several of the stories, visit https://brilliantlydyslexic.com. Discounted preorders for the book will be taken in June with publication scheduled for this summer.