True Biz

A Novel

By: Sara Novic

Narrated by: Lisa Flanagan, Kaleo Griffith

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK • A “tender, beautiful and radiantly outraged” (The New York Times Book Review) novel that follows a year of seismic romantic, political, and familial shifts for a teacher and her students at a boarding school for the deaf, from the acclaimed author of Girl at War

“This important novel should—true biz—change minds and transform the conversation.”—Maile Meloy, The New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice)

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: NPR, The Washington Post, Publishers Weekly, Booklist

True biz (adj./exclamation; American Sign Language): really, seriously, definitely, real-talk

True biz? The students at the River Valley School for the Deaf just want to hook up, pass their history finals, and have politicians, doctors, and their parents stop telling them what to do with their bodies. This revelatory novel plunges readers into the halls of a residential school for the deaf, where they’ll meet Charlie, a rebellious transfer student who’s never met another deaf person before; Austin, the school’s golden boy, whose world is rocked when his baby sister is born hearing; and February, the hearing headmistress, a CODA (child of deaf adult(s)) who is fighting to keep her school open and her marriage intact, but might not be able to do both. As a series of crises both personal and political threaten to unravel each of them, Charlie, Austin, and February find their lives inextricable from one another—and changed forever.

This is a story of sign language and lip-reading, disability and civil rights, isolation and injustice, first love and loss, and, above all, great persistence, daring, and joy. Absorbing and assured, idiosyncratic and relatable, this is an unforgettable journey into the Deaf community and a universal celebration of human connection.

Very unique

Very interesting and educational story regarding the deaf community and culture, specifically schools for the deaf.

🙌🏼

So good! The narratives were real, current, and educational. I loved the information given between chapters about BASL, Deaf history, definitions, etc. I wish the end had had SOME kind of resolution or tie off for... literally anyone. That was my only disappointment- kinda like real life, though, huh?
(I'm an ASL Interpreter)

New awareness of the deaf community.

The visual of ASL, historical facts and story line were nicely incorporated in this wonderful read.

Excellent story, excellent narration

I truly enjoyed this book from start to finish. I loved the added “lessons” between chapters, which I found to be very informative and a great addition to the story itself. As a hearing person, I experienced plenty of educational moments throughout this novel. I will definitely be looking for more to read from Sara Novic!

A wonderful story + important education

This beautifully written and narrated story stands on its own, but what I appreciated most was the glimpse into what it means to be deaf in this country. As a hearing person, I had no idea what "deaf culture" meant or how important it is, and how viciously it has been (and is being) threatened. Some of that's out of ignorance, but a great deal of it is out of arrogance--a belief that to be deaf is to be less than. In that respect, attacks on deaf culture resemble attacks on other minorities.

This book can help with the ignorance and turn readers into allies who can help defend and support deaf culture.

Please read it.