ABOUT THIS BOOK

In this collection of essays, Raymond Luczak once again offers readers powerful and deeply personal reflections on his experiences as a Deaf gay man. He begins his journey with the printed word where lipreading is not required, and discovers a family of sorts through the writings of Walt Whitman and others; he ventures deeper into the queer community with thoughts on ageism, disability, and radical faeries. Luczak explores the many nuances within the Deaf community and the audist attitudes of hearing people, particularly in the media, and takes a detour into ASL gloss poetry. He speculates on what the Deaf community will look like a century from now and ends with a long bike ride that celebrates the ongoing questions of being a Deaf gay man.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

Raymond Luczak is the author and editor of more than twenty books, including Assembly Required: Notes from a Deaf Gay Life; QDA: A Queer Disability Anthology; Flannelwood: A Novel; Compassion, Michigan: The Ironwood Stories; and once upon a twin: poems. He currently edits the literary journal Mollyhouse. An inaugural Zoeglossia Fellow, Luczak lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

REVIEWS

“A must-read book that gives a poignant, sometimes funny, and always fascinating insight into the life of a Deaf gay man. With a clear voice, Raymond Luczak provides a deeply personal account of the joys, sorrows, and insights that come from his fascinating life experience.”

— Lennard J. Davis, author of "My Sense of Silence: Memoirs of a Childhood with Deafness"

“This exuberant, highly readable collection opens Luczak’s world—both his personal world and his broader worlds as a Deaf gay man, a writer, a creative, and a member of interlinked communities—and invites us to share in celebrating the beauty of his life. These essays speak to me of radical joy, which is a rare, transcendent, and sustaining quality that we as readers need now.”

— Kelly Davio, author of "It’s Just Nerves: Notes on a Disability"

“With A Quiet Foghorn, Raymond Luczak again provides us with the life-sustaining exploration of Deaf and queer life that has characterized all his work. This is a book about the importance of connecting with others, pushing through loneliness and fear to the joy that comes from discovering and sustaining community.”

— Robert McRuer, author of "Crip Theory: Cultural Signs of Queerness and Disability"

"All of these essays are packed with astute observation and keen insight, and deserve the widest readership possible."

— Keith John Glaeske, Out in Print

"Renders an insightful and powerful message...My life has been enriched by reading this book."

— Sharon Brunner, UP Book Review

"Luczak issues a call to arms. He encourages all marginalized readers to move past second-class status, to speak up about needs, and to help create a world where inclusion is a matter of course...Along with its warrior spirit, Luczak's work is most memorable for celebrating life."

— Kathleen Champlin, Wordgathering

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Contents

A Note to the Reader

Of Blood, Born

A Quiet Foghorn

My Truest Home

The World Is Full of Orphans

My Friendship with Loneliness

You’re Too Old for Me

Hands, Romancing

Is Gayness a Disability?

To Lose Is to Live

Dreaming Differently

Chants of Silence

Missed Connections

Seeds of Truth

A Sort of Homecoming

Of Hands, Tendered

The Power of Glances

Touch

Against a Universal Language

A Is for American: A Book Review

Forbidden Fruits in Our Hands

United

The General (Or, Why I Love Silent Films)

“The Complexity of Real Life”: An Interview with Nicolas Philibert

Impositions: On Children of a Lesser God

How I Became a Budding TV Star

No More Savagery, Please: On The Tribe

On Steve Jobs

In the Year 2122

Learning to Breathe

Acknowledgments

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