We always love your recommendations and in our latest poll we were looking for books with a character who has a physical or mental impairment. As always you were plentiful in your replies and we had lots of suggestions, from those we have the top 22 books with disabled characters and these are the books that received the most votes.
It’s always nice to expand your reading lists, and this list particularly really does have something for everyone!
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time – Mark Haddon
It has to be said that it’s never stated in the novel, but Christopher the protagonist has high-functioning autism. It comes top in our list and we’re hardly surprised, it’s a wonderful book and Haddon’s other books are worth checking out too.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame – Victor Hugo
Retold a million times and perhaps the greatest gothic romance novel of all time, The Hunchback of Notre Dame comes second in our list.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame US
The Hunchback of Notre Dame UK
Of Mice and Men – John Steinbeck
Lennie’s learning difficulties are well documented in Of Mice and Men and it was enough for you to put this novel in third place.
All the Light We Cannot See – Anthony Doerr
I loved this novel about WWII and there was a lot of hype about it earlier in the year. The book centres around Marie-Laure LeBlanc, a small child who is blind.
All the Light We Cannot See US
All the Light We Cannot See UK
Flowers for Algernon – Daniel Keyes
Flowers for Algernon is an often challenged sci-fi novel that looks at the ethic and moral treatment of the mental disabled and it was suggested by enough of you to make fifth place in our list.
Cormoran Strike Novels – Robert Galbraith
I personally love Cormoran Strike, the protagonist in The Cuckoo’s Calling and subsequent novels. Strike is a war veteran and has lost the lower part of one leg. Rowling really has done it again with a hugely successful series.
The Bone Collector – Jeffrey Deaver
Lincoln Rhyme is a quadriplegic detective and The Bone Collector from the Lincoln Rhyme series was so popular it was made into a movie.
Wonder – R. J. Palacio
Wonder, the book about a child growing up with a facial disfigurement tops many of our polls and we’re not at all surprised to find it here.
The Secret Garden – Frances Hodgson Bennet
The Secret Garden is a beautiful tale, and Colin’s spinal problems and his inability to walk feature heavily in the storyline.
A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens
Never out of print, the book that transcends the ages, and it’s Tiny Tim who makes it all possible.
That’s quite a top ten, a book from virtually every genre! We promised twenty-two and here are the rest of the books voted by you for this list:
Heidi – Johanna Spyri
The Stand – Stephen King
Out of my Mind – Sharon Draper
My Left Foot – Christy Brown
The Sound and the Fury – William Faulkner
Peter Pan – J. M. Barrie
Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte
To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee
Of Human Bondage – Somerset Maugham
A Prayer for Owen Meany – John Irving
Freak the Mighty – Rodman Philbrick
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Beautiful book for children ‘Angel Bright’ by Jeff Rees Jones, her best friend is a little dog with only three legs, half a tail and no voice. His ‘disability’ is not seen as such and he is also a hero ! Makes me cry every time I read it to the kids!
Thankyou, that’s my book Angel Bright ! Willow is the character you are talking about and he is one of the heroes of the book, I’m happy that you found it so moving! ‘we are all made of the same stuff, we are all made of stardust’
When I fall In Love by Iris Rainer Dart. Does she choose the perfect doctor she is engaged to or her fellow comedy writer who has cerebral palsy and is quietly stealing her heart. One of my favorites