An impassioned autobiography, written from the vantage point of someone on "the other side"—watching with irony and clear sight the discomfort and fear that non-disabled people feel when confronted with those who have disabilities, almost certainly because they are forced to expose their own struggles. The narrative traces her life from her early years in a special school through her courageous transition to a "mainstream" one.
Then to her work as a teacher of future pedagogists. And who better to teach pedagogy than someone who is a living laboratory of emotion: "like a carpenter's workshop… so in my workshop… thoughts and feelings were reworked through my encounters until we built a relationship of equals."
It is a story of the joy of living, of living in a world full of imperfections and contradictions, a world that still struggles to embrace disability. Strange and bizarre encounters—some surreal—that will make you laugh outright but sometimes leave a bitter taste. Aunt, did you know you're a bit strange? The title poses a question. But I believe for Patrizia it is an answer. An answer to her questions, to ours. Readers will discover why.
Monica Leggeri, 2016