Redefining Normal
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
3 months free
Redefining Normal
Buy for $19.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Rosalind Zapomen
-
By:
-
Paul Nankivell
About this listen
Redefining Normal is a coming of age story with a twist. There was a time when all disabled children were placed into special schools. The disabled schools that our main character — Alan Jones — attended didn’t pretend to offer anything resembling synaptic stimulation. These schools would never be mistaken as real schools in the academic sense. They were glorified babysitting centers.
As time passed, Alan and his mom became increasingly frustrated. These schools repeated the same third grade lesson plan year after year. Finally, his mom convinced the school’s psychiatrist to give him a variety of tests to determine if Alan was worthy of a competitive education at regular schools.
At every stage of this process, hurdles were put in his path. Sometimes the very people who ran academic institutions were closed-minded bigots. Time and again, Alan had to fight the same battle against different foes. Meanwhile, after each skirmish, this shy, over-apologetic boy had to decide whether to stay in his shell and accept his fate or become assertive and learn how to self-advocate.
©2014, 2017 Paul A Nankivell (P)2020 Paul A NankivellListeners also enjoyed...
-
Miseducated
- A Memoir
- By: Brandon P. Fleming, Cornel West - foreword
- Narrated by: Brandon P. Fleming, Landon Woodson
- Length: 10 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 301
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 279
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 278
Brandon P. Fleming grew up in an abusive home and was shuffled through school, his passing grades a nod to his skill on the basketball court, not his presence in the classroom. He turned to the streets and drug deals by 14, saved only by the dream of basketball stardom. When he suffered a career-ending injury during his first semester at a Division I school, he dropped out of college, toiling on an assembly line, until depression drove him to the edge. Miraculously, his life was spared. Returning to college, Fleming was determined to reinvent himself as a scholar.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
so glad I lasted through the first parts...
- By Elizabeth L. on 01-19-22
By: Brandon P. Fleming, and others
-
Unbound
- My Story of Liberation and the Birth of the Me Too Movement
- By: Tarana Burke
- Narrated by: Tarana Burke
- Length: 7 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1,757
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 1,548
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 1,542
From the founder and activist behind one of the largest movements of the 20th and 21st centuries, the "me too" movement, Tarana Burke debuts a powerful memoir about her own journey to saying those two simple yet infinitely powerful words - me too - and how she brought empathy back to an entire generation in one of the largest cultural events in American history.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Resilient
- By Sharna Che on 09-14-21
By: Tarana Burke
-
Nobody Needs to Know
- A Memoir
- By: Pidgeon Pagonis, Joey Soloway - introduction
- Narrated by: Pidgeon Pagonis
- Length: 6 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 44
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 43
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 43
Pidgeon Pagonis always felt like their life was a constant attempt to fit in with other girls—a feeling that was only exacerbated when puberty failed to hit. They never understood why…until they uncovered the secret that had haunted their childhood. Bouncing between their Chicago home and the city’s children’s hospital, Pidgeon weathered a series of traumatic surgeries, fabrications, and misdirections. It wasn’t until college that Pidgeon pieced together the puzzle of their identity.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Enlightened me
- By Patricia G. Corey on 08-28-23
By: Pidgeon Pagonis, and others
-
Tales from the Gateway
- A Companion Novel to the World of the Gateway
- By: EE Holmes
- Narrated by: Lyssa Browne
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 63
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 57
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 57
From best-selling author E. E. Holmes comes a collection of short stories that will take you on an unforgettable journey into the lives of your favorite characters from the Gateway Trilogy and the Gateway Trackers series. Go back in time and explore Fairhaven Hall with Karen and Elizabeth when they were just Apprentices. Hear in her own words how Savvy discovered the truth about her gift when she was only four years old, and how a fateful visit from a future High Priestess revealed her calling as a Durupinen.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fun extra stories
- By Sarah on 12-04-23
By: EE Holmes
-
All Day
- A Year of Love and Survival Teaching Incarcerated Kids at Rikers Island
- By: Liza Jessie Peterson
- Narrated by: Liza Jessie Peterson
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 46
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 43
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 42
Told with equal parts raw honesty and unbridled compassion, All Day recounts a year in Liza Jessie Peterson's classroom at Island Academy, the high school for inmates detained at New York City's Rikers Island. A poet and an actress who had done occasional workshops at the correctional facility, Peterson was ill prepared for a full-time stint teaching in the GED program for the incarcerated youths.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Sassy Prophet
- By Louie Crew Clay on 08-01-17
-
Sigh, Gone
- A Misfit's Memoir of Great Books, Punk Rock, and the Fight to Fit In
- By: Phuc Tran
- Narrated by: Phuc Tran
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 886
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 749
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 748
In 1975, during the fall of Saigon, Phuc Tran immigrates to America along with his family. By sheer chance, they land in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, a small town where the Trans struggle to assimilate into their new life. In this coming-of-age memoir told through the themes of great books such as The Metamorphosis, The Scarlet Letter, The Iliad, and more, Tran navigates the push and pull of finding and accepting himself despite the challenges of immigration, feelings of isolation, and teenage rebellion.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Profanity Alert
- By Alene L. Wesner on 04-23-20
By: Phuc Tran
-
Miseducated
- A Memoir
- By: Brandon P. Fleming, Cornel West - foreword
- Narrated by: Brandon P. Fleming, Landon Woodson
- Length: 10 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 301
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 279
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 278
Brandon P. Fleming grew up in an abusive home and was shuffled through school, his passing grades a nod to his skill on the basketball court, not his presence in the classroom. He turned to the streets and drug deals by 14, saved only by the dream of basketball stardom. When he suffered a career-ending injury during his first semester at a Division I school, he dropped out of college, toiling on an assembly line, until depression drove him to the edge. Miraculously, his life was spared. Returning to college, Fleming was determined to reinvent himself as a scholar.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
so glad I lasted through the first parts...
- By Elizabeth L. on 01-19-22
By: Brandon P. Fleming, and others
-
Unbound
- My Story of Liberation and the Birth of the Me Too Movement
- By: Tarana Burke
- Narrated by: Tarana Burke
- Length: 7 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1,757
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 1,548
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 1,542
From the founder and activist behind one of the largest movements of the 20th and 21st centuries, the "me too" movement, Tarana Burke debuts a powerful memoir about her own journey to saying those two simple yet infinitely powerful words - me too - and how she brought empathy back to an entire generation in one of the largest cultural events in American history.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Resilient
- By Sharna Che on 09-14-21
By: Tarana Burke
-
Nobody Needs to Know
- A Memoir
- By: Pidgeon Pagonis, Joey Soloway - introduction
- Narrated by: Pidgeon Pagonis
- Length: 6 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 44
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 43
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 43
Pidgeon Pagonis always felt like their life was a constant attempt to fit in with other girls—a feeling that was only exacerbated when puberty failed to hit. They never understood why…until they uncovered the secret that had haunted their childhood. Bouncing between their Chicago home and the city’s children’s hospital, Pidgeon weathered a series of traumatic surgeries, fabrications, and misdirections. It wasn’t until college that Pidgeon pieced together the puzzle of their identity.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Enlightened me
- By Patricia G. Corey on 08-28-23
By: Pidgeon Pagonis, and others
-
Tales from the Gateway
- A Companion Novel to the World of the Gateway
- By: EE Holmes
- Narrated by: Lyssa Browne
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 63
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 57
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 57
From best-selling author E. E. Holmes comes a collection of short stories that will take you on an unforgettable journey into the lives of your favorite characters from the Gateway Trilogy and the Gateway Trackers series. Go back in time and explore Fairhaven Hall with Karen and Elizabeth when they were just Apprentices. Hear in her own words how Savvy discovered the truth about her gift when she was only four years old, and how a fateful visit from a future High Priestess revealed her calling as a Durupinen.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fun extra stories
- By Sarah on 12-04-23
By: EE Holmes
-
All Day
- A Year of Love and Survival Teaching Incarcerated Kids at Rikers Island
- By: Liza Jessie Peterson
- Narrated by: Liza Jessie Peterson
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 46
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 43
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 42
Told with equal parts raw honesty and unbridled compassion, All Day recounts a year in Liza Jessie Peterson's classroom at Island Academy, the high school for inmates detained at New York City's Rikers Island. A poet and an actress who had done occasional workshops at the correctional facility, Peterson was ill prepared for a full-time stint teaching in the GED program for the incarcerated youths.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Sassy Prophet
- By Louie Crew Clay on 08-01-17
-
Sigh, Gone
- A Misfit's Memoir of Great Books, Punk Rock, and the Fight to Fit In
- By: Phuc Tran
- Narrated by: Phuc Tran
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 886
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 749
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 748
In 1975, during the fall of Saigon, Phuc Tran immigrates to America along with his family. By sheer chance, they land in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, a small town where the Trans struggle to assimilate into their new life. In this coming-of-age memoir told through the themes of great books such as The Metamorphosis, The Scarlet Letter, The Iliad, and more, Tran navigates the push and pull of finding and accepting himself despite the challenges of immigration, feelings of isolation, and teenage rebellion.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Profanity Alert
- By Alene L. Wesner on 04-23-20
By: Phuc Tran
-
What You Wish For
- A Novel
- By: Katherine Center
- Narrated by: Katherine Center, Thérèse Plummer
- Length: 11 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 906
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 797
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 791
Samantha Casey is a school librarian who loves her job, the kids, and her school family with passion and joy for living. But she wasn’t always that way. Duncan Carpenter is the new school principal who lives by rules and regulations, guided by the knowledge that bad things can happen. But he wasn’t always that way. And Sam knows it. Because she knew him before—at another school, in a different life. Back then, she loved him—but she was invisible. To him. To everyone. Even to herself.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Story is enjoyable
- By Amazon Customer on 07-24-20
By: Katherine Center
-
Life on Delay
- USA Today Book Club
- By: John Hendrickson
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 7 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 54
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 54
In the fall of 2019, John Hendrickson wrote a groundbreaking story for The Atlantic about Joe Biden’s decades-long journey with stuttering, as well as his own. The article went viral, reaching listeners around the world and altering the course of Hendrickson’s life. Overnight, he was forced to publicly confront an element of himself that still caused him great pain.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Must read
- By N. Reynolds on 08-06-23
By: John Hendrickson
-
Pretty Lies
- Astrid Scott Series 1
- By: Blake Blessing
- Narrated by: Chris Chambers, Lauren Sweet
- Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 89
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 86
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 86
New town. New school. Same lies. This is my senior year, and not only have my parents moved me to a new place where I know nothing and no one, they are determined to make me fall in line with the life they want me to have. Not the life that I want. I'm looking for any possible way to escape this prison and leave them behind. Which has been harder than I thought. An opportunity to escape appears. And I'm going to take it. I'm going to use four so-called perfect guys in this new town to make it happen. The ones that have it all, or so everyone thinks.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Ugh. No Just No. WASTE OF A CREDIT.
- By MissesPYT on 01-24-21
By: Blake Blessing
-
The Great Expectations School
- A Rookie Year in the New Blackboard Jungle
- By: Dan Brown
- Narrated by: Gregory St. John
- Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 59
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 52
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 52
At 22, Dan Brown came to the Bronx's P.S. 85 as an eager, fresh-faced teacher. Unbeknownst to him, his assigned class, 4-217, was the designated "dumping ground" for all fourth-grade problem cases, and his students would prove to be more challenging than he could ever anticipate. Intent on being a caring, dedicated teacher but confronted with unruly children, absent parents, and a failing administration, Dan was pushed to the limit time and again: he found himself screaming with rage, punching his fist through a blackboard out of sheer frustration, often just wanting to give up and walk away.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
I had to stop
- By Amazon Customer on 02-03-21
By: Dan Brown
-
Sloppy Firsts
- A Jessica Darling Novel, Book 1
- By: Megan McCafferty
- Narrated by: Rebecca Serle, Katie Schorr
- Length: 8 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 31
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 31
Jessica Darling is devastated when her best friend moves away from Pineville, New Jersey. With Hope gone, Jessica has no one she can really talk to. She doesn’t relate to the boy-and-shopping-obsessed girls at school, or her dad’s obsession with track meets, and her mom is too busy planning big sister Bethany’s lavish wedding. Jessica is lost more than ever, and her nonexistent love life is only making things worse.
By: Megan McCafferty
-
Pride High, Book 1
- Red
- By: Jay Bell
- Narrated by: Talia Carver
- Length: 14 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 180
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 166
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 166
Geared toward nostalgic adults, this LGBTQ+ series celebrates authentic intimacy, realistic relationships, and the beautiful chaos of growing up queer. Rewind to the nineties and join a group of teenagers as they try to figure out who they are, and who they want to love. Meet your new friends!
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
He did it again!
- By Stanley Craver on 11-28-22
By: Jay Bell
-
Hate Crush
- By: A. Zavarelli
- Narrated by: Stefanie Kay
- Length: 8 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 67
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 66
They call him the devil. When I crash-landed into him on my first day at Loyola Academy, I was sure that couldn’t be true. He was the most gorgeous man I’d ever seen in real life. Little did I know he was also the cruelest. I went from starstruck to stunned the moment his cynical eyes cut through me. I can’t tell you what it was that made him want to punish me. But from that day forward the brooding recluse of a man made it his goal to torment me. I want to loathe him, and some days, I do. But good or bad, nobody’s attention has ever tasted so sweet.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Sexy and Exciting!
- By A. on 04-20-20
By: A. Zavarelli
-
Noah’s Rights
- By: Kenni York
- Narrated by: Misty Reign
- Length: 7 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 351
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 330
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 329
Nearly every two minutes in America someone is sexually assaulted. Olivia Collins, an urban author residing in the heart of the hood, knows this better than anyone. Working hard to repress her own issues, Olivia encounters Noah, an underprivileged foster kid who views himself as a number, a statistic. As the awkward duo gets to know one another, secrets about Noah begin to unfold while unraveling Olivia’s resolve and forcing her to deal with her own demons.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Awesome read
- By tina h. on 10-13-21
By: Kenni York
-
A Face for Picasso
- By: Ariel Henley
- Narrated by: Ariel Henley
- Length: 8 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 27
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 26
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 25
At only eight months old, identical twin sisters Ariel and Zan Henley were diagnosed with Crouzon syndrome — a rare condition where the bones in the head fuse prematurely. They were the first twins known to survive it. Growing up, Ariel and her sister endured numerous medical procedures to keep them alive. Doctors expanded the twins’ skulls and broke bones to make room for their growing organs. After each surgery, the sisters felt like strangers to each other, unable to recognize themselves in the mirror.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fantastic
- By Anna McCall on 03-25-24
By: Ariel Henley
-
Boy Shattered
- By: Eli Easton
- Narrated by: Tristan Josiah, GraceWright Productions
- Length: 8 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 200
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 187
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 188
I had everything — school quarterback, popular with girls, and my dad was proud of me. I told myself it didn’t matter no one knew the real me. And then I nearly died. Landon saved my life. He’s the bravest guy I know. He came out a few years ago, proud and fierce, and he ran into gunfire to help others. Me, I’m a mess. Can’t even stand to be in a room with the curtains open. But here’s the thing about losing it all: You get a chance to start over and be someone new.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A heartbreaking hurt/comfort romantic suspense!
- By RACHEL REED on 11-23-20
By: Eli Easton
-
The Bridge
- By: Bill Konigsberg
- Narrated by: Marin Ireland
- Length: 11 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 31
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 30
Aaron and Tillie don't know each other, but they are both feeling suicidal, and arrive at the George Washington Bridge at the same time, intending to jump. Aaron is a gay misfit struggling with depression and loneliness. Tillie isn't sure what her problem is - only that she will never be good enough. On the bridge, there are four things that could happen: Aaron jumps and Tillie doesn't. Tillie jumps and Aaron doesn't. They both jump. Neither of them jumps. Or maybe all four things happen....
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A life saver
- By Maura on 05-28-22
By: Bill Konigsberg
-
Zenobia July
- By: Lisa Bunker
- Narrated by: Taylor Meskimen
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 26
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 26
Zenobia July is starting a new life. She used to live in Arizona with her father; now she's in Maine with her aunts. She used to spend most of her time behind a computer screen, improving her impressive coding and hacking skills; now she's coming out of her shell and discovering a community of friends at Monarch Middle School. People used to tell her she was a boy; now she's able to live openly as the girl she always knew she was. When someone anonymously posts hateful memes on her school's website, Zenobia knows she's the one with the abilities to solve the mystery.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
superlative
- By Anonymous User on 04-29-22
By: Lisa Bunker