[rehab] Fwd: New Book about Assistance Dogs

[David Andrews]

>i have been asked to circulate this:


David Andrews



>For Immediate Release
>December 1, 2010
>
>Announcing the publication of Two Plus Four Equals One: Celebrating 
>the Partnership of People with Disabilities and Their Assistance 
>Dogs! Teacher and writer Kathy Nimmer has written and edited this 
>inspiring anthology of true stories and poems from around the world, 
>just in time for the holidays!  Go to www.servicedogstories.com to 
>learn more and to order your book in a variety of formats.
>
>ABOUT THE BOOK
>
>True, vibrant, honest, and emotional, eliciting compassion, joy, 
>sorrow, and love, promoting understanding, acceptance, awareness, 
>and hope. Two Plus Four Equals One offers over 100 stories and poems 
>written by or about men, women, and children, all either with 
>disabilities or connected to people who have disabilities. Joining 
>them are Labradors, German Shepherds, Poodles, Papillons, Goldens, 
>Shelties, Chihuahuas, and many other breeds, all trained to assist 
>their disabled handlers. From blindness to deafness, from mobility 
>issues to psychiatric needs, from diabetes to autism, the array of 
>disabilities showcased in this unforgettable book is as vast as the 
>tasks performed by the canine partners. This book highlights the 
>strength, competence, and potential of both the human and canine 
>participants in an alliance where neither partner is perfect but 
>both together add up to an equation where two hands/feet/eyes/ears 
>plus four paws equals one magical union.
>
>PURPOSE AND REACH
>
>Attention to assistance dogs is growing in today's society. However, 
>people are largely unaware of how these dogs work and what tasks 
>they perform. This book offers an educational inroad through the 
>power of personal narrative.
>
>There is also a great need for inspiration and hope these days, 
>something to warm the heart and lift the spirit. Love for dogs is 
>fundamental in our society. These writings of triumph, teamwork, 
>humor, success, and love will warm hearts and encourage hope in 
>readers. They will come away with a new confidence in the human 
>spirit to overcome obstacles and the canine spirit to step into a 
>role of support in ways never before imagined or understood.
>
>People with disabilities are often segregated from the public at 
>large. Because of issues with transportation, communication, and 
>unfair judgments, many disabled people are isolated, unemployed, and 
>underutilized. While this book illuminates the working partnership 
>between assistance dogs and people with disabilities, it also 
>refutes longstanding, unhealthy misperceptions about disability.
>
>ABOUT THE WRITER/EDITOR
>
>Kathy Nimmer is an award-winning teacher, author, and motivational 
>speaker from West Lafayette, Indiana. In 2006, she won first place 
>in the Helen Keller International Memoir Competition and published a 
>book of poetry called Minutes in the Dark, Eternity in the Light. 
>She received the Butler-Cooley Excellence in Teaching Award in 2004, 
>is a two-time recipient of the Lilly Teacher Creativity Fellowship, 
>earned National Board Certification in 2003, and was presented with 
>the Golden Apple in 1998. In 2009, she was named a Lilly 
>Distinguished Fellow, giving her the opportunity to pursue a 
>lifelong dream, the fulfillment of which is Two Plus Four Equals 
>One. Blind due to a rare retinal disease, Nimmer teaches sophomore 
>English and creative writing at Harrison High School in West 
>Lafayette, Indiana.
>
>Learn more and order your copy at www.servicedogstories.com.