"My Body is Not a Prayer Request," by Amy Kenny

Audience: Adult

Genre: Christian Nonfiction

Overall Content Rating: Clean

Content Warnings

Suicide Topics

Suicidal thoughts

Self-harm

Other

Medical trauma/content

Ableism

Overall Review

Did I pick this book up expecting to find a new favorite book? Absolutely not. I picked this book up hoping to learn a bit more about other views when it came to disability in the church, and what I found wasn't just a book trying to shove religion down your throat; instead, while it's a bit based in the church, it shows an individual perspective on things that many non-disabled people think are normal--including ableism.

Written by Dr. Amy Kenny, a disabled activist, this book uncovers what it's like to be on the receiving end of ableism day in and day out. From curatives and discrimination to justice and blessings, she shares different aspects of her story, what people have actually said to her, and what her response is as a Christian. It's her specific approach to this that I loved because while I've read many things from the view of people who have been on the receiving end of ableism, it's nice to see that she combats it in her own small ways.

From the beginning, I felt invited into her world, allowed to see her struggles and how they are similar and yet different from mine. While there are references to scripture throughout, there's also a lot of mentions of other works--whether books or articles--encouraging side-reading as you work your way through it. I really appreciated the aspects of the book that were specifically catered to non-disabled people, though. She encourages them to look at the results of their well-meaning comments and firm beliefs, but also shows them what it's like to be on the receiving end of ableism and how people don't often look outside their own lives to see that there's an issue with it.

My favorite part of this book was that it started by saying that being disabled is not a sin. So many people are disabled for so many different reasons, but she emphasizes that this is not due to any fault of the disabled person. It's not because they sinned or don't have faith, and who says that we'll all be non-disabled in heaven? Yes, we will be made new, without blemish, but who says that disabled people are "blemished"? Isn't it just a difference? This is only one example of the things that Dr. Kenny dives into in her novel.

Overall, I'd highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone remotely interested. It's one that I intend to eventually get for myself and annotate as I re-read it, and I'm a person who rarely does that. This book opened up new thought horizons for me and gave me resources to continue the journey, and I hope it does the same for many other people.