I love this!!! The illustrations are so beautiful and colorful and vivid! This would work well for a large group read in the classroom, but it would also be a great one-on-one read with lots of opportunity to explore the pictures and discuss what we see and sense.

Very nice visual impairment rep. The main character uses a cane and it's not explicitly addressed at all. It's just a matter of fact part of her existence and the focus of the story is entirely on what she does and experiences, not anything she can't do.

I can't wait to get this in my classroom!

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!

I'm always looking for books that represent diversity in one way or another, so this was a great pick.

In the story, we learn that a young girl and her father are exploring the city. She is visually impaired but it doesn't stop her from exploring the city she's growing up in using her cane and the rest of her senses. I really loved the fact that the author doesn't point out her disability blatantly. Instead, we get context clues like the use of her cane and the illustrations to infer she is, in fact, visually impaired.

We loved the story, and my son really enjoyed the plot and the illustrations. It was interesting to read and explain to him how visually impaired people explore the world around them while also acknowledging that society does need to do better to offer accessibility for them. It opened a conversation about how society in general caters to able people like my son and I, so it is our job to push for access for disabled people including visually impaired.

Overall, an enjoyable read with great subtle lessons.

A father and daughter go about their day in their city. With the diversity of the people, the sounds, the sights, a city becomes a community. Each page is illustrated about how the speaks in different ways. Living in the city there is always something new to discover and this is a great read to share about your own city.

A special thank you to Kid's Can Press and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

Wow! There is so much to love about this beautiful story. First of all the artwork - the papercutting is a visual delight. Texture, colour and form make the illustrations feel as though you could touch them (particularly when the main character is in the garden)... which is for me adds to the story of a protagonist with Vision Impairment. I love the way that she is Blind, but that is just who she is without further explanation. A good book will illicit conversation and questions outside of the prose, as this one will, without all the subjects being explicitly provided. The father and daughter relationship is gentle and supportive. The main characters are brown which I always love to see, but the best thing about it is that their ethnicity is not the main subject here. Diverse characters don't always have to come with a 'learn about me' storyline. I also really enjoy the diversity of the urban environment - both in terms of people and landmarks. The prose is considered and the illustrations complement it beautifully. I would love to read this story to my son on a night and would be proud to promote it as a representational children's book.

My City Speaks
by Darren Lebeuf

I read this arc from NetGalley with my 4.5 and almost 8 year old boys. It was a nice length for their ages.

The colors were vibrant and we loved noticing all of the small details. I appreciated that this was more of a visual story telling through the pictures with words operating as basic frame. This allows the parent to point out information that will be of specific interest to the child or explain a situation in a way best suited for the age and understanding level of the child such as how the girl is experiencing the city - what she is hearing, touching, smelling, tasting even though she isn’t seeing. The author and illustrator are telling a story without “telling” the story.

My older son really enjoyed the alliterations. He said they made it “sound nice”. My younger son was very disappointed in the missed opportunity to have background fire trucks in the city. Because fire trucks are the best. Other than that he approved.

I feel this is an excellent book for libraries and classrooms and would do well as a paperback in a scholastic book order type setting

A visually impaired young girl explores the city with her father and with sensory rich language, shares all of the things she loves about it on the way.

I loved this little book so much! The representation of disability doesn’t seem forced or obligatory. In fact, the only place you’ll find mention of the main character’s visual impairment is in the summary. Elsewhere, we see her with her white cane and experiencing activities throughout her city. Ashley Barron’s cut-paper collage illustrations are beautiful and unique. It’s a really cool way to illustrate this journey throughout the city. I would love to share this book with little ones in my life.

It’s the perfect opportunity to discuss disability in some of its forms as well as an opportunity to encourage sensory activities and language to get kids thinking about their surroundings and how they experience their worlds. It’s out in September, just in time for back to school, so keep an eye out for it!

In 𝑴𝒚 𝑪𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝑺𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒌𝒔 we join a young girl with a vision impairment on her way to a violin recital with her father. During their trip she experiences her city through sounds, smells, tastes, and textures - a poetic and new look at a bustling city.⁣
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I love how there are now so many books that positively portray children with “disabilities” - it’s so important for kids to see themselves represented in literature, especially in such a beautiful way.⁣
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The story is perfect for a read aloud with toddler and preschool aged children, and would be a great conversation starter of how we are all the same, or when they focus on senses other than sight what they notice they may haven’t before.⁣
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The illustrations are beautiful, I love the look of visually textured colors.

Bright colors and collage style illustration vibrantly illustrate the things that a visually-impaired child would experience in her city walk. A great conversation starter for young children about how a person with an impairment may have a different outlook on the things we see daily. Well written, easy to read aloud, and informative!

This is a really beautiful book! I love how our main character shows us her city and does it through using different senses. I loved the cut collage style used for the illustrations.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC!

A very good lesson in perspective – a girl portrays to us all the smells, sounds and texture of life in her city, while never needing to mention in any blatant fashion that she is blind. A warming twist at the end shows the differently-enabled character she is, and we're left with a reflection on what we can get out of the place we live in once we've taken away any one sense. Speaking of overt signals, the artwork wasn't quite to my taste with its "THIS IS A COLLAGE" signalling, but I enjoyed the look of this to some extent, and thoroughly appreciated the intent. It's an intent that is fully met.