This was a wonderful read that had hit all my emotions. This is a book that everyone should read on the deafblind disability.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A fantastic perspective from a group of individuals that create the foundation for this unique story. Being able to gain a glimpse into their lives really helped address the struggles and triumphs outside of our regular lives and understanding. I really loved how this story creates a place of awareness while really wanting the best for Arlo. The various perspectives was the only trouble I had with this book, but everything else outweighed it and genuinely thought this was a breath of fresh air I was unaware of needing before reading it.
I received an advanced copy of this book from Netgalley for my honest opinion.

WOW. I got pretty emotional reading this book. At the end I was left with tears in my eyes. This is a heavy read. I wasn't expecting to have it be so profound, but it certainly was. Arlo is a DeafBlind man and also a Jehovah's Witness. He lives with his uncle and the congregation and is very sheltered.
Cyril is an interpreter that meets Arlo as he is going to college. He is to help Arlo's regular interpreter, Molly. Usually things are kept to other JW, but Arlo takes a liking to Cyril and shows him a world that he is missing.
I was not expecting to be so in the dark about this subject. I guess I had an idea in my head, but I really honestly had no idea. The struggles that Arlo faced daily were so tremendously far above my own that it makes me appreciate everything I have even more.
Arlo and Cyril bonded, they became friends and both opened up about heartbreak and their pasts. Arlo once had a girl he loved, but she was sent away from the home they were at with no explaination. He was told lies, but when he found out the truth he just wanted to find her. The journey to finding your place, finding home, was an emotional one, but I am so glad I read this book and had my eyes opened to the journey other people take.
Thank you to Blair Fell, Netgalley and Atria for an early copy.

The Sign for Home is about Arlo, a twenty-three-year-old DeafBlind person trying to go to college for the first time. Despite the sober subject, it is actually a coming-of-age rom-com about Arlo’s search for the love of his life.

DeafBlind people need their interpreters to use tactile American Sign Language so they can feel the words in their palms. Arlo finds Cyril, a gay agnostic, to fulfill that role for him. It is an unusual pairing because Arlo has been raised as a strict Jehovah’s Witness.

The Sign for Home is a heartwarming tale that has some humorous, and some education, moments. The author explains some of the difficulties of living with limited vision and hearing very well. I would love to see a Lifetime film based on this book to spread the knowledge even further. 4.5 stars rounded up to 5 stars!

Thanks to Emily Bestler Books and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

I loved Arlo and his quest to learn about the world outside what he’s always know. His new interpreter, Cyril, helps open his eyes to different things. This book has a lot of heart and I can guarantee you will learn something too.

This was such a quirky, albeit heartbreaking read. It definitely gives you an insight into the life of someone that is deaf and blind. I was not expecting this book to be what it was, and it pleasantly surprised me with the touching story. Would definitely recommend for those looking for a book that's touching, insightful and heartfelt.

Blair Fell's THE SIGN FOR HOME is a rich, powerful, unforgettable story that I will never forget. A brilliant young DeafBlind man named Arlo wants more than the narrow, fear-driven life he has been living. Mourning a lost love and best friends, he changes his life by hiring an interpreter named Cyril who not only catapults him into a world with poetry and expression, but enables him to take charge of his own life, make his own decisions, and triumph, flail, and fail on his own efforts. By the end of this heart-gripping, astoundingly well-written book, it is difficult to see who is disabled and who is most changed by their relationship and all the others in their lives. The characters are complex, passionate, and relatable people driven by their own stories and expectations--so vivid and well-drawn that I feel as if I know them and would easily fall into conversation with them over a cup of Hanne's coffee. Ultimately, THE SIGN FOR HOME is a mind-expanding, heart-growing work that educated me in the world of the deaf, the blind, and the ones who strive to ensure everyone has an equal chance at life. I learned, laughed, cried throughout this amazing book. I received an early copy of this book and this review is my own, unbiased opinion.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of THE SIGN FOR HOME by Blair Fell. The best part about this book for me was being able to experience the world through Arlo's perspective as a DeafBlind man. That opened up a whole new world to me and taught me a lot and I found that incredibly valuable. The story also pulled me through as the mysteries of Arlo's past unfolded. I enjoyed Cyril's perspective as well and watching how he and Arlo changed each other, and how with Cyril's help Arlo was able to break out of his abusive situation and come into his full potential as a person. I only held back from giving this book five stars because it got a bit melodramatic at parts and became a bit unbelievable. But, still, overall I loved it.

I’ve always wondered how the DeafBlind communicate. It seems so hard to understand. The Sign for Home gave me some insight into their lives.

The story is told between alternating points-of-view from Arlo, our 23-year-old DeafBlind Hero, and Cyril, his newest interpreter. Arlo has been sheltered by his Jehovah’s Witness uncle and guardian, and with Cyril, he comes to learn more of the outside world and what possibilities avail him.

The Sign for Home was a combination of a coming of age story with some sweet romance. Once upon a time, Arlo fell in love while at a boarding school for the Deaf, and as he begins to trust Cyril (and Cyril’s friend Hanne), his story begins to come out. I fell in love with Arlo and his friends. Their friendship was #goals. Arlo’s history with Shri was both beautiful and heartbreaking and I was always rooting for them.

The inclusion of the Jehovah’s Witness faith was interesting. I’ve always considered the religion to be cult-like, so I was secretly hoping Arlo would break away and gain some independence.

At the end of the day, The Sign for Home was educational, uplifting, heartfelt, and beautiful.

Thank you to Atria Books for the ARC copy.

I feel bad giving this book such a low rating, because there were parts I honestly enjoyed. For instance, I thought the glimpse we got into the DeafBlind community and the interpreter community was incredibly interesting. I had never heard of the type of interpretation that Arlo and Cyril used, and thought it was cool to read about. The author did a fantastic job of translating these parts to the book, and I never felt at a loss because the characters weren't speaking out loud.

Despite these good parts, this book had some problems that eventually won out. There were some parts involving sex and women specifically that icked me out. Hannah's obsession with Arlo was deeply uncomfortable--I almost gave up many times because I couldn't get through it. I didn't love how even with the book stating that Arlo is capable of making his own decisions and being his own person, he was almost fetishized by Hannah. Additionally I thought it was strange how only Arlo's dialogue was written out in the sign language vernacular, even when there are other characters speaking in sign with him? Like Cyril's sign language dialogue was always written out in regularly english syntax, but Arlo's didn't. I thought this was strange because it othered Arlo in a way I thought the book usually tried to avoid. And ultimately the reason why I'm giving The Sign for Home this rating is because it dragged so, so much. I was excited when I was at the beginning, but it took so long for the book to get to the main story that I ended up skimming through it a lot. This is definitely a different kind of book, so I can forgive the summary, for instance, of being misleading. But the pacing created a poor reading experience, unfortunately.

This is an excellent story. It is a unique story of a deaf blind young man and his struggle for autonomy. It is generous and emotional. Arlo’s character is representative of many people with disabilities who find their voices taken away by well meaning family members and society. It is also a love story between a boy and girl who just want to be free to love each other. It is a heartwarming reminder of all the gratitude we should have for those around us.

This is a completely different main character from any books I have read before. I wasn’t sure what to expect but the author did a phenomenal job not only showing Arlo’s challenges but also showing who Arlo is as a person beyond his disability/religion. The storyline was also entertaining and I look forward to reading more by this author!

4.5 STARS - As a former ASL/English interpreter, I'm always eager to read books featuring Deaf characters, Deaf culture and ASL. A Sign For Home is written by ASL interpreter Blair Fell who uses his experience working with the Deaf, and knowledge of ASL and Deaf culture to write a story that is equally heartwarming and thought-provoking as it brings readers into the lives, struggles and bond between ASL interpreter Cyril and Deaf-Blind Arlo whose lives are each changed by the other.

The story is told by both Arlo and Cyril. Cyril's POV is in the first person, and I related to his challenges as an interpreter. I never had the opportunity to work with Deaf Blind or use TSL (Tactile Sign Language) so I enjoyed learning about it as well as Protactile and Haptics, methods of relaying environmental cues to Deaf Blind people. It is fascinating!

The second POV is Arlo, a 23-year-old Deaf Blind man whose Jehovah's Witness faith plays a major role in his life. The religious aspect got a bit heavy at times, but its inclusion allows readers to see how its strict rules are used by his controlling uncle and his long-time interpreter (who are both JW) to restrict Arlo's life down to socializing with only a few people. Arlo's POV is written in the second person narrative which was an odd choice and one that made me feel a bit disconnected from him, but through his POV we learn about his early life and get into the headspace of teen boys in all their *gulp*​ glory.

Readers who are not well-versed in ASL syntax may struggle with Arlo's voice in the book which is written in ASL format. It gives the reading experience a choppier feel since ASL is not in English word order. I personally appreciated that Fell acknowledged this difference, giving Arlo's character an authentic feel. Fell also includes Deaf idioms/phrases that will go over non-ASL users' heads ('touch-finish', 'fist-kiss', 'PAH' ...) but I don't think a lack of knowledge of ASL will be a hinderance and, in fact, I hope that this book will inspire people to learn ASL (from an accredited Deaf teacher).

This is a heart-felt, emotional and empowering coming-of-age story that has a lot of topics and strong representation packed within its pages. From the inclusion of Deaf Blind culture, and a healthy dose of heart, readers get a vivid idea of what it is like to live as a Deaf Blind person and how with access to their culture, language, and resources, they can lead independent and productive lives. I hope readers are encouraged to think about the importance of early language acquisition, the vital need for everyone to have a sense of belonging in society and the innate value of accessibility.

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to Atria/Emily Bestler Books for providing me with a complimentary digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I have to open this review by admitting that I first agreed to read this book because I could not imagine an actual serious main character who was a DeafBlind Jehovah's Witness. Like, where could it even go from there?!?

But Arlo Dilly is totally believable, and worthy of advocacy. Arlo has lead a pretty sheltered life, but no one really knows quite how sheltered until he starts taking a college course and needs an additional interpreter (his regular interpreter, and older JW woman, has been with him for years). The new interpreter added to his team is Cyril. Cyril is decidedly not JW, and is aware of many of the resources that Arlo has been missing out on. While Cyril tries not to rock the boat, he also believes strongly in his job as an interpreter - and that his job is not to decide things for Arlo, but to help him make his own informed decisions with interpreters only acting as his voice.

The technology and new communication methods for the DeafBlind were just amazing to read about. I was fully engaged in Arlo's story, and experienced both rage at those who were supposed to be looking out for his best interests, and hope for him and others like him to be able to share their ideas with the world, and lead lives that were happier and more fulfilling for them.

This was a wonderful book to open readers' hearts and minds. It was impossible not to sympathize with Arlo's struggles and experiences. I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars and will especially recommend it to a few friends who work with deaf and hard-of-hearing populations.

Let me begin by stating this is the first book I have read about a DeafBlind person.
This was not an easy relaxing read for a couple of reasons. One being that it is a more serious read that could be a biography. the second being Arlo's voice. As he had little training in sign language at a young age, his grammar is not great. But I definitely felt that this was necessary to give the reader a more accurate portrayal of his situation.

I was angry and appalled on Arlo's behalf at the way he was treated by someone who was supposed to be protecting and helping him. This guardian did neither. He even wanted to use Arlo to complete his own goals.

I enjoyed learning about how a DeafBlind person can communicate and found it fascinating. I loved that he finally found people who were looking out for his best interest and continued to help him in any way they could.

My only complaint about the book was that even as it ended I wanted to know more about Arlo's story.

Thank you to Atria Books for the widget via netgalley.

This was really different and therefore it’s kind of a hard review to write. I liked the premise behind it, but it was honestly a little too long for my liking. Other than that, It was ok.
Arlo is a Deafblind Jehovahs Witness and has fallen in love at boarding school many years ago but they haven’t been able to get together more than 5 years. As Arlo tries to get over her, he goes to college and his interpreter helps to unlock his memories and makes him question everyone and everything he’s trusted all these years. So Arlo, his interpreter and some other friends set off to rescuer Shri from her assisted living home and reunite the long lost lovers, with Arlo being willing to stop at nothing to get to his girl.
It was sweet, funny and sad and all the feels.
Thanks to Atria and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.

What would you do for love? Arlo Dilly discovers that the love of his life isn’t actually dead like he’s been told and it leads him on an adventure for love. In “The Sign for Home” by Blair Fell Arlo is a DeafBlind, Jehovah’s Witness with an overprotective uncle. Years ago he was sent to a boarding school for the Deaf, where he met the love of his life, but after a tragedy Arlo leaves the school and is told his girlfriend died. Now Arlo discovers he’s been lied to and creates a band of misfits to go on a journey to find the love of his life.

I have never read a book featuring someone who was Blind, let alone DeafBlind. Arlo’s voice is fascinating- I never realized ASL has such a different structure and how that would make communication harder. But beyond that, the improvements through using haptics and protactile techniques seems like such a neat way to create a greater image of the world for DeafBlind people.

Arlo’s adventure was an interesting one. His thoughts constantly collide between his rigid rules from his uncle, his religion, and his own desires. Adding in a gay interpreter and Arlo’s rocky past, Arlo is dealing with a lot of emotional stress. At the heart of this story though Arlo just wants freedom- freedom to live, freedom to decide, freedom to be treated as an adult who can make his own decisions.

In the end, I gave this book 4 stars. I learned so much from reading this book, especially about the DeafBlind community and ADA rights. I would highly recommend this read!

“The Sign for Home” by Blair Fell hits the shelves April 5th! Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

A Sign for Home follows a DeafBlind young man and his interpreter, through both of their points of view. I did think the description was a bit inaccurate since they didn’t embark on finding anyone until three fourths of the way through the book. I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about the DeafBlind community and how they can use supports to be successful and independent in the world. I also enjoyed learning about ASL interpreters and all the guidelines that are in place to ensure the field stays ethical. Overall this book was very interesting and as a bonus, informative.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
I learned so much reading this book! Though a work of fiction, the author, Blair Fell, is an ASL interpreter and his representation of the deafblind main character Arlo and his interpreters Molly and Cyril stemmed from his own knowledge and experience. I knew very little about tactile ASL, much less protacile and haptics. I read the majority of the book while in Washington, DC, and took advantage of my proximity to Gallaudet University, which is bilingual ASL and English, to visit the campus. I was familiar with the area, as there is a secondary school for the deaf and hard of hearing on Gallaudet’s campus (Model Secondary School for the Deaf), which my school competed against when I coached lacrosse in Northern Virginia. The campus was beautiful, as was the NoMa area of DC, which has become more of a defined neighborhood (complete with MANY #littlefreelibrary options!) than the last time I spent time near Union Station!
Told through the alternating points of view of Arlo and Cyril, the book also alternates between current time and memories of previous experiences. There were a lot of different characters but I was able to keep track of them. I was enthralled in Arlo’s history and his journey to learn what he’d been missing in his sheltered life.
My biggest gripe came from the book’s blurb not matching its themes. The blurb makes it sound like much more of a romance than it is, and the blurb references Arlo spending years trying to heal his broken heart, when it is more like Arlo has spent years avoiding thinking about his broken heart. Avoidance is not the same as healing! When a book's blurb doesn't match its takeaways, readers aren't satisfied, so I want to clarify that while a sweet coming of age story, The Sign for Home is deeper than the New Adult label suggests. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about communication methods with the deaf and deafblind - it was fascinating! The book publishes 4/5/22.

I DNF"d this book early on as a NRN novel ("Not Right Now"). Something about the writing style just wasn't jiving with me in my current state. I understand WHY the style is the way it is and I appreciate it, I just couldn't get into the story that way. I will definitely come back to this one, just not right away.

That said, I have many friends who ABSOLUTELY loved it! So pick it up if you're looking for a diverse read!