Why a Booktrail?
The story of Ellen, a student of Alexander Graham Bell.
A Sign of Her Own
What you need to know before your trail
Ellen Lark is on the verge of marriage when she and her fiancé receive an unexpected visit from Alexander Graham Bell.
Ellen knows immediately what Bell really wants from her. Ellen is deaf, and for a time was Bell’s student in a technique called Visible Speech. As he instructed her in speaking, Bell also confided in her about his dream of producing a device which would transmit the human voice along a wire: the telephone. Now, on the cusp of wealth and renown, Bell wants Ellen to speak up in support of his claim to the patent to the telephone, which is being challenged by rivals.
But Ellen has a different story to tell: that of how Bell betrayed her, and other deaf pupils, in pursuit of ambition and personal gain, and cut Ellen off from a community in which she had come to feel truly at home. It is a story no one around Ellen seems to want to hear – but there may never be a more important time for her to tell it.
Locations
Reset- Scotland - Edinburgh
- A: Alexander Graham Bell Birthplace
- B: The University of Edinburgh
- England- London
- E: Embankment
- America/USA - Massachusetts - Boston
- F: Boston University - Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences
Travel Guide
From Edinburgh to Boston via Canada
This is the story of the evolution of BSL and the invention of the telephone. ”
Ellen Lark, the protagonist, is deaf and was once a student of Alexander Graham Bell. Bell taught her how to speak using his technique called Visible Speech and we follow the story of this in the novel. He would also confide in her about his dream of producing a device which would transmit the human voice along a wire: the telephone.
This is a remarkable read – a discovery of the journey of a man who has given so much to the deaf and the hearing world. A Scottish man whose invention and studies became universally important.
Fascinating.
BookTrail Boarding Pass: A Sign of Her Own
Destination: Edinburgh, Boston, Canada Author/guide: Sarah Marsh Departure Time: 1870s
Back to ResultsWhere Next?
