Beyond the Miracle Worker
The first biography to unearth the fascinating relationship between Anne Sullivan Macy and Helen Keller
After many years of studying Helen Keller, I realized that I, along with other historians and biographers, had failed Anne Sullivan Macy. While Macy is remembered primarily as Helen Keller’s teacher and mythologized as a straightforward educational superhero, the real story of this brilliant, complex, and misunderstood woman, who described herself as a “badly constructed human being,” has never been completely told.
Beyond the Miracle Worker, the first biography of Macy in nearly fifty years, complicates the typical Helen-Annie “feel good” narrative in surprising ways. By telling the life from Macy’s perspective-not Keller’s-the biography is the first to put Macy squarely at the center of the story. It presents a new and fascinating tale about a wounded but determined woman and her quest for a successful, meaningful life.
Advance praise and reviews
· “How remarkable it is to learn about the complicated, flesh-and-blood person behind the feisty legend at the water pump. Kim Nielsen’s biography reveals so much about one of the greatest teachers of all time, and her compassionate and honest writing made my heart go out to Annie Sullivan.” —Rachel Simon, author of Riding The Bus With My Sister
· “Rejecting hagiography, Nielsen offers a complex portrait of the woman Helen Keller called ‘Teacher.’ Especially interesting are Nielsen’s reflections on Sullivan’s own vision impairment and her lifelong struggle to support herself. It’s time we all move beyond the sentimental trope of the ‘miracle worker’ as we consider the actual predicaments of those who care for and instruct people with disabilities.” —Ralph James Savarese, author of Reasonable People: A Memoir of Autism and Adoption
· “Kim Nielsen’s absorbing biography of Anne Sullivan Macy not only captures the complexity of Sullivan’s character, but also offers fresh insights into her relationship with her famous pupil. Thoroughly researched, persuasive, and readable, Beyond the Miracle Worker is both a compelling story and an important contribution to women’s history and the history of the disabled.” —Elisabeth Gitter, author of The Imprisoned Guest: Samuel Howe and Laura Bridgman, the Original Deaf-Blind Girl
· “Nielsen’s engaging and comprehensive account of Annie Sullivan reveals a woman of great intellect and complexity who overcame many challenges in her own right. This book will irrevocably change what you thought you knew about the ‘Helen-Annie’ story.” —Judith Heumann, Disability Rights Advocate and former U.S. Assistant Secretary Department of Education
· “This is a remarkable story of a vulnerable woman in a culture that allowed women neither freedom nor power. Still, somehow Anne, an almost blind orphan living in a poorhouse, managed to secure an education and carve out an independent life for herself and her student, Helen Keller. Anne Sullivan Macy is a feminist hero and this fine book teaches us that.” —Mary Pipher, author of Seeking Peace: Chronicles of the Worst Buddhist in the World
· “Fascinating and beautifully crafted, Beyond the Miracle Worker reinterprets Macy’s life, challenging the mythology of her work with Helen Keller to reveal a powerful, rich, and surprising personal story. . . . Conveying the complexity and humanity of Macy and her world, this is an appealing biography for general readers and scholars alike.” —Susan Burch author of Signs of Resistance: American Deaf Community History, 1900 to World War II
· Review By: Carol Haggas, Booklist – March 1, 2009 “Historian Nielsen focuses attention on Macy’s troubled beginnings, her own devastating eye ailments, and her prodigious ambition to create a considerate yet equitable biography of a complex woman whose singular contributions to the burgeoning field of education for the blind have often been misjudged.”
· Review Library Journal – March 1, 2009 “…succeeds admirably….Macy’s complexity is revealed…essential reading for those interested in Macy or Keller.”
· Review Publisher’s Weekly – March 2, 2009 “After writing two books about Helen Keller, historian Nielsen (The Radical Lives of Helen Keller) vowed she ‘would never again write anything even remotely related to her.’ Fortunately, she couldn’t help herself.”