Let's Hear it for Almigal

by Wendy Kupfer

Mom's Choice Gold Award Winner for Values and Life Lessons This fun and original picture book introduces Almigal, a spunky little girl with hearing loss who is now determined to hear every single sound in the universe thanks to her new cotton candy pink cochlear implants. These sounds include a baby’s funny giggle, the robin’s chirps outside the window, the soft song played during ballet class, and especially her best friend Chloe’s teeny-tiny voice. But most of all, Almigal wants to hear her parents whisper to her when they tuck her into bed every night. Almigal’s spirit will have both children and parents alike rooting for her, while the story delivers a positive message about accepting and celebrating differences.

Genres: Picture Books, Family, Childrens, Disability, Realistic Fiction, Health

30 pages, Hardcover

First published April 16, 2012

About the author

Wendy Kupfer knows Almigal's story well. Her daughter Ali was diagnosed at 10 months with a profound hearing loss & predicted she would never speak. Wendy's dedication and drive paired with Ali's hard work and determination, produced one spunky, confident "chatterbox" and two passionate advocates for the deaf and hard of hearing.

Reviews

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let's Hear It for Almigal is a fun, quick and informative children's book. It teaches children that everyone is different but in a good way. For Almigal, it was being heair impaired. While this did make her sad that she could not hear her friends and her parents saying they love her at night, Almigal would not miss out much longer. Almigal would see a doctor, who would tell her about a cochlear implant. It is like a hearing aid but it is surgically implanted so that the person can hear.

I was glad when Almigal got her implant as she was such a sweet, smart girl. The implant did not hinder Almigal but only helped her to do more. The pictures in this book were nicely drawn and colorful. They were not too clustered on the pages. Also, the sentences were also short. I liked this because if I was reading this book to my nephews or nieces or they wanted to read the bok themselves, then they would have a easy time doing so and their attention would stay on the story until the end.

[Dan Browne · Rating 5 out of 5]

A nice story about a girl receiving cochlear implants and all of the things to be thankful for within one’s family life.

[Brianna Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let’s Hear It For Almigal is a book about a young girl that wears a hearing aid. She has one friend that wears a hearing aid that teaches her sign language. In the book Almigal is frustrated due to the fact that she can’t hear everything everyone else’s does. That is until she makes a visit to her doctor and gets implants to make her hearing all better. I would recommend this book to both teachers and parents with children that suffer from hearing loss. This is a really good book that gives insight on what it’s like dealing with hearing loss and the process that one can take to get help.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little on the long, involved side, this is a great book to introduce kids to the concept of hearing aids and cochlear implants. Almigal walks the reader through some of the cool things that make her and her friends different from each other - including her hearing aids. Then, she explains how the doctor suggested she get cochlear implants and a very simplified example of the process she went through to get them.

Not a great group read aloud, but this story is definitely a great one-on-one read!

[Brad McKenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great example of how to do deafness in a book!

Almigal isn't the only one with hearing aids and when she gets a cochlear implant, it shows how different each person's experience is. S

he mentions her surgery and touches upon having to do homework to hear again.

She makes mistakes with her aids, like when she decides one of her dogs should wear her CI, and then the dog runs away with it (Another great thing about the book, it has dogs!)

It's a really sweet and subtly complex kids book!

[Terry]

Kids who face physical challenges will appreciate Almigal's story. In very broad terms, the story explains the process of getting a cochlear implant, but the heart of the story is Almigal's experiences and emotions. I loved that right off the bat she introduces her friends and how they each have something unique about them.

See why we wish this book were still available in the full review.

[Amanda Hughes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the storyline because I haven't read many books about someone being deaf/hearing-impaired. Therefore, I was really engaged in the story of sweet Amigal and her cochlear implants (which I had never heard of until I read the book.) Kupfer delivers a message to readers about individuality and celebrating differences.

[Bree O’Donnell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Book which does a fantastic job introducing hearing disabilities to young children.— 5/5 stars

[Kayla Beck Kalnasy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review originally posted at Bibliophilia, Please

When Let's Hear It For Almigal arrived in the mail from JKS Communications, my five year old daughter immediately snatched it up and ran to her bedroom to look at the book. Since I received the book for reviewing purposes, I had to negotiate with Bug (my daughter) in order to have a turn with the book. The end result - I got a turn to read the book, but I had to read it aloud to her. Being as it is a children's book, I think reading it in this manner was best for the review.

The Writing of Let's Hear It For Almigal is great for children who are still being read to. (Some of the words are a little too big, and the book itself is a bit too long, in my opinion, for beginning or intermediate readers.) However, the "read to me" age will really enjoy the book. Wendy Kupfer introduces Almigal, a little girl with hearing loss who wears hearing aids in a way that children can easily relate to her. She is shown to be a completely normal little girl well before any mention of her disability is made. Almigal's struggles and mishaps are portrayed in a light and funny way that doesn't make anyone feel sorry for her. I think children will identify with Almigal's ability to get in trouble and the triumphs she makes throughout the book. 5/5 Stars

I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that it was the Illustrations* that drew Bug to the book. Tammie Lyon illustrates the Eloise series, and the pictures for Let's Hear It For Almigal are no less engaging. There is one picture in particular that Bug really liked, which showed how say "I love you" in sign language. The book is bright, colorful, and perfect for keeping the attention of an easily distracted child. 5/5 Stars

Since my Attention Span is not really an issue, I'm going to base this part on Bug's reaction to the book. She is a very active child who is constantly looking for something to do or trouble to start. However, as soon as I opened the pages of the picture book, she was enraptured. Bug did not move from my side until I finished reading the story. Once we were through with the book, she immediately returned to her regularly programmed shenanigans. 5/5 Stars

The Pacing of the story was fairly typical for a children's book. Being as I'm not exactly sure how a children's book should be paced, I'm going to skip rating this portion.

The Extra Magic of Let's Hear It For Almigal for me was that my daughter was not asking me why Almigal was different. Usually, if Bug sees someone with a hearing aid, a cane, or who just looks different, she is interrogating me as to why that person is that way. With Almigal, she only saw another happy little girl who had lots of friends, cute puppies, and did not always do what she was supposed to. 5/5 Stars

This is easily my favorite children's book that I have read in 2012, and I think it will be a fantastic book for all children - especially little girls. I think it has just enough information to make children more aware of hearing loss in other individuals their own age, but not so much that it bores or scares them. Let's Hear It For Almigal will be a great addition to any library, be it public, classroom, or home.

To satisfy FTC guidelines, I am disclosing that I received the book for free through JKS Communications in exchange for an honest review. It has in no way affected the outcome. All opinions expressed are mine and mine alone.

[Jill · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this book about a little girl with a hearing loss, especially when I saw the enchanting illustrations. But I was disappointed in the text.

Almigal starts by telling us she considers herself lucky, even though she wears hearing aids and misses a lot of sounds.

Then, she tells us she is sad and unlucky because she can’t hear everything.

She gets an operation for cochlear implants, and now she feels happy and lucky again.

Objections:

First, I found the dialogue a bit stilted. Rather than sounding like the story was told by a girl Almigal’s age, to me, it sounded more like a story told by an adult trying to speak simpler.

In addition, Almigal flips back and forth: first she says she is happy and lucky, then she says the very same circumstances make her sad and unlucky. Then we go back to the beginning. Why? Because she has had a $40,000-plus procedure for cochlear implants.

Many insurance plans do not cover this procedure, or only cover it in part. Moreover, it is not effective for all types of hearing loss. Thus this book might give the wrong impression both to those with hearing impairments and those without. And those who could benefit from cochlear implants but whose parents cannot afford it are now told how unhappy and unlucky they are.

Finally, the use of this procedure is extremely controversial, especially within the deaf community. In an article summarizing the arguments on both sides of the issue, authors Delost and Lashley of MacMurray College include the observation that:

Doctors and parents tend to see the child as missing something and view the deafness as a disability that must be fixed to make the child "normal" or whole again. This attitude can have serious social and emotional implications (Stewart-Muirhead). A child who is told she is "broken" and needs to be fixed will forever see herself as less of a person because of her deafness."

This problem comes to the fore in this book because of the fact that the “happiness and luckiness” of hearing with the implants is not available to all children for the reasons stated above.

On the positive side, the illustrations by Tammie Lyon are stellar. Lyon has made Almigal and her friends as cute as they can be.

Evaluation: Not recommended except for the small population of children who (a) have hearing impairments that can benefit from cochlear implants and (b) have the financial means to obtain the implants if they need and want them. Those who do meet these special circumstances and/or their family and acquaintances will undoubtedly love this story.

Rating: 1.5/5

[M.M. Hudson · Rating 5 out of 5]

You may or may not know that I became completely deaf at the age of 36 years old. To say that my heart was broken was an understatement.

At the time, I thought I would never be able to hear my children's voices or anyone else's for that matter. I did not think I would be able to hear the things I really like either, like thunderous rain, music or the giggle from a child. I was devastated.

However, help was on the way and that would be in the form of a cochlear implant and two highly specialized doctors that cared for their patients. My life was certainly changed again for the better.

So, what does that have to do with a book review? Well...

Let's Hear It For Almigal written by Wendy Kupfer is a children's book about a little girl, Almigal, who is profoundly deaf but still she wears "cotton-candy pink hearing aids".

Almigal has a best friend who also wears hearing aids and teaches her some sign language. For the most part she feels special but not all the time. She cannot always hear the things she loves, like birds chirping and the music in her ballet class. These things makes her sad because she wants to hear everything there is to hear.

Upon a visit to her hearing specialist, Almigal's doctor introduces her to cochlear implants. She has the operation and is given her favorite color, "cotton-candy pink". She shows them off to friends who are very happy for her.

As all young kids will do, Almigal forgets to take care of her cochlear implants but it turns out okay anyway. In the end, she learns that they are special tools for her and the best part is, she can hear everything she loves including her Mom and Dad who tell her they love her.

-----------------
Now, you can see why I loved this book.
The illustrations were done by Tommie Lyon and are very bright and colorful like the character of Almigal that author Wendy Kupfer portrays.

The author based this book on her own daughter who was born profoundly deaf and eventually too had cochlear implants. Both work tireless for the causes of the deaf and profoundly hard of hearing. In fact, each book that is purchased, 5% of the sales goes to support deaf children. Win-win!

This book:5 Stars
~Naila Moon

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book for review for my open and honest opinion. The views represented here are 100% my own.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let's Hear It For Almigal is written by Wendy Kupfer and illustrated by Tammie Lyon. This book is about a little girl named Almigal who has hearing loss. Almigal wears cotton candy colored hearing aides in school and thinks she is a very lucky girl.

Unfortunately, Almigal begins to get frusterated when she can't hear a baby's giggle, the robin's chirping, or the soft song in her dance class. When she goes to the hearing doctor she is told that she is a great candidate for cochlear implants. The next day she under goes the surgery and comes home with a silly bandage around her head.

Suddenly Almigal feels like the luckiest girl in the world again! She can hear the birds, the baby's giggle, and even the soft song at dance class. But best of all, Almigal is able to hear her parents say I love you when they tuck her in at night.

As a special education teacher who teaches several students with haring impairments I found this book to be inspirational. Almigal is such a happy, positive little girl who looks at herself as lucky for what she has. She has many friends at school, two sweet puppies, and parents that love her.

The author of the book, Wendy Kupfer, knows a lot about this subject and it shows in this book. Her daughter, Ali, has profound hearing loss. With the help of her parents and her own determination, Ali has learned to speak and exude confidence. I can't wait to share this book with the students in my classroom.

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.

[thewanderingjew · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this short book about a young, hearing-impaired child, who has dreams of hearing the tiniest sounds, the young independent reader will learn valuable life lessons. Although some of us are different, we are really all the same. We all enjoy playing with our friends, having fun and sharing the love of family. We all have dreams.
Almigal radiates happiness, bravery and exuberance. She is just the sweetest little girl, and all readers will fall in love with her and root for her wishes to come true. The book fills a need for the hearing-impaired child, but it will also be a wonderful read for hearing children. Through the efforts and antics of Almigal and her wonderful philosophy of life, at so tender an age, readers will get a glimpse into her world and share her dream of hearing better. With the help of cochlear implants, Almigal's world of sound is improved and her dream is fulfilled.
As an adult, I found the book utterly delightful. It had a happy, upbeat feeling. The main character is simply a delight, and it comes through clearly in the few pages and brief narrative. In addition, the pictures will elicit a warm response in the reader. They are innocent, upbeat and will evoke smiles on each page.
Although, it is perfect for a child who can read it alone, this is also a wonderful buddy read for parent and child at any age, young or old.

[Zac · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Let's Hear it for Almigal" by Wendy Kupfer and Illustrated by Tammie Lyon is a children's book that tells the story of a little girl named Almigal (Ali) who has hearing loss and gets cochlear implants. Wendy, the author of this book writes it from experience, having a daughter named Ali who had hearing problems.

This story follows Almigal as she wants to hear every sound. She mentions sounds that she is unable to hear and how she is sad not being able to hear her parents tell her they love her at night.

One day, Almigal’s doctor tells her that she should get cochlear implants. Almigal talks about how she was scared, but how the surgery was “a piece of cake.” The story then follows Almigal as she is able to hear the things she once could not.

I think this story is a good read for children, but especially for kids with hearing loss. Almigal’s courage and positive outlook should help encourage children with these types of issues. I think it is great that there is a book for these kids with a character they can relate to. I liked the cute pictures in the book as well. I think this book can be a great addition to a child's library.

*I received a copy of Let's Hear it for Almigal? from Handfinger Press via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review*

[Patricia Tilton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let’s Hear It For Almigal is based on a true story that celebrates diversity. Author Wendy Kupfer’s daughter was diagnosed at age 10 months with a “profound hearing loss” and told that she would never speak. But Wendy and her daughter never gave up. Their story is a positive and inspirational one for parents who have children with hearing impairments. Wendy beautifully shows how our differences can become our strengths. Ali is feisty, strong and confident, and has a group of friends who support her. As a parent of a hearing impaired daughter, I wished I had this book 20 yeas ago. I had my daughter read the book and she said it would have helped her feel less isolated from her classmates. This is an uplifting book for kids who wear hearing aids or have cochlear implants. The book should be in every school library and available for teachers to use in the classroom at the beginning of the school year if they have a student with hearing aids or cochlear implants. Tammie Lyon has illustrated a very colorful, lively and vibrant book. Her illustrations capture this spunky little girl and her BIG personality. Tammie is also known for her work on the Eloise series as well as her new series, Katie Woo.

[Kristi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful children's book with beautiful illustrations! It teaches great lessons: accepting people despite their differences, the importance of home support (mother and daughter working and doing homework together), and taking care of your belongings (especially if it's expensive).

It's wonderful to have a book that is focused on children who wear hearing aids and cochlear implants. Showing how a deaf/hard-of-hearing child is just the same as any other child. Has the same kind of love for life, gets in the same kind of trouble, etc. Very cute book!

My only concern is that I don't know how it will be received in the Deaf community. But I'm not a fan of cochlear implants and neither are some of my friends. It feels too much like a "fix the deafness" kind of book. It teaches about accepting people, yet goes and pulls the child from the Deaf world to try and get her accepted in the Hearing world.

I guess I was hoping for a book that better accepted and supported the Deaf culture and language. But for hearing children, this is a good book to teach them not to judge others who wear hearing aids and cochlear implants.

[Tasha]

Almigal wears hearing aids in her favorite cotton-candy pink. She has friends who all different in a variety of ways. Some wear glasses, others are twins, some speak Spanish, and one of her friends also wears hearing aids, but hers are purple. Almigal is happy most of the time, until she finds out that she can’t hear everything, things like her friends talking, bird chirps, or songs in ballet class. Worst of all, when she is ready for bed, she can’t hear her parents say goodnight. So her doctor recommends that Almigal get a cochlear implant. She has to have an operation and is able to pick out a bright pink implant just like her hearing aids. She has to work to learn to hear with the implant and be careful with them, but it works really well. The best part of all, is that she can hear her parents say goodnight.

Read the rest of my review on my blog, Waking Brain Cells.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

a most excellent 5 star read!
what a wonderful book and a great subject, one that is not discussed much, if ever.
The illustrations are wonderfully fun and reminiscent of the “Fancy Nancy” books
Almigal is a happy spitfire of a little girl who just wants to hear, she wants to hear everything! The birds outside, her ballet music, her friends but, most of all she wants to hear her mommy and daddy telling her how much they love her.
She has many friends and each one is different and special and when she gets her new cochlear implants she has a lot fun with her two puppies and a certain incident with a swimming pool!
This is a great, fun and very informative book and I am glad it is on my Children’s bookshelf

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meet Almigal, a spunky little girl with a BIG personality who's determined to hear "every single sound in the whole entire universe!" That includes ... her friend Isabella's baby brother's funny giggle, the robins singing outside her bedroom window, the soft Swan Song Madam plays during ballet class, and especially her friend Chloe's teeny-tiny voice. But most of all, Almigal wants to hear her Mommy and Daddy whisper, "We love you, Almigal!" when they tuck her into bed at night. Almigal's spirit and her cotton-candy pink cochlear implants will have everyone shouting, "Let's hear it for Almigal!"

[Joella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Almigal hsa hearing aids. But she can't always hear everything. So she gets cochlear implants. Even though this book is very predictable with it's message (this is about a girl who has hearing aids and gets cochlear implants and is is just as normal as everyone who doesn't), I liked the great way it presented the information. I don't see this book being a bed time read over and over again. But it will help teach children about other children (and adults) with hearing loss and how they might feel about it.

[Logan Bland · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good book that talks about disabilities. This disability is hearing. Almigal has a hearing disability, and it tells us about her and the disability. I would use this book in my classroom to talk about different disabilities. I would tell them how some people can't hear as well as others, some people can't see as well as others, and that there are many other forms of disabilities. I would talk about accepting all kinds of people, and not just leaving them out because they are not just like you.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A friend of mine won this in a goodreads giveaway and gave it to me to read. It's a really cute story about a girl who gets a cochlear implant. As I read it I thought it'd definitely be a book I'd read to any kid I babysit or my own some day. It's a great story to use as a tool to explain something like a cochlear implant to a child, and I'm sure kids with one, or hearing problems in general, like having a book they can relate to.

[Shelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must have book for any elementary school library or classroom to explain to students what a hearing aide or cochlear implant is if they were to see a fellow student or person in life with one. I loved the way the author described that having a hearing aid is no different than a student wearing glasses to improve their vision, or how someone may speak in Spanish while another may use sign language.

[Lindsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is a super cute and informational book about a little girl who has hearing aids and then gets cochlear implants. The flow of this book is really nice and the pictures match the words perfectly. :-) all in all a very well put together book. I am really glad I won this book in a goodreads giveaway and can't wait to read it to my niece and nephews :-)

[Bill Tillman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story was written by a mother with a little girl who needed something special in order to hear. It is a celebration of getting a life changing operation to be able to hear. It is told from the child's perspective and wonderfully illustrated to keep the child's attention from beginning to end. Excellent.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

How fun to find a new book about a little girl getting cochlear implants in my stack! The book is fine; the subject matter is what makes it four stars. I always meant to write my own book, but she beat me to it!

[Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderfully written and illustrated. Will use this to teach children about their ears.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book for those young ones who need devices to hear better. The nonfiction bits in the story are worked in very well with the rest of the story--they don't detract from the story at all.

[Kylie]

Let's Hear it for Almigal is a great text about a girl who is deaf and gets a cochlear implant so she can hear the world around her better than she can with hearing aids. She is a typical child and that is made clear when she talks about her interests, many children can relate to what she likes in some way. The illustrations are eye catching and are realistic in terms of what a cochlear implant looks like. The author wrote this book about her daughter and gave the perspective of her daughter beautifully. Not only is good information given, but it is also very real with Almigal making some mistakes that cause problems with her implants. There are times to laugh and understand the feelings of the main character whether you have a connection to deaf culture and cochlear implants or not.
Oct 10, 2018 06:28PM