*received for free from netgalley for honest review* great read, loved reading it and plan on buying this one day to read again, will recommend

Fantastic, engaging read. The author is very relatable and raises so many great points about why in the world one might decide to make such a strange decision - to hide his disability from the world. Thé anecdotes are full of poignant ideas that make one stop to examine the systems that perpetuate the stigmas against vision loss. Thoughtful insights on living life with constant barriers are sprinkled throughout. Read this book to help you get up to speed in this slice of the diversity conversation.

A good balance of humor and sincerity, this memoir elucidates some of the challenges of blindness, what it takes to be independent, and learning to allow others to see your vulnerabilities.

Blind Man’s Bluff did keep me engaged, and told an interesting story, but was overall about a 3-4 star read. I appreciated the insight into the author’s unique experience. It’s almost unbelievable that he kept his vision loss largely a secret for so long. It also gets a bit maddening and I found myself yelling back at the audio recording for him to just tell people already. I was also put off by the author’s alternating use of “you” to describe his own experiences versus the first person use of “I” which felt more natural. The author also interrupts his own stories with tangents into seemingly stories.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape media for the gifted audiobook in exchange for an honest review!

Overall, I thought this was an interesting memoir. I found myself intrigued and saddened by the lengths the author went to in order to hide his blindness from others. I was disheartened to hear about how employers and others treated his accommodation requests.

I enjoyed the humor sprinkled throughout, and found myself laughing out loud a few times.

Admittedly, I was confused by the transition between first and second person, especially in a memoir. Not something I’ve experienced before. Also, not the fault of the narrator, but NetGalley audiobooks tend to sound robotic, which makes it harder to listen to.

Overall, a solid 3 stars from me.

A memoir is one of my top 3 genres.

The takeaway from Blind Man's Bluff is that a rare hereditary optic neuropathy, Leber's, is both a disability (ADA guidelines) and not obviously apparent. Mr. Tate Hill spends the vast majority of this book telling endlessly how he was maneuvering life without acknowledging his sight disability. He touches angrily on the few people he was able to get close to, and their frustration with him. His memoir reads as if he was entitled for no reason. This is not a spoiler: In a grocery store he's angry at his friend for not naming every product in the aisle (cookies). I wanted to know during these situations if anyone asked him "What's wrong with you? Are you blind?"

In my opinion, Mr. Tate Hill made the lives around him miserable, from an elderly landlord to ironically a wife. While being frustrated with him, for abusing my time, I did learn something that will change my life. (The reason I love Memoirs).

While finally applying for disability (deserved) Mr. Tate Hill was sent for an eye exam. He writes how he felt the staff and doctor in the office was looking at him, as well as how he was treated; another faker. At this point, Mr. Tate Hill takes my breath away when he shares his fear. Can these doctors see or diagnose his rare disease? Frightening thought. My time was well spent, and how I document my personal records, as well as realizing the importance of using time carefully in any medical situation, I credit this memoir. I am also humbled by the fact I agreed to read and review a memoir, and not anywhere in print large or small was it stated I had to like the person or his story.

One star deducted for unnecessary and trashy profanity. (In a nonfiction work such as this, space in Author Notes (a couple sentences) stating the foul language and horrid reference to God are used (my standard is an automatic 1 star rating and DNF.).

This is a three star read if you can stay focused on the reactions of those around him, and ignore his selfishness when it came to complete strangers (walking across streets refusing a cane). There are lessons to be learned and shared.

This was an audiobook from Netgalley for review.


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#BlindMansBluff
#Memoir
#Leber'sHereditaryOpticNeuropathy
#DreanscapeMedia
#NarratorCurtisArmstrong