  Katherine Bouton, Author Katherine Bouton. FSG/Sarah Crichton,
$26 (272p) ISBN 978-0-374-26304-1 Reviewed on: 10/29/2012
Release date: 02/19/2013 Though she’s never been able to
pinpoint the cause of her affliction, former New York Times
senior editor Bouton remembers the day she began to lose her
hearing and suddenly found herself among the ranks of the
estimated 275 million people around the world with some type of
hearing impairment. She recounts her story and expands it to
include the experiences of others (each chapter closes with a
profile of a person with a hearing disability, including a
British opera singer, a psychoanalyst, and a professor),
crafting a study rich in detail and broad in scope that touches
on the intricacies of cochlear implants and the increasing
amount of ambient noise in our society, as well as the shame,
frustration, and guilt the hearing impaired face in the
workplace and in private conversation. This 360 degree approach
to the topic makes this more than just a memoir; it’s a u