So Dan Kennedy's book, "Little People," seems well timed. Because Kennedy, as the father of an 11-year-old achondroplastic dwarf, is a card-carrying member of the dwarf community, his book doesn't have the voyeuristic feel that even well-intentioned television documentaries do. Kennedy's take on a topic so personal is remarkably thorough and unflinching.
Of course, dwarfs are nothing new; dwarfism has been around since the dawn of time and appears throughout nature. There are dwarf plants, trees, animals, and people. Dwarf children appear once in every 30,000 to 60,000 births, making it much rarer than, for example, Down syndrome, another genetic anomaly that occurs once in every 600-800 births.
With fewer than 50,000 dwarfs estimated to be living in the United States, Kennedy understands how different they look and why they often draw stares. He knows that most people don't understand that "midget" is an unacceptable term to describe short-statured people, and that "dwarf" or "little person" is OK. Kennedy invites readers to take a good look at dwarfism, its history, challenges, and future in a world where genetic advances are changing everything.
Kennedy's an ideal guide. Besides being a devoted father to his daughter, Becky, and an average-sized son, Tim, Kennedy is a senior writer at the Boston Phoenix. He takes us on a journey that is both singular and universal for any parent of a child who is "different."
When Kennedy's daughter was born in 1992, it didn't take long for doctors to diagnose her achondroplasia, the most common form of 200 types of dwarfism. Kennedy recalls that at birth her disproportionate head size also raised concerns about brain damage and that he and his wife, Barbara, were profoundly relieved when that was ruled out.
Since then, Kennedy has been on an "unexpected journey." He was determined to find out why Becky was different and he wanted the answer to be "positive, uplifting and life-affirming." As the parent of a dwarf child myself, I know how he feels.
Unfortunately, the answers aren't always easy or uplifting.
