On Sight and Insight: A Journey into the World of Blindness [Paperback]

John M. Hull (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1997

This book is a unique testimony to the 'other world' of blindness, describing not the overcoming of suffering, but rather the reality of a world where perceptions of sound, silence and space are greatly changed.

Product Details

• Paperback: 252 pages
• Publisher: Oneworld (October 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1851681418
• ISBN-13: 978-1851681419
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #992,990 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good book for anyone facing blindness, February 4, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: On Sight and Insight: A Journey into the World of Blindness (Paperback)

A book review, by Carlton Griffin:

"On Sight & Insight, a Journey into the world of Blindness", by John Hull

After losing much of my vision over the past four years due to Retinitis Pigmentosa, I went looking for more information about going blind.

I recently finished this book and I've had a few days to reflect upon it. The book is written by John Hull, who tells about going blind as an adult. As a young man, John has blinding cataracts. He was blind for quite some time in the hospital, long enough to teach himself braille and read several chapters in the Bible.

The corrective surgery for the cataracts detached both of his retinas, one of which they were able to correct. He was blind in his left eye for the rest of his life, but his right eye stayed pretty dependable until he was about 45, and over the following three years he went completely blind.

It's a new book, John went blind in the 1980's and his book reads like a diary or journal. It's very easy to read and John easily holds the reader's attention.

John mostly tells what it is like, emotionally, to go blind. He talks about all aspects of blindness, but the focus on the book is to share how it affected and affects his emotions and his spirit; his soul. John really shares of himself in this book, it's very frank and in some places painful.

However, I enjoyed having read the book because it provided me with some information I was lacking, helped me come to terms with some things that before I could not conceive. I've been worried so much, the nagging question is always "What will it be like to go blind, how will I live my life?".

While John's book certainly doesn't fully answer that question, it does allow the reader to gain much insight into what it is like, at least from one man's perspective. While it did confirm a few fears I have, at least I feel more informed now; certainly the unknown is still more frightening than my actual fate.

I wish I could say more about this book, I think Mr Hull did a fine job. I refer to him as John in this review because I feel so close to him and his family, having read the book. If you want to know what it's like for an adult to go blind, John's perspective is wonderfully told in this book.

Carlton Griffin

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A rich and insightful book, January 17, 2006

By 

David Morris (Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: On Sight and Insight: A Journey into the World of Blindness (Paperback)

On Sight and Insight is a wholly remarkable and wondrous book that should be read by anyone with an interest in blindness, perception, embodiment and human existence. In this book John Hull documents his journey from the world of sight into the world of blindness, by describing what it is like to make this transition, through detailed and revealing descriptions of his daily activities, and by giving us his dreams, thoughts and reflections. His journey, in fact, is from a world of sight into one of insight, for it is not only a story of a courageous and emotionally complex life-transformation, but a profound study of who we are, how we see or do not see, touch or do not touch, how we relate to our world-and most of all an insightful study of what it means to be with one another. Anyone who reads this book will not quite hear a voice or touch or see a face in the same way again.