Deformed

Book excerpt: In this sequel to Deformed: My Remarkable Life (Mediacs, 2016), Valerie Pepe updates the inspirational story of a woman's struggle to overcome a crippling birth defect in pursuit of a "normal" home and work life. Picking up where her first memoir left off, Valerie takes the reader on a heartfelt journey into middle age; the loss of family members, including her dad; a new and deeper love affair, and volunteer work to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy and others who like her were born with the joint contractures and abnormal muscle fibrosis of Arthrogryposis Multiplex Congenita (AMC). Born and raised in Staten Island's Italian-American community, Valerie Pepe has written a sequel that once again stands as a shining example of how a strong and independent person with a severe physical disability can refuse to be marginalized.