CRIP ZEN: A Manual for Survival by...

CRIP ZEN: A Manual for Survival by Lorenzo Wilson Milam (MHO & MHO Works / Box 33135 / San Diego , CA 92163: $12.95; 254 pp., paperback original). In this fiercely angry anthology of columns, book reviews and articles, Milam reveals what it’s like to live with a disability in contemporary America. The author has no patience with such namby-pamby euphemisms as differently abled : Stricken with polio as an adolescent, Milam refers to himself as a “Crip.” He dismisses “inspiring” tales of overcoming adversity as so much media pap and focuses on often taboo subjects--sex, drugs, denial, anger, suicide and the healing power of meditation. Milam’s scathing denunciation of the treatment disabled people receive in the United States forces readers to reexamine their attitudes and actions.