Henry Holt & Company Inc

Spellbound - Phil Hanley

When Phil Hanley was in year one at school, he realised something that would forever set him apart from his peers: he couldn’t read. His teachers were ill-equipped to assist him, and he slipped through the school’s cracks, year by year falling further and further behind his friends. Finally, he was diagnosed with dyslexia, a learning disability that would shape the rest of his life. Unable to pursue college or a traditional job, Phil was thrust into a life defined by unconventional twists, including a stint as a runway model in Europe. Eventually, he found himself on a stage with a microphone, a spotlight, and five minutes of jokes. Unlike so many previous pursuits, stand-up felt right to Phil, and he soon discovered that the more he worked at it, the more he got out of it - a realisation that, he compellingly argues, saved his life. Spellbound is a story of humour and also of struggle and heartbreak, of constantly living in a world that sees things differently than you do, and of triumph over adversity. Phil shows us that dyslexia can be a huge challenge, but it doesn’t spell certain condemnation (and neither can he). Just the opposite: dyslexia has been more than a blessing in his life - it’s been his North Star.

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