Education | Braille and the Blind

Read the Best Books on the Planet–in Braille

Braille. It’s one of those necessary skills you’ve learned through the years. You enjoy reading the classics, authors like Lewis Carroll and Charlotte Bronte, but you also hanker for those newly released books, the ones that keep your heart racing and your mind soaring. Reading is a serious and fun adventure, one that you don’t want to miss, especially if you have recently lost your sight, or a good portion of it, and want to know the facts and formulas for reading Braille and experiencing reading all over again. Good news. Try these tips for locating the best Braille books on the planet.

1. Google books in Braille on your home computer and discover a great list of places to search; from the well-known online establishments to those companies specializing in Braille only.
2. Seek out your nearest local Braille library. Receive a catalog of Braille listings by emailing, mailing or telephoning your request.
3. Have a child who is blind? Find the latest resources by typing in books on Braille for children. Discover low cost resources, even free options in book reading to keep your child happy and interested for hours.
4. Just recently lost your sight? Want to learn how to read again? Learning Braille as an adult can be as difficult as learning a new language, but it doesn’t have to be impossible. If it’s the independence you lack and want, and the freedom to read what you want when you want, then learning Braille is for you. Even if you have low vision, learning Braille will assist you in the fulfilling life you desire.

Get started! Fortunately, these aren’t the only resources available to you on your search for books on Braille. Often, talking with others who are blind or have low sight will lend a cornucopia of ideas to keep you reading for hours to come.

Many Benefits to the Blind From Learning Literary Braille

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Literary Braille and Reading for Pleasure

One of the important considerations that should be made when deciding whether or not to learn Braille is to determine if you only need to read and write basic information like grocery lists, telephone numbers, and other simple lists. If this is the case, then alphabetic Braille or as it used to be called, Grade One Braille, will be adequate for your needs. This is the version of Braille that requires you to write out an entire word, letter by letter. For example, the word “dog” would need to have the separate letters “D-O-G” written out.

However, if you desire to read books, magazines, or newspapers in Braille, you’ll need to learn what is termed Literary or Grade Two Braille, also known as “contracted” braille. This is a form of braille that is condensed in order to allow more characters to be printed in less space. It uses only one cell to represent an entire word, unlike Alphabetic braille.

Many Benefits to the Blind From Learning Literary Braille

Most Braille users would opt for learning the alphabetic and literary versions of braille, for obvious reasons. Knowing only Alphabetic Braille would place a significant limit on a blind person’s ability to discover the world and to make their way through life. It’s important to remember, though, that learning the literary version will take significant time to study before one has achieved mastery. In many instances it may be a year or more before this is accomplished. It is also essential that the blind Braille reader have good sensitivity in their fingers, as the placement of dots on a page in a book, magazine, or newspaper will be much more condensed.

Decision to Learn Braille An Important One

Once you have determined which version of Braille you want to learn, the next step is to decide how you’ll go about learning it. It is recommended that a blind person first have an assessment done of their finger sensitivity to determine whether or not they’ll be able to discern the dot placement of the literary version.

Read the Best Books on the Planet–in Braille

Many Benefits to the Blind From Learning Literary Braille

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