George Pelecanos

I want the 15 million Americans who cannot read print books to have mainstream access to books. Those who are blind, dyslexic or have processing or intellectual disabilities cannot successfully use print. Others, like persons with cerebral palsy or high spinal cord injuries, or those recovering for stroke or undergoing chemotherapy have neurological or muscular problems that make holding a book for periods of time difficult. The introduction of text-to-speech on a mainstream e-book reader, the Kindle, means that for the very first time our neighbors and friends with these disabilities will have the same access to these books at the same price, the same terms and at the same time as everyone else. I have told my publisher not to turn off text-to-speech on my e-books and I urge my fellow authors to do the same.