Switched at Birth season 1 [video recording TV series]

Switched at Birth season 1 [video recording TV series]

Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Number of discs: 2
Rated: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: ABC Family
DVD Release Date: December 13, 2011
Run Time: 435 minutes
ASIN: B005PWZ472 
Perfomers: Katie Leclerc, Vanessa Marano, Constance Marie, D.W. Moffett, Lea Thompson
Plot Summary:
Bay Kennish is a girl that grew up in a wealthy family with an older brother and loving parents, while Daphne Vasquez is a daughter to a struggling single mother. Bay and Daphne were switched at birth and in these episodes they deal with getting to know their birth parents, coming to terms with the fact that they are all family now, and with the fact that their lives would have been different. Daphne is also deaf and the show brings in many people and events that are a part of the deaf community... including Daphne's best friend with whom Bay starts to develop a relationship with over the course of the show. When the Kennishes discover that the Vasquezes aren't doing well financially they invite them to move in with them and they all become a family that go through the struggles of meeting Daphne's father, understanding how to speak sign language, and dealing with a secret that Daphne's mother has kept from their family.


Critical Evaluation:
This show is very well made, and it appeals to many different audiences because it is so diverse and reaches so many different audiences. The most amazing shots in the show are when they go silent, and the viewer can experience the show from the perspective of the deaf characters. I think that the characters are well constructed and the storyline moves at a good pace; it unfolds to the audience in a fun climactic way.

Reader's Annotation:
2 teenage girls were switched at birth and are now attempting to get to know their birth families, deal with life in high school and learn to be happy with the lives that they were given.

Websites to Look Into:
http://beta.abcfamily.go.com/shows/switched-at-birth

Awards:
Television Critics Association Award, 2012: Outstanding Achievement in Youth Programming
Imagen Foundation Awards, 2012: Best Primetime Program

Similar Shows:
"The Secret Life of the American Teenager"

Booktalking Ideas:
Showing a clip from the show to demonstrate what it is like, paired with the book
Discussing the fact that the series deals with issues of people with hearing disabilities

Genre:
TV Series/ Drama

Interest Age:
13-19

Challenge Issues:
I do not see any real challenge issues with this show because it does not have foul language, it isn't sexual, and it generally deals with issues concerning moral values and how to be a good person.

Why this Item?
I really wanted to add a TV series to my collection because I see that they are becoming more and more prominent in library collections. I really think that this series is wonderful in the way that it talks about mixed families and people who have hearing disabilities.