This is a story of how a sightless and soundless girl gained contact with the world and about the way moral crusades and scientific progress can compromise each other. Laura's is a journey from isolation to accomplishment, as well as a window onto what it means to be human under trying conditions.

In Howe's hands, Laura's education became an experiment that he hoped would prove his own controversial ideas about the body, mind, and soul. This is a story of how a sightless and soundless girl gained contact with an ever-widening world, and also a cautionary tale about the way moral crusades and scientific progress can compromise each other. Anticipating the life of Helen Keller a half-century later, Laura's is a pioneering story of the journey from isolation to accomplishment, as well as a window onto what it means to be human under the most trying conditions.