Task 21: Read a children’s book that centers a disabled character but not their disability

[Donya]

I have some pictures books on my list for this as well.
Hello Goodbye Dog
Mama Zooms
Moses Goes to a Concert

[Dawn]

I love kids' books and just might read these all!

[Taniesha]

I read Hello Goodbye Dog for this challenge. It also fits the challenge to read a book featuring a beloved pet where the pet doesn't die.

[Natasha]

Any recommendations for books that meet the bonus challenge?

[Rachel]

Free on Audible Stories at the moment is Cyborg Cat and the Night Spider. It's written by Ade Adepitan, a British Paralympic athlete, and based on some of his own life experiences, so it's also #ownvoices and features a person of colour with a disability as the main character.

Edited to add... I listened, and enjoyed it, but it doesn't really fit the prompt: the plot centres around the main character facing up to the fact that he will need to start using a wheelchair.

[Kass]

Would The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson) fit this prompt? I'm assuming middle grade counts as a children's book? Percy has dyslexia and ADHD.

[Katy]

I read Not My Fault.

Although the premise of the story is the broken relationship between two sisters as the result of an accident which left one of them partially disabled, the focus is far more on the girls and their feelings and thoughts and actions than the disability itself. There's also an important secondary character with some sort of additional needs, although her disability isn't specified.

[Gw]

I chose THE AMAZINGLY AWESOME AMANI...it looks like such a cute book.

[Caryn]

So I'm thinking Flawed Dogs: The Shocking Raid on Westminster by Berkeley Breathed fits this category. Does anyone think there is a reason it wouldn't?

[Diane]

Tiffany wrote: "Lynn wrote: "I think Wonder by R.J. Palacio would definitely work for this. It is classified as YA/children's/middle grade. I really enjoyed it."

It is good but it..."

I agree. The whole book is definitely centered on his disability. But White Bird is a wonder story/historical fiction/graphic novel where Julian's grandmother is saved from the Nazis by a boy with a disability. That book would fit the challenge.

[Meredith]

I'd like to make a case for Speechless, a brilliant middle grade novel and recent Caudill award nominee. It's quite subtle -- we're actually never told that Patrick has a disability, although the discerning reader will quickly pick up on this. Patrick is already dead when the book starts, and the central conflict is his cousin's struggle to eulogize the person who's tormented him all his life. While Patrick's problems set up the conflict, the book feels much more like an exploration of family, death, and empathy than of disability.

Very few children's books really capture me so I thought I'd mention this one in case it's helpful. It's really a unique read, well-written, and, best of all, not trite and not "inspiration porn."

Other contenders for me for this task were:
Freak the Mighty
The Bridge Home
Someday We Will Fly (*audio version w/Jayne Entwhistle!)
The Cay

[Julia]

doreneemi asked: Has anyone read Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine? From the description I can’t tell if it too centered on her having Autism for this prompt.

Yes. I love Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine. The MC is on the autism spectrum, but it's mostly about grief and going on in the face of loss. I think I'll reread it. It's also about some of the themes in To Kill a Mockingbird.

I also heartily recommend The War That Saved My Life and The War I Finally Won by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley, for this category and possibly the historical fiction, too.

[Malvina]

The Funny Thing About Norman Foreman by Juliette Henderson might qualify?

[Malvina]

The Funnt Thing About Norman Foreman by Julietta Henderson might qualify?

[oliver]

i'm going with A Boy Called Bat.

[Girlyhammer]

Kelly K. wrote: "Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus

I haven't read this one yet, but from reviews I've skimmed, I think this might fit the challenge? Has anyone else read it?"

So. Good. And my pick for this category.

[Amanda]

ADHD is a disorder, not a disability

[Bonnie G.]

Amanda wrote: "ADHD is a disorder, not a disability"

ADHD is a disorder that is a legal disability as are ASDs and mental illnesses and everything else that makes one neuroatypical. Everyone can define things as they wish in their own lives, but as a matter of US law ADHD is a disability so it is a fair choice.

[Alexis]

Bonnie G. wrote: "Amanda wrote: "ADHD is a disorder, not a disability"

ADHD is a disorder that is a legal disability as are ASDs and mental illnesses and everything else that makes one neuroatypical. Everyone can d..."

I am a disability rights attorney, and, yes, ADHD typically qualified as a disability under ADA. Just wanted push back a bit on the idea of "disorder." I know it's a term used by the medical field, but I don't like the implication that there's something wrong with a person simply because their brains work differently. Just something to think about...

[Bonnie G.]

Alexis wrote: "Bonnie G. wrote: "Amanda wrote: "ADHD is a disorder, not a disability"

ADHD is a disorder that is a legal disability as are ASDs and mental illnesses and everything else that makes one neuroatypic..."

I don't think I telegraphed that message, but if I did it was in error.

[Stina]

I went with Song for a Whale and really enjoyed it. Yes, it is important to the story that the protagonist is Deaf, but the focus of the story is on communication and making efforts to understand others and make room for differences.

[Octavia]

I read the Book Riot suggestion What Stars Are Made of by Sarah Allen for this, and it was excellent. It's about 12 year old Libby, who has Turner Syndrome, and who is determined to get the astronomer Cecilia Payne her rightful place in school science textbooks. It's just completely charming.

[willaful]

One of my childhood favs: From Anna by Jean Little. Little was one of the first children's book authors to write disabled children who had regular lives and weren't magically cured. Most of her books would fit, really. From Anna is historical fiction about a girl whose family leaves Germany as Hitler is coming to power. In Canada it's discovered that she has extremely limited vision. (As did Little herself.) The story is less about her disability and more about how finally getting the supports she needs changes how she thinks about herself and how she fits into her family.

[Sherri]

I read Song for a Whale by Lynne Kelly for this prompt. 4 stars.

[Azuki]

I just read Brightstorm by Bristih author Vashti Hardy. It's a really delightful read, a steampunk fantasy adventure of a pair of twins, one was born without one arm. They tried to take an airship to go to south pole.

[Lisa]

I read Lila and Hadley, by Kody Keplinger. Hadley is a traumatized teen who is losing her vision. Lila is a traumatized dog in an animal rescue society. They make a connection, and learn and grow through their relationship.

[asteriabooks]

I'm going with Mayday by Karen Harrington.

[Valery]

cherie wrote: "I'm going to read the audiobook of Odd and the Frost Giants"

I read this one to my kids a few years ago; we all loved it!

[Cynthia]

I've chosen this task for Task #24 of the 2022 Read Harder Challenge, "Pick a challenge from any of the previous years’ challenges to repeat!" The book I've assigned to this category is Pet by Akwaeke Emezi. The disability is selective mutism and I would argue that, while it influences the ways that the protagonist, Jam, communicates, it is not central to the story.