This Kid Can Fly: It's About Ability (NOT Disability)

This Kid Can Fly: It's About Ability (NOT Disability)
Author: Aaron Philip
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 192
Release: 2016-02-16
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 0062403567

"At once beautiful and heartbreaking, Aaron Philip found a way to make me laugh even as I choked up, found a way to bring on my empathy without ever allowing me to feel sorry for him. An eye-opening debut." —Jacqueline Woodson, National Book Award winner and Newbery Honor author of Brown Girl Dreaming In this heartbreaking and ultimately uplifting memoir, Aaron Philip, a fourteen-year-old boy with cerebral palsy, shows how he isn't defined so much by his disability as he is by his abilities. Written with award-winning author Tonya Bolden, This Kid Can Fly chronicles Aaron's extraordinary journey from happy baby in Antigua to confident teen artist in New York City. His honest, often funny stories of triumph—despite physical difficulties, poverty, and other challenges—are as inspiring as they are eye-opening. Includes photos and original illustrations from Aaron's personal collection.

The Power of Disability

The Power of Disability
Author: Al Etmanski
Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers
Total Pages: 252
Release: 2020-02-04
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1523087587

The author of Impact uses this compilation of inspiring stories of disabled people to convey ten important life lessons to help anyone. This book reveals that people with disabilities are the invisible force that has shaped history. They have been instrumental in the growth of freedom and birth of democracy. They have produced heavenly music and exquisite works of art. They have unveiled the scientific secrets of the universe. They are among our most popular comedians, poets, and storytellers. And at 1.2 billion, they are also the largest minority group in the world. Al Etmanski offers ten lessons we can all learn from people with disabilities, illustrated with short, funny, inspiring, and thought-provoking stories of one hundred individuals from twenty countries. Some are familiar, like Michael J. Fox, Greta Thunberg, Stephen Hawking, Helen Keller, Stevie Wonder, and Temple Grandin. Others deserve to be, like Evelyn Glennie, a virtuoso percussionist who is deaf—her mission is to teach the world to listen to improve communication and social cohesion. Or Aaron Philip, who has revolutionized the runway as the first disabled, trans woman of color to become a professional model. The time has come to recognize people with disabilities for who they really are: authoritative sources on creativity, love, sexuality, resistance, dealing with adversity, and living a good life. “This book reminds us of what we have in common: the power to create a good life for ourselves and for others, no matter what the world has in store for us.” —Michael J. Fox “Hopefully the universal lessons in this book will not only empower all of us to trampoline to our highest potential but also move the global disability rights movement to achieve the success it fully deserves—so we can all live in a more just and equitable world.” —Susan Sygall, disability activist and MacArthur fellow “Etmanski engages every reader, whether new to the world of disability or an old hand, with thoughtful insights on the value of difference. This book made me laugh, made me cry, made me proud.” —Yazmine Laroche, former chair, Muscular Dystrophy Canada

The Girl Who Could Fly

The Girl Who Could Fly
Author: Victoria Forester
Publisher: Macmillan + ORM
Total Pages: 353
Release: 2008-06-24
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 1429986360

You just can't keep a good girl down . . . unless you use the proper methods. Piper McCloud can fly. Just like that. Easy as pie. Sure, she hasn't mastered reverse propulsion and her turns are kind of sloppy, but she's real good at loop-the-loops. Problem is, the good folk of Lowland County are afraid of Piper. And her ma's at her wit's end. So it seems only fitting that she leave her parents' farm to attend a top-secret, maximum-security school for kids with exceptional abilities. School is great at first with a bunch of new friends whose skills range from super-strength to super-genius. (Plus all the homemade apple pie she can eat!) But Piper is special, even among the special. And there are consequences. Consequences too dire to talk about. Too crazy to consider. And too dangerous to ignore. At turns exhilarating and terrifying, Victoria Forester's debut novel has been praised by Stephenie Meyer, author of the Twilight saga, as "the oddest/sweetest mix of Little House on the Prairie and X-Men...Prepare to have your heart warmed." The Girl Who Could Fly is an unforgettable story of defiance and courage about an irrepressible heroine who can, who will, who must . . . fly. This title has Common Core connections. Praise for Victoria Forester and The Girl Who Could Fly: "It's the oddest/sweetest mix of Little House on the Prairie and X-Men. I was smiling the whole time (except for the part where I cried). I gave it to my mom, and I'm reading it to my kids—it's absolutely multigenerational. Prepare to have your heart warmed." Stephenie Meyer, author of the Twilight saga "In this terrific debut novel, readers meet Piper McCloud, the late-in-life daughter of farmers...The story soars, just like Piper, with enough loop-de-loops to keep kids uncertain about what will come next....Best of all are the book's strong, lightly wrapped messages about friendship and authenticity and the difference between doing well and doing good."--Booklist, Starred Review "Forester's disparate settings (down-home farm and futuristic ice-bunker institute) are unified by the rock-solid point of view and unpretentious diction... any child who has felt different will take strength from Piper's fight to be herself against the tide of family, church, and society."--The Horn Book Review The Girl Who Could Fly is a 2009 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

Stuck in Neutral

Stuck in Neutral
Author: Terry Trueman
Publisher: Harper Collins
Total Pages: 134
Release: 2012-07-24
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 0062216996

This "intense reading experience"* is a Printz Honor Book. Shawn McDaniel's life is not what it may seem to anyone looking at him. He is glued to his wheelchair, unable to voluntarily move a muscle—he can't even move his eyes. For all Shawn's father knows, his son may be suffering. Shawn may want a release. And as long as he is unable to communicate his true feelings to his father, Shawn's life is in danger. To the world, Shawn's senses seem dead. Within these pages, however, we meet a side of him that no one else has seen—a spirit that is rich beyond imagining, breathing life. *Booklist starred review

Shoo, Fly Guy! (Fly Guy #3)

Shoo, Fly Guy! (Fly Guy #3)
Author: Tedd Arnold
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Total Pages: 36
Release: 2013-09-24
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 0545666333

Fly Guy is hungry. He wants something brown and smelly. Yuck! Fly Guy returns home to discover that Buzz has gone on a picnic without him! Sad and hungry, Fly Guy takes off in search of his favorite food. He gets shooed away from a hamburger, a slice of pizza, a dog's bones, and even roadkill--leaving readers to guess what Fly Guy's favorite oozy, lumpy, smelly, brown food could possibly be. It's Shoo Fly Pie, of course!Using hyperbole, puns, slapstick, and silly drawings, Tedd Arnold delivers an easy reader that is full of fun in his NEW YORK TIMES bestselling Fly Guy series.

Confronting Ableism

Confronting Ableism
Author: Susan Nichols
Publisher: The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc
Total Pages: 66
Release: 2017-12-15
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 153838163X

The U.S. Census Bureau reported in 2012 that one in every five Americans, almost 20 percent of the population, lives with a disability. Some disabilities are severe and recognizable, while others are invisible to those who are unaware. Despite the fact that such a large number of Americans live with a disability, many people are not familiar with ableism, or discrimination against disabled people. This text contains a breakdown of what ableism looks like, how to recognize it, and how to face it. Special features include a Myths and Facts section and 10 Great Questions to Ask a Specialist.

Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes

Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes
Author: Jonathan Auxier
Publisher: Abrams
Total Pages: 347
Release: 2011-12-01
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 161312158X

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Night Gardener, Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes is the utterly beguiling tale of a ten-year-old blind orphan who has been schooled in a life of thievery. One fateful afternoon, he steals a box from a mysterious traveling haberdasher—a box that contains three pairs of magical eyes. When he tries the first pair, he is instantly transported to a hidden island where he is presented with a special quest: to travel to the dangerous Vanished Kingdom and rescue a people in need. Along with his loyal sidekick—a knight who has been turned into an unfortunate combination of horse and cat—and the magic eyes, he embarks on an unforgettable, swashbuckling adventure to discover his true destiny. Be sure to read the companion book, Sophie Quire and the Last Storyguard. Praise for Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes “Auxier has a juggler’s dexterity with prose that makes this fantastical tale quicken the senses.” –Kirkus Reviews

Bird Child

Bird Child
Author: Nan Forler
Publisher: Tundra Books
Total Pages: 34
Release: 2009-08-11
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 0887768946

Bullying and the ability to rise above it are at the heart of this strikingly beautiful picture book. All school-aged children have either bullied, been bullied, or witnessed bullying, and all too often, they feel powerless to stop what has been set in motion. Such is not the case with Eliza. Her mother has given her “wings to fly” and the ability to see all the possibilities that lie before her. So, when bullies pick on the new student, Lainey, gradually robbing her of her smile and ability to paint beautiful pictures, Eliza wants to help, and she does, by finding a way to show Lainey all that she can be. Then in the schoolyard, Eliza stands up to the bullies. One by one, the other children add their voices, and soon the bullies have skulked away. Lyrical and eloquent yet realistic and down to earth, Nan Forler’s text is complemented beautifully with François Thisdale’s haunting images. This is a book for every child, every classroom, and every library.

Anything But Typical

Anything But Typical
Author: Nora Raleigh Baskin
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 212
Release: 2010-03-09
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 1416995005

Jason, a twelve-year-old autistic boy who wants to become a writer, relates what his life is like as he tries to make sense of his world.

Reaching Reluctant Young Readers

Reaching Reluctant Young Readers
Author: Rob Reid
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 163
Release: 2017-03-09
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1442274425

Reaching Reluctant Young Readers features 150 middle-grade books. Each profiled title has the potential to hook the reluctant reader and lure them to read the entire book. To specifically encourage elementary and middle-school-age reluctant children to read, there is first a pitch to get the reader’s attention. That is followed by a short reading passage to “set the hook” and encourage the young person to read the rest of the book on their own. Further, the book contains several hundred additional recommended titles. The books selected for this collection were chosen following the criteria of reluctant reader books created by the Quick Picks committee sponsored by the Young Adult Library Services Association. While these guidelines were designed for young adult books, they also work well for middle-grade books. The criteria include: clear writing (no convoluted long sentences with sophisticated vocabulary), high interest “hook” in the first few pages, well-defined characters, interesting plot, and familiar themes.