Last week was International Down Syndrome Day and our school had a Kindness & Inclusion Day. In honor of that day, I have books that celebrate kindness and inclusion of people who were born with conditions that meant life would throw extra challenges their way. Click on the titles to see the full review of each book including any content notes/trigger warnings. See these other Brainstorms for more Kindness & Inclusion reads: Brainstorm 105: Dyslexia & Stuttering in Kids Lit, Brainstorm 141: Characters Who Rise Above Physical Challenges, Brainstorm 200: Synesthesia in Literature, Brainstorm 238: Meet Some Deaf People/Characters
The Absent Alpacas (Ron Roy’s A to Z Animal Mysteries) by Kayla Whaley, ill. by Chloe Burgett
In a nutshell: When alpacas go missing from the fair, Abbi, Lydia, and Daniel track them down.
Inclusive character: Abbi has spinal muscular atrophy and is in a wheelchair.
More info: Abbi and her best friends, twins Lydia and Daniel, are headed to the Maine State Fair to see the alpaca costume competition. But when they get there, all but one of the alpacas are missing. Did the alpacas sneak out? Did someone steal them? And why?
Extra thoughts: This is a new series inspired by Ron Roy’s A to Z mysteries featuring 3 new little sleuths. Each book in the series has a mystery related to an animal for the trio to solve. I like that it features full color illustrations throughout.
Target readers: Contemporary Fiction Fans, Mystery Fans, Animal Lovers, Spinal Muscular Atrophy Character Fans, Twin Story Fans, Wheelchair-Using Character Fans, Multicultural Character Fans, Lower Grade Readers
Bo and the Merbaby (Unicorn Diaries, #5) by Rebecca Elliott
In a nutshell: The unicorns look for ways to help a merbaby born with only one tail fin so she can’t swim.
Inclusive character: The merbaby born with 1 instead of 2 tail fins, hindering her mobility.
More info: When the unicorns hear that a new merbaby has been born, they can't wait to meet her. They are sad to find out the merbaby was born with only one tail fin so she can't swim. Her mom says she is perfect and doesn't need fixing. But the unicorns still wonder if anyone can help the merbaby, so they set off in search of the legendary Golden Fish.
Extra thoughts: There's a nice message in this about people born with disabilities still being of worth and not necessarily needing "fixing." There's a good resolution about what is helpful for parents of kids with disabilities that could definitely be applicable in real life. I did wonder why they didn't introduce how prosthetics are helpful for people with mobility issues. I think that would have been appropriate and not hurt the message, but that wasn’t what the author chose to do.
Target readers: Fantasy Fans, Graphic Novel Fans, Fans of Characters with Mobility Issues, Lower Grade Readers
House of Robots (House of Robots, #1) by James Patterson & Chris Grabenstein, ill. by Juliana Neufeld
In a nutshell: Sammy gets stuck taking one of his mom’s robots to school with him (training it for his sister with SCID), but when it goes missing he has a mystery to solve.
Inclusive character: Sammy’s sister who has SCID (severe combined immune-deficiency)
More info: Sammy's household is a little unusual. Yes, he has a mom, dad, and a sister like many other people. But he also lives with several robots who do all the household chores from cooking to cleaning and even being the house pet. His mom is a professor of robotics, thus the numerous robots. His dad is an artist who writes a graphic novel series. And his little sister and best friend, Maddie, has SCID, so she has to pretty much live in her room so she won't get sick. Sammy isn't exactly the most popular kid at school but he has his 2nd best friend Tripp, and does ok. But when his mom and dad decide to send one of mom's new robots to school with Sammy, Sammy knows his life is over. E is an excessively annoying robot. And his first day at school is even more disastrous than Sammy predicted. But after mom makes some modifications, E seems to do better and even starts to help Sammy deal with the school bully and gain some popularity. So when E goes missing, Sammy actually finds himself sad and determined to find the missing bot.
Extra thoughts: The robot is going to school with Sammy so that Maddie can eventually use it to interact with others. The three books in this series are the only ones I’ve read featuring a character with SCID, and Maddie is such a fabulous character with a great attitude. It’s easy to cheer for her. The series is entertaining, has extra-large font, and lots of illustrators. It’s great for reluctant readers. I also love that she and Sammy are best friends. When’s the last time you read a book in which elementary brother/sister siblings were best friends?
Target readers: Robot Fans, Reluctant Readers, Scifi Fans, Mystery Fans, Brother/Sister Friendship Story Fans, SCID Character Fans, Middle Grade Readers
How to Make Friends with the Sea by Tanya Guerrero
In a nutshell: Pablo is secretly struggling with compulsive behaviors related to abandonment by his dad and multiple international moves, but his mom is so concerned with helping a little girl with a cleft lip, he doesn’t feel like he can talk to her about it.
Inclusive character: Chiqui, a girl born with a cleft lip.
More info: Pablo's mom works with animal rescue centers, and ever since his dad left them they've been hopping from country to country so fast he's got whiplash. Currently, they are in the Philippines and Pablo has come to realize he has issues he needs to tell his mom about. He counts things to calm himself down, he's constantly freaked out by germs and dirt, and just the sight of the ocean is enough to make him throw up. He knows this is related to their constant moving and his last interaction with his dad at an aquarium, but he just can't bring himself to talk to his mom. And now he certainly doesn't have a moment to because she's rescued a human child rather than an animal this time. Chiqui has a cleft lip, has never been to school, and they don't even know if she can talk. Can both Chiqui and Pablo find wholeness?
Extra thoughts: It is easy to forget in developed countries and cities, that cleft palates and cleft lips are still very real issues for many people around the world who don’t have easy access to medical care. Even though Pablo’s mom is busy, Pablo is seen by his mom’s boss and the neighbor girl Happy. They both find ways to help him, and encourage him to finally talk to his mom. The book ends on a hopeful note for both Chiqui and Pablo.
Target readers: Contemporary Fiction Fans, Cleft Lip Character Fans, Mental Health Story Fans, TCK Character Fans, Philippines Setting Fans, Middle Grade Readers
Hummingbird by Natalie Lloyd
In a nutshell: Olive, a girl with brittle bone disease, longs to make friends, be on stage, and find the mythical Hummingbird so she can make a wish.
Inclusive character: Olive, the main character, who has brittle bone disease
More info: Olive has osteogenesis imperfecta (aka brittle bone disease) but she doesn't want to be defined by her condition or the wheel chair she often uses to get around. She also doesn't want it to slow her down. And it is most definitely hampering her social life and aspirations of being on the stage. Her loving parents are concerned that school is too dangerous. She just wants to go to school, find her BFF who is just waiting out there for her, and get a role in the theater production about Emily Dickinson. Oh, and with the strange feathers falling like snow signaling an imminent reappearance of the local legend, she also wants to find the Hummingbird and make a wish.
Extra thoughts: Natalie Lloyd has done it again. She's crafted an incredibly moving story in words that flow in beautiful rhythms, added just a touch of magic, and builds empathy.
Target readers: Magical Realism Fans, School Story Fans, Theater Story Fans, Friendship Story Fans, Self-Acceptance/Actualization Story Fans, Wheelchair-Using Character Fans, Brittle Bone Disease Character Fans, Middle Grade Readers
Once upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan
In a nutshell: In search of answers for her dying younger brother, an Oxford university student seeks out C.S. Lewis to find out where Narnia came from and if it is real.
Inclusive character: 8 year old George who has a congenital heart condition
More info: Megs is not the normal Oxford university student in the 1950s. For one, she is studying math and physics, still not a typical choice for women. For another, she doesn't spend her weekends hanging out at the pub with her classmates, but rather ventures home by train each and every weekend to spend precious moments with her little brother. George is 8 and not likely to make it to 9. He was born with a heart condition with no cure, and the whole family knows his time is limited. So when George falls in love with The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and asks Megs to hunt down Mr. Lewis at Oxford and ask him where Narnia came from, Megs takes the request very seriously. But Jack Lewis doesn't give her a straight answer. Instead, over a series of weeks he shares stories from his life with Megs, from boyhood to the present, that she then relates to George. And on the journey both she and George will learn a thing or two about the power of stories, where they come from, and just what Narnia can mean to them.
Extra thoughts: This is mostly biographical fiction relating a lot of true facts about Lewis' life, but also interweaving a tenderhearted tale of a brother and a sister wrestling with deep questions. There's also a little love story for Megs worked in naturally along the way with a fellow Oxford student who she can talk to about the deeper things these stories from Mr. Lewis are bringing up.
Target readers: Historical Fiction Fans, Biographical Fiction Fans, Sibling Story Fans, Oxford Setting Fans, Congenital Heart Defect Character Fans, C.S. Lewis Fans, Bittersweet Story Fans, Light Romance Fans, Adult Readers (though approachable to YA)
Out of My Mind (Out of My Mind, #1) by Sharon M. Draper
In a nutshell: A nonverbal girl with cerebral palsy’s world is changed when she gets access to technology that can give her a voice.
Inclusive character: Melody, a genius nonverbal, wheelchair-bound girl with cerebral palsy
More info: Melody was born with cerebral palsy. She has a fully functioning mind, and even a photographic memory, but because she can't talk she has no way to let others know. Her mobility and autonomy are severely limited as well, which is frustrating to a girl with a very smart brain. Her parents and Mrs. V (a neighbor who helps look after her when she's not at school and her parents are still at work) and a couple of her good teachers have some inclination. They've caught on to some of her reactions and the way she laughs at jokes, but to the rest of the world, Melody feels invisible. Until the day she catches on to news of technology that just might give her a voice.
Extra thoughts: This story is such a good reminder that kids with little to no vocalization can still have a LOT going on in their heads. This is a great book to grow your empathy and remember to really see people, and not just their surface appearance.
Target readers: Contemporary Fiction Fans, Cerebral Palsy Character Fans, Spunky Character Fans, Middle Grade Readers
The Unstoppable Jamie by Jane Givens, ill. by Courtney Dawson
In a nutshell: Jamie and his parents are headed to New York City for the Buddy Walk and his picture is going to be on the big screen.
Inclusive character: Jamie has Down syndrome
More info: Jamie likes to pretend he is a superhero with superhero tools like a cape to make him unstoppable. These tools help him when the world feels a little overwhelming. He'll need them as he and his family head to the Buddy Walk in New York City where his photo will be in the slideshow.
Extra thoughts: Check out the back of the book for more information on Down syndrome and the Buddy Walk.
Target readers: Contemporary Fiction Fans, Down Syndrome Character Fans, Picture Book Readers