Harry and Willy and Carrothead by Judith Caseley; Publisher: Greenwillow; (March 1991)ISBN: 0688094929. As a book encouraging self-respect among children despite physical differences, this is a commendable effort. Born without a left hand, Harry is, in the words of a schoolmate, "just a regular kid." He enjoys the same games, and his matter-of-fact responses to other children's questions soon satisfy their curiosity. He makes friends with a redheaded boy named Oscar, and when another classmate calls him "Carrothead," Harry jumps to his defense. In one of those quick social changes common among school children, the three boys become best friends. Reading level: Baby-Preschool
Stretching Ourselves: Kids With Cerebral Palsy by Alden R. Carter, Carol S. Carter (Illustrator), Albert Whitman & Co; ISBN: 0807576379; April 2000. Emily, Tanner, and Nic have varying degrees of CP. They are shown doing regular kid things--going to school and playing with friends--as well as undergoing physical therapy and using a computer to communicate. The color photographs show the activities in direct, uncluttered images that children will recognize. Without minimizing the difficulties (the children "must work hard to learn things that come easily to others"), Carter puts CP in the context of the child's whole life: Tanner has a stepdad and a little brother; Emily practices staying calm by caring for the family dogs; Nic likes to go bowling with his cousins even if his hands don't always do what he wants.Reading level: Ages 4-8
Susan Laughs by Jeanne Willis, Tony Ross (Illustrator),Henry Holt & Company; ISBN: 0805065016; September 2000. Without being condescending or preachy, the words, pictures, and design of this very simple picture book show that a physically disabled child is "just like me, just like you." Only on the very last page do we discover that Susan uses a wheelchair. Before that, the simple, rhyming words and active crayon-and-pencil pictures show her in a succession of ordinary scenarios that every preschooler will recognize. Susan laughs. Susan sings. Susan's good. Susan's bad. She's mad. She's shy. She swims. She swings. She sulks. She's scared. The show and tell works. Children will enjoy seeing their common feelings and experiences. They'll be surprised by that wheelchair at the end; and then they'll accept their connection with the child who they've come to know is "just like me." Hazel Rochman Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved Reading level: Ages 4-8
Special People, Special Ways by Arlene Maguire, Sheila Bailey, Future Horizons; ISBN: 1885477651; June 1, 2000. "Special People, Special Ways" presents a positive image of persons with disbilities. It shares the message that even though each of us may have something different about us, we share many commonalities. Coupled with the colorful illustrations, the book conveys the message that although painful at times, being different can also be glorious. Reading level: Ages 4-8
What's Wrong with Timmy? by Maria Shriver, Sandra Speidel (Illustrator) Little Brown & Co (Juv Trd); ISBN: 0316233374; 1st edition October 16, 2001. When 8-year-old Kate meets a boy who seems somehow different, she feels funny inside. After talking with her mom, though, Kate begins to understand that Timmy is just like her in many ways.Timmy has special needs; he takes longer to learn than Kate, and can't walk or run as well. But he also "loves his family, he wants friends, he goes to school, and he dreams about what he wants to be when he grows up." Kate and Timmy meet, and the seeds of a friendship are planted. Reading level: Ages 4-8
Nicole's Story: A Book About a Girl With Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis by Virginia Tortorica Aldape, Lillian S. Kossacoff (Photographer), li Kossacoff, Virginia Totorica Aldape. Lerner Publications Company; ISBN: 082252578X; August 1996. This book informs children about juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) and how it affects a person. It illustrates how 8-year-old Nicole is more like other children than different from them. Nicole tells about her everyday life and explains the modifications necessary for her disability. Reading level: Ages 4-8
Digger Gets Help: A Story About Sexual Abuse for Children by Lia Brewer; University Classics, 1997. Today, one out of every four children is sexually molested. Digger Gets Help was written for children who have been sexually abused to help them realize that they are not alone, and to make them comfortable enough to talk about it. It can be used to help children protect themselves from possible future abuse by discussing the difference between "good and bad touch." It is also helpful for the child who may have a friend who has been abused. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
Howie Helps Himself by Joan Fassler; Albert Whitman & Co, 1987. Though he enjoys life with his family and attends school, Howie, a child with cerebral palsy, wants more than anything else to be able to move his wheelchair by himself. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
The Day We Met Cindy by Anne Marie Starowitz; Kendall Green, 1988. A first grade class is introduced to hearing loss and sign language by the hearing-impaired aunt of one of the students. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
Lee, the Rabbit with Epilepsy by Deborah Moss, Carol Schwartz (Illustrator); Woodbine House, 1989. Lee is diagnosed as having epilepsy, but medicine to control her seizures reduces her worries and she learns she can still lead a normal life. age level 4 - 8, reading level preschool - 4th
Amigos En LA Escuela/Friends at School by Rochelle Bunnett, Matt Brown (Photographer); Star Bright Books; 1997. The Spanish edition of Friends At School. A wonderful portrait of children with different abilities busily working and playing together at school. The straight forward text and colorful photographs illustrate the true meaning of the word inclusion. It shows that given the opportunity, children readily accept one another's differences. age level 4 - 8, reading level preschool - 4th
Ian's Walk : A Story About Autism by Laurie Lears, Karen Ritz (Illustrator), Judith Mathews (Editor); Albert Whitman & Company, 1998. American Bookseller named Ian's Walk a "Pick of the Lists" and wrote, "Lovely pictures bring to life the touching story of how Julie learns to appreciate her younger brother, who has autism. It teaches not only about an often misunderstood disorder, but responsibility, acceptance, appreciation, and love." age level 4 - 8, reading level preschool - 4th
Talking to Angels by Esther Watson; Harcourt Brace, 1996. There is no story in the traditional sense. Rather, in minimal text, Watson introduces her autistic sister, Christa, and the circumscribed world of sensations in which the child seems to live. Autism is not sharply defined. In fact, young children may find many of Christa's feelings ("Christa loves the way water looks. She also likes the way kittens feel on her cheek" ) difficult to distinguish from their own. age level 4 - 8, reading level preschool - 4th
Nick Joins In by Joe Lasker, Kathleen Tucker (Editor); Albert Whitman & Company, 1980. When Nick, confined to a wheelchair, enters a regular classroom for the first time as a result of U.S. Public Law 94-142, he and his new classmates must resolve their initial apprehensions about mainstreaming. Nick soon realizes he has special talents to contribute. 'Hooray for Nick,' the children cheer as he helps get a wedged basketball down. age level 4 - 8, reading level preschool - 4th
Our Teacher's in a Wheelchair by Mary Ellen Powers, Kathleen Tucker (Editor); Albert Whitman & Company, 1987. A picture-book photo essay introduces a young man named Brian Hanson whose wheelchair doesn't stop him from teaching in a day care center. age level 4 - 8, reading level preschool - 4th
Knots on a Counting Rope by Bill Martin, John Archambault, Ted Rand (Illustrator); Owlet Publication, 1997. A grandfather uses a counting rope to help his blind grandson understand the passage of time. As the boy and his grandfather talk, the cool night becomes a warm day, and as the grandfather recounts the boy's birth and struggle for life, he tries to help the child face the challenge of blindness. age level 3 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
Sara's Secret (First Person) by Suzanne Wanous, Shelly O. Haas (Illustrator); Carolrhoda Books, 1995. At first Sara doesn't want anyone at her new school to know about her younger brother Justin who has cerebral palsy. age level 4-8, grade level preschool - 3
Be Good to Eddie Lee by Virginia Fleming, Floyd Cooper (Illustrator); Philomel Books, 1993. Although Christy considered him a pest, when Eddie Lee, a boy with Down's Syndrome, follows her into the woods, he shares several special discoveries with her.age level 4-8, grade level preschool - 3
Dina the Deaf Dinosaur by Carole Addabbo, Carole Addabbom; Hannacroix Creek Books, 1997. Dina, a deaf dinosaur, runs away from home because her parents will not let her leran sign language even though it would allow her to communicate more complicated ideas. In the forest Dina meets, Otto the owl, Camilla the chipmunk, and Moliere the mole. Fortunately, Otto learned some sign language years before when he lived below a deaf dove. Dina teaches them the sign language alphabet and a few words. They invite her to stay with them. This children's book will delight children who can hear or who are deaf. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
Our Brother Has Down's Syndrome by Shelley Cairo, Jasmine Cairo, Tara Cairo; Firefly Books, 1985. A ". . . fine book to introduce physical and mental handicaps" (Canadian Materials). "This warm family story, lighted by color photos of Jai's busy, happy life, should be an inspiration to any reader."--Emergency Librarian. Full color. age level 4 - 10, grade level preschool - 5
Where's Chimpy by Berniece Rabe; Albert Whitman & Co, 1995. Text and photographs show Misty, a little girl with Down's syndrome, and her father reviewing her day's activities in their search for her stuffed monkey. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
Watching Bradley Grow : A Story About Premature Birth by Elizabeth Murphy-Melas, Diane Tate (Illustrator); Longstreet Press, 1996. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
Nursery Rhymes from Mother Goose : Told in Signed English (Signed English Series) by Harry Bornstein, Karen L. Saulnier, Pat Peters (Illustrator), Linda C. Tom; Kendall Green, 1992. Presents well-known Mother Goose rhymes accompanied by diagrams showing how to form the Signed English signs for each word in the poems. age level 4-8, grade level preschool - 3
Reach for the Moon by Samantha Abeel,
Charles R. Murphy, Roberta Williams (Editor); Pfeifer-Hamilton Publishers,
1994. Reach for the Moon combines the remarkable poetry and prose of a gifted,
yet learning disabled, 13-year-old with the exquisite watercolors that inspired
her words. The universal message "you can do it" is shared beautifully with
the reader and will be an inspiration to parents, teachers, and children.
age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
Even Little Kids Get Diabetes by Connie White Pirner. Pictures by Nadine Bernard Westcott. Published by Ablert Whitman & Company. The star of this book is Lydia, the author's daughter, who was diagnosed with diabetes when she was two years old. The words are those of a very young girl, maybe in kindergarten, so your own very young child will feel right at home. The colorful illustrations recount her days in the hospital, as well as the frustration of eating an apple at a birthday party while everyone else eats cake. This is a good book for the very young child and her parents, though current diabetes care allows for the incorporation of sweets into the diet. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
Sarah and Puffle: A Story for Children About Diabetes by Linnea Mulder, R.N. Illustrated by Joanne H. Friar; Magination Press. The author's daughter, Sarah, was diagnosed with diabetes six weeks before her fourth birthday. Sarah and Puffle recounts how frustrated children often get managing their diabetes. Facing a visit to her cousins who live on a farm, Sarah can't help but feel left out because she has diabetes. Tired of the demands of diabetes, she runs off to the sheep pen and falls asleep and dreams of a talking sheep named Puffle that helps her come to terms with having diabetes. This is an excellent book for second graders and up, who will find the writing challenging and the story all to close too home. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
Princess Pooh by Kathleen M. Muldoon, Linda Shute (Illustrator); Concept Books, 1989. Jealous of her invalid sister's royal treatment as she sits in her wheelchair, Patty Jean tries out the conveyance and discovers life in a wheelchair is no fun at all. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
See You Tomorrow, Charles by Miriam Cohen, Lillian Hoban (Illustrator); Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishers, 1997. Charles is the new boy in the first-grade class, and he is blind. His classmates want to be helpful. Should they protect Charles or treat him like everyone else? No one knows for sure. Then one day Danny, Charles, and Anna Maria get into trouble. Can Charles take charge and help his friends? age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
The Face at the Window by Regina Hanson, Linda Saport (Illustrator); Clarion Books, 1997. Young Dora overcomes her fear of Miss Nella, a mentally ill woman, after she must apologize for breaking a window, in a compassionate look at how the mentally ill are set apart from the community and the generosity of spirit that can bridge the gap. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
He's My Brother by Joe Lasker; Albert Whitman & Co, 1987.A young boy describes the experiences of his slow learning younger brother at school and at home. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
Somebody Called Me a Retard Today And My Heart Felt Sad by Ellen O'Shaughnessy; Walker & Co, 1992. A moving story about what if feels like to be teased empowers mentally challenged children and sensitizes everyone to the need to celebrate people's differences, as a girl expresses her sadness at being called a "retard" by people who do not know how loving and self-reliant she is. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
Talking to Angels by Esther Watson; Harcourt Brace, 1996. A poetic tribute to the author's autistic sister, Christa, explains why autism is not a barrier to love or friendship and celebrates the special world in which the young girl exists. age level 4 - 8, grade level preschool - 3
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updated July 2004