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Never Too Old meets the 1st WEDNESDAY of the month to share the diversity, depth, and relevance of Young Adult & Juvenile books. All ages are welcome. For more information, contact Beth@LopezLibrary.org |
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When you look like us
by Pamela N. Harris
When his sister Nicole disappears, Jay Murphy must take up the search for her when the police department won't investigate her case.
NOTES: Available in paperback, Hoopla Audiobook & eBook, and Libby Audiobook & eBook. Suggestions for Sharing: - -How do you relate to a character, the setting, or any other part of the story?
-Does this title remind you of any other books, authors, or movies? -What did you learn?
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The someday birds
by Sally J. Pla
Charlie, twelve, who has autism and obsessive compulsive disorder, must endure a cross-country trip with his siblings and a strange babysitter to visit their father, who will undergo brain surgery.
READER NOTES: Thoughtful, bitterseet, humorous, full of humanity and nature's beauty. I loved Charlie's neurodiverse voice and his annoying, quirky, loving family, both biological and found. This novel also addresses the Bosnian War with the character of Ludmila, who was forced to flee her country.
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Rain reign
by Ann M. Martin
Struggling with the challenges of OCD and Asperger's syndrome, Rose, a homonym enthusiast, shares an inseparable bond with a beloved dog, but when the dog goes missing during a storm, Rose is forced to confront the limits of her comfort levels, even if it means leaving her routines and safe places in order to search for her pet.
READER NOTES: A girl who loves words and rules. A dog who is loyal and true. The hurricane that comes between them. Rose's bravery, intelligence, and honest voice will have readers cheering and on edge in this compelling story.
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The Orange Houses
by Paul Griffin
Tamika, a hearing-impaired girl; Jimmi, a young veteran who stopped taking his antipsychotic medication; and Fatima, an illegal immigrant girl from Africa, meet and connect in their Bronx neighborhood, with devastating results.
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The last girls of Pompeii
by Kathryn Lasky
When Julia, the daughter of a wealthy shipbuilder, discovers that her parents are planning to put her in service at the Temple of Dania and sell her slave, Mitka, to an abusive man, the two face equal fears about their future--until a catastrophic event changes everything in both their lives in the ancient city of Pompeii in A.D. 79.
READER NOTES: Julia, the daughter of the shipbuilder, has a withered arm and so is considered unmarriageable.
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Small steps
by Louis Sachar
Three years after being released from Camp Green Lake, Armpit is trying hard to keep his life on track, but when his old pal X-Ray shows up with a tempting plan to make some easy money scalping concert tickets, Armpit reluctantly goes along.
READER NOTES: Companion to Holes.
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The book of Boy
by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Employed by a shadowy pilgrim, the bullied and marginalized Boy is taken on a quest across Europe to collect the seven precious relics of Saint Peter from dangerous enemies.
READER NOTES: This seemed more like historical fiction/fantasy than physical or neurodiversity, until you learned that the main character was perceived as a hunchback. The mystery about "Boy" was that he didn't need to eat or drink. Partly charming, but unexpected.
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Skellig
by David Almond
With all the tragedy and problems facing his family, Michael's excitement about moving into his new home is all but gone, yet his encounter with the creature in the garage is certain to put a spark back into his life in more ways than he had ever expected.
READER NOTES: This book was recommended as having some similar themes to The Book of Boy. It is a sensitively portrayed story.
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Wildoak
by C. C. Harrington
Twelve-year-old Maggie's stutter causes her much heartache and only her menagerie of pets, whom she can speak with fluidly, provide her comfort, but when she finds Rumpus, an abandoned snow leopard in a forest in Cornwall, their chance encounter will change their lives forever.
READER NOTES: The metaphor of this story is that both Maggie and Rumpus are in trouble because they have difficulty communicating with others. The ending was satisfying in that Maggie's disability wasn't "fixed." Beautifully illustrated by Diana Sudyka. Don't miss the Author's Note for more in-depth information On Trees and Reforestation Efforts All Over the World, On the Sale of Big Cats and Conservation Efforts Today, On Stuttering and Where We Are Today, and Resources for Young People Who Stutter.
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The war that saved my life
by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
A young disabled girl and her brother are evacuated from London to the English countryside during World War II, where they find life to be much sweeter away from their abusive mother.
READER NOTES: Though the title seems over-dramatic, it is not. The protagonist, a girl with a club foot, was so abused by her mother that being evacuated from London was a blessing. A good depiction of a disability.
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Marcelo in the real world
by Francisco X. Stork
Marcelo Sandoval, a seventeen-year-old boy on the high-functioning end of the autistic spectrum, faces new challenges, including romance and injustice, when he goes to work for his father in the mailroom of a corporate law firm.
Marcelo Sandoval, a seventeen-year-old boy on the high-functioning end of the autistic spectrum, faces new challenges, including romance and injustice, when he goes to work for his father in the mailroom of a corporate law firm.
READER NOTES: Marcelo lives in a treehouse because he cannot always handle the noise and bustle of his family. One reader made similar living arrangements for her family member on the spectrum.
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Song for a whale
by Lynne Kelly
"From fixing the class computer to repairing old radios, twelve-year-old Iris is a tech genius. But she's the only deaf person in her school, so people often treat her like she's not very smart. If you've ever felt like no one was listening to you, then you know how hard that can be. When she learns about Blue 55, a real whale who is unable to speak to other whales, Iris understands how he must feel. Then she has an idea: she should invent a way to "sing" to him! But he's three thousand miles away. How will she play her song for him? Full of heart and poignancy, this affecting story by sign language interpreter Lynne Kelly shows how a little determination can make big waves"
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The curious incident of the dog in the night-time
by Simon Stephens
Despite his overwhelming fear of interacting with people, Christopher, a mathematically-gifted, autistic fifteen-year-old boy, decides to investigate the murder of a neighbor's dog and uncovers secret information about his mother.
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The London Eye Mystery
by Siobhan Dowd
When Ted and Kat's cousin Salim disappears from the London Eye ferris wheel, the two siblings must work together--Ted with his brain that is "wired differently" and impatient Kat--to try to solve the mystery of what happened to Salim.
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Lopez Island Library 2225 Fisherman Bay Rd Lopez Island, Washington 98261 360-468-2265www.lopezlibrary.org |
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