This is a compelling work of fiction, and a particularly good one for aspiring bakers or chefs, and/or any preteen who likes a good story. I'm both saddened that we don't have more authors and/or protagonists with this condition sharing their stories, and also heartened that my list is growing: I've been exposed to more books with a theme of CP this year than ever before. Other serious topics are explored here: abandonment by a parent, single-parenting, and a grandparent with Alzheimer's. There's humor here (a person is not their condition), and Ellie may be bound to a wheelchair, but she's snarky as hell, talented, and incredibly observant, too. The author, Jamie Sumner, is a writer and a mother to a son with CP, and her expertise with the condition is obvious. This middle grades read about a 12-year-old competitive baker with cerebral palsy earned a blue ribbon at our house. "Sometimes the best plan is the one you don't make for yourself."ĭon't let this whimsical cover confuse you into thinking this is a clichéd or cartoonish story. Disabled kids deserve better mirrors, and non-disabled kids need clearer windows.Īlso, what is up with RJ Palacio blurbing so many middle grade books? How much is she getting paid for this? Wonder has some serious ableism issues of its own, so honestly her endorsement does the opposite of convince me to try a book. When another character, Bert, was introduced-clearly autistic, but portrayed in an extremely stereotypical, one-dimensional, offensive way and with Sumner portraying his traits as creepy and the butt of jokes-I was done with this. Yes, internalized ableism is sadly a thing, but this was really excessive, and as far as I read there was no hint of Ellie learning not to think this way about herself. Apparently Sumner is the mother of a kid with cerebral palsy, and if this is the way she thinks, I feel bad for the kid. (Also, hello, heteronormativity, not pleased to meet you!) No one calls Ellie out on all this. I could not take any more of Ellie's self-deprecating narration-she constantly calls herself "cripple" and "ugly", and says that her body is useless and that there's no way any boy would find her attractive. Enjoy.Īfter finishing this one, you can move right on to the sequel: Time to Roll. As promised on the cover, there is most definitely PIE! This is most definitely one of my favorite new juvenile titles in 2019. There is something for everyone in here: baking, therapy, mini golf, pageantry, fishing, and more. Ellie's voice is authentic and will provide a much needed window for middle grade kids to living with CP. This book reveals much about living with a disability without being just about that. With the help of her two new friends, Coralee and Bert (short for Robert), she will learn the joys of not being normal and discovering who she really is. Spunky Ellie may be down, but she is not out. Now she is the new kid in a wheelchair at a small middle school coming from the wrong side of town - the trailer park. The two of them move to a trailer in Oklahoma to help Mema take care of grandpa after his dementia symptoms cause a couple of dangerous accidents. She is also confined to a wheelchair due to cerebral palsy and lives with her divorced mother. Ellie is an aspiring baker and is inspired by Mary Berry, Julia Child and other baking greats. Now she just has to convince her mom that this town might just be the best thing that ever happened to them! It all feels like one challenge too many, until Ellie starts to make her first-ever friends. Except she’s not just the new kid-she’s the new kid in the wheelchair who lives in the trailer park on the wrong side of town. If she’s not writing fan letters to her favorite celebrity chefs, she’s practicing recipes on her well-meaning, if overworked, mother.īut when Ellie and her mom move so they can help take care of her ailing grandpa, Ellie has to start all over again in a new town at a new school. The thing is, Ellie has big dreams: She might be eating Stouffer’s for dinner, but one day she’s going to be a professional baker. That surprises some people, who see a kid in a wheelchair and think she’s going to be all sunshine and cuddles. The story of an irrepressible girl with cerebral palsy whose life takes an unexpected turn when she moves to a new town.Įllie’s a girl who tells it like it is.
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