Such an important book! I want my kids to read this in several years so we can have a meaningful conversation about this book and the issues it discusses. I hope that this experience can give her a lot of confidence going forward and hopefully change the lives of her teammates as well. She confronts everyone very maturely and asks hard questions that needed to be addressed. Glad everyone is okay.!And I did like how strong and courageous Melody is at the end. It felt a bit underdeveloped and intense. I was glad they lost in the national championship and couldn’t believe how they try to “make it up to her.” But the larger question remains: would I treat her differently? Would I be a true friend? Am I teaching my kids to be true friends to everyone even those with disabilities?įor me, the ending was a bit over the top.We have the intense devastation from the DC trip and then little Penny’s accident. Not even her teacher sees how important she is to the team and how important the team is to her. The ending is just devastating, and I had to talk it out a bit because I just found it so upsetting. But my heart also broke for her when we learn how her teammates treated her. Also how important she is to the team’s success. I loved the simple ways she can feel more included like with the modified answer board at the local competition. I loved how Melody is part of a team and feels normal for the first time. I was amazed by how hard all the team members work and how much studying goes into their experience. The plot was exciting and engaging especially the quiz bowl plot detailing Melody’s fight to make the team. Makes me think more seriously about how I treat people that are different from me especially those with disabilities. I was shocked by how people treated Melody at school with the poor special education teachers, under achieving academics (just abcs in 3rd grade!) and the way other teachers and students in the inclusion classes treated her.
There are fascinating details about living with disabilities throughout the book, and I loved the people that fought for Melody along the way.From the selfless love of Melody’s parents and dear neighbor Mrs V to help her with so many physical things - getting dressed, eating each bite of food, getting her to the toilet, bathing her, getting her to school, training for the whiz kids competition, helping her get into her wheelchair and understanding her needs. It was so moving to read this book and see what it’s like for Melody. While she is physically limited because of her disability, Melody has a vibrant personality and so much inside her head! I haven’t read many books about kids with disabilities.
It was so interesting to hear about her experiences with cerebral palsy and how trapped she was in her body but how much she wanted to express herself. Such a fascinating look inside her head and all the words and thoughts that she has. And she’s determined to let everyone know it – somehow.” But Melody refuses to be defined by cerebral palsy. She is smarter than most of the adults who try to diagnose her and smarter than her classmates in her integrated classroom – the very same classmates who dismiss her as mentally challenged because she cannot tell them otherwise. She cannot walk or talk, but she has a photographic memory she can remember every detail of everything she has ever experienced. A great conversation!īook Summary: “ Melody is not like most people. Also the difference between losing mental abilities and lacking the ability to communicate.
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