therunningdream

__The Running Dream__ by Wendelin Van Draanen ISBN: 978-0-375-86667-8 ©2011 332 pages

Good sections to read aloud: -pp. 3-5 where you learn our main character has lost a leg below the knee -pp. 22-24 where her best friend comes to visit her and the accident comes rushing back in her mind

Summary: Our main character, Jessica, is a fabulous sprinter on her track team. That is until a bus accident claims the life of a fellow runner and she loses one of her legs. Fighting depression and anxiety, Jessica all but decides to ‘throw in the towel.’ Finally, with the help of her best friend, her track coach, her family, and another individual from school, Jessica is convinced to go back to school and try to move on with her life. Her mind is constantly going back to running, wishing that she could still have a chance. Her track team gives her that chance taking things to a whole other level by raising money for a prosthetic running leg. Throughout the book and this experience, Jessica meets a lot of different people that she would have overlooked otherwise. This book is one of the best teen issues/sports books I’ve read in a long time. It’s got a lot of great messages that anyone (male/female) could learn from.

YA Fiction--teen issues; running; amputees; prosthesis; people with disabilities; high school; school

©Jennifer Lang - WDMS - 2012