Wheelchairs Books

Whether or not you believe in reincarnation or spirit guides or even pre-birth planning, this book has something to teach you. The book helps us look at the negatives in our lives and turn those into positives - especially the negative people we encounter. Instead of harping on the negative lessons our parents (or anyone) gave us, we can thank them for being examples of how to and how not to be. It's a complete flip from the negative to the positive. I felt like a tremendous load had been lifted after I finished the book. Again, even if you don't believe in mediums, reincarnation, etc., you can still learn from this book. Give it a try.

If you have unanswered questions about why some of your relationships didn't work out, or why certain things seem to just "happen" to you, read this book! You will get a better understanding of how we chart our lives, prior to incarnation, in order to learn the lessons our soul needs to grow and perfect. Robert Schwartz does a wonderful job of researching!

The author is very humble in his approach to his subject. He, along with the reader, is in 'learning mode'. He takes a back seat to the real people and their real stories and is as awed by the information provided by psychics and channelers as we are. I will be using this book as a reference and will also be recommending it - highly - to others. For someone who has long believed in reincarnation and the healing it offers, I know what is important is the effect of what we believe. We accept that God exists but it is the extent of our faith which gives us strength and hope. Why scoff at the fact/concept of reincarnation, at the idea we've led many lives and even chosen the people, the events - beforehand - in them? A famous personage once opined that it is a miracle we've lived even one life. WE are not just 'one-hit wonders'; we have so many songs in our repertoire.
This book is so beautifully written and arriving at the last page was like leaving an old friend or ending a wondrous journey. I look forward to the next one and have emailed the author to share with him how much I loved his book. The heartbreaking stories, the insights and wisdom from the channelers allows us to feel a little bit more powerful, a little bit more knowledgeable and yes, even more humble to the greatness of our spiritual universe.

With my mother dying I had a lot of questions about the journey of souls. This book is packed with a lot of wonderful information and gave me a sense of calm and made me felt more accepting of situations and people in my life.

One of the most important books I have ever read. This book confirmed to me many things that I have always inherently felt to be true, but more than that, it has helped me see life and the people in it from a much more elevated perspective. I cannot stress how amazing it is. I am re-reading it once again. I hope the author writes another very soon.

As other reviewers note, this is one man's journal that came about after his wife had an unexpected, life-changing accident. It is inspirational in the sense that Danny encourages you to do the same, and his own work is absolutely charming, but it is NOT a book on how to draw or make an art journal. I bring this up because this book comes up on searches linked to books that are geared that way, and as such can be misleading. It is far more akin to an autobiography than an art instruction book, and I thought a more clear explanation would help others in knowing what they're getting.

Danny Gregory has gone through some rough stuff; his seemingly ideal life, in accordance with all the myths of what makes an 'ideal life', was going along according to script until suddenly everything changed... but then isn't conflict the very item necessary for excellent drama and mandatory for positive resolution? In this instance Gregory reached out for something to help him and when he brought his hand back there was a pen in it. He used it to draw and to communicate.

With that pen Danny Gregory has turned his troubles into a cottage industry of sketch journaling and has assisted many others to see and record their lives with a new eye-view towards the everyday, the minutia, the otherwise mundane... all of which sparkle and dance in this renewed sense of seeing.

This is not a brilliant work, it is a solid look into a man's solace... a total sharing of his moments. There is not a bit of polish or glitter. IT is as real as it gets and it is a joy to be able to share these moments with a man I have come to respect through his writing and drawing.

I found this book to be so very different from Dan Gregory's more recent publications. This is the first book he published, I believe. The drawings are marvelous and motivating. Once I read the story that accompanied his drawings, I enjoyed the book even more. It was a true journal and not just random drawings. The sketchbook may become a person's outlet in writing and drawing and well presented at the same time.

I was not expecting anything when I started this book...frankly, I'm not sure I remember ordering it. In any event, the parallels between this graphic memoir and my own life make this book read more like an answered prayer than merely another memoir.

I take that last part back. It's not just that the author's experiences mirror my own life that makes this book notable. Rather, it's that Gregory manages to capture his own HUMANITY...without resorting to irony or the manufactured self-deprecation that seems to plague the modern memoir that makes this book so notable. I mean, finally!, someone has managed to write an HONEST memoir, one that does not require an attorney's Release of the Facts as a prologue.

"Everyday Matters" reads like a private journal, without the pretention that comes when the author knows other folks'll be reading it. Gregory's sketches are likewise uninhibited and imperfect; together, the text and illustrations create a personal, intimate environment for the reader that is inviting and judgment-free; none of the "You shouldn't have looked (though I knew you would, so I gave you my best side)" business that is the meta-text of so many memoirs, but instead offers a reassuring, "Well, that's me, hair and all...what do you think?"

A thoughtful, generous gift from Gregory to his readers.

A very enjoyable read and inspirational. I went out purchased a sketch pad and started drawing after finishing the book!

I'll be brief. My mom told me about this book years and years ago. I finally read it a few years ago.

Style-wise, I thought it was a bit melodramatic and I thought the author was stretching for words for emotional impact. Thus, I deduct a star for that.

What this guy's been through and what he's accomplished? Five stars isn't enough. I'd give him a million if I could on this site.

His journalistic travels to the middle east, especially his ride up the mountain on the back of a donkey, leaving his wheelchair behind - intense and beautiful.

I look up to John Hockenberry. I have a travel site, Wheel Adventure, and I am a paraplegic in a wheelchair. I think about this guy when I travel alone. If he can do it, I can travel solo as well. And I have and continue to do so.

Glad mom suggested this. One of the best reads ever and I was an English major and have read a slew of books.

I bought this book immediately after a close relative was injured in a car accident. It seemed different than the others (Although some of the others have been a great help in other ways). I know NPR and I had seen Hockenberry on NBC. The book was over the top better than I could have hoped. It is unique because it is written with such a clear voice in language that really grips you and takes you for a ride, it is funny--even laugh out loud funny and I'm a cynical person, it is witty, it has a political edge (which is why he and I would have some loud arguments at the dinner table), and it is not sugar-coated so while you are interested and amused you do get an education about what it's like to be a "crip." The best part is that when it was done, and I read it pretty passionately, I knew for a fact that I probably would not like him as a person, but I do respect him. Interesting take on "crips" for a newbie to that world. Thank you so much for this and I do hope that my dear cousin will be up to reading it one day.

John Hockenberry has a declaration to make, and he does it in an incredibly moving and entertaining manner. I highly recommend this book. It is poignant, very funny, and educational--about Middle Eastern geography and politics and about life from the perspective of those in a wheelchair.

From buying it (i think) 2 days early and reading over a very nice summer weekend in june 1995, i knew this book was - just- different. Amazing use of the language, probably the best crip biography to date (and it's well over a decade now. Based my Honors Thesis in College on what Hockenberry wrote in this book, traveled miles and miles to see his off broadway play, speaking dates across the country, and even got to know myself - and him, better as well, he ain't on nbc anymore, but this still stands as probably one of the must reads in disability studies or crip liberation.

I want to keep my review short because, if you have not read this book, reading my review will take up some of the time in which you could be reading the real book. When "Moving Violations" was first published, I heard a review of it on NPR. John Hockenberry is an NPR alum so I expected the book to be almost as good as the review led me to believe. I ordered it from Amazon and devoured it in almost no time. It was actually better than the radio review had led me to expect. A month later, I got a call from Seattle that delivered horrific news. My 21-year-old son had been in a contest with gravity and gravity had won. Although he had just had 18 hours of surgery, there was no way to know if he would ever walk again. Through the years since that time, I have read "Moving Violations" many times. It initially gave me entrance to a new world and was much more helpful to both my son and I than all the rehab publications combined. I knew, from the moment I answered that phone call that both my son and I had crossed into the Twilight Zone and nothing would ever be the same again. The Twilight Zone, however, had at least one map. My son's journey was, and continues to be, unique (as all such journeys are). I did feel, from the very beginning, that we had a preview of some of the directional signposts and even some of the scenic overlooks. I cannot help but think that our family has been living and learning about this new life in a richer way than would never have been possible if we had not read this book. As soon as my son came home from rehab it became clear that he had lost his will to live. I had a captive audience and started reading "M V" aloud. It is well written and mirrors many of the dilemmas in the life of a young male with spinal cord damage. I think it only took two days for my son to get interested enough that he started reading it himself. This book was truly one of the first things that helped him recover his will to live. Living with a catastrophic spinal cord injury is not even at the bottom of the list of interesting travel sites, and while I cannot believe that anyone would take that path voluntarily, "M V" is proof that, along with the horror, there can be adventure and possibilities in life; possibilities that could be so easily missed. So...READ IT! While spinal cord injury may never be a part of your personal life, sooner or later something awful could be. As the Eagles remind us, "The wolf is always at the door." In whatever guise the wolf presents itself, you will have learned something useful about what to do when or if the wolf appears.

The product was great and Woody's book store communicated great through email about the purchase and ordering information. The only thing is the number of days that it took to ship was confusing; I thought it would get to me sooner, but what the number of days meant was when it would be shipped as opposed to it arriving to me.

This is a great book. Inspiring, entertaining, hilarious, and real. Mark doesn't pull any punches in this. It is not a self-pity book nor does it try to lecture the reader. It is a real account of someone who is very inspiring, yet doesn't pretend to be what he isn't.

Once I started reading this I couldn't put it down. Awesome!!!

Mark Zupan makes you think about what you have, not what you do not have.

He may be in a chair, but he is not handicap. Mark Zupan speak frankly and openly about his life before and after. He does not blame anyone for his injury.

Make you think you life is O.K. and despite what happens you can survive and go on.

Life is not so bad.

Sometimes, people who have been "handicapped" in some manner end up withdrawing into themselves. A few of them are downright miserable. Mad at the world for being stuck in the situation they're in... the best they can hope for (because they're depressing to be around) is to have people feel sorry for them.

Mark Zupan (who, hopefully, you know from the astoundingly-good, and deserved-to-win-the-Oscar documentary, MURDERBALL), is NOT one of those people. He doesn't WANT anyone to feel sorry for him. (In fact, he doesn't even want to be seen as a "role model," or an "inspiration," though [sorry Mark!], to a lot of people, he is.)

Mark was an athletic, fun-loving 18-year-old, having a blast in South Florida when everything he knew changed in an instant. Sleeping off a night of heavy partying in the back of his buddy Chris Igoe's parked pickup, he had no clue when his friend got in and (also drunk) drove off. Not too long thereafter, Igoe swerved off the road and Mark ended up flying out of the truck-bed, over a fence, and into some dense foliage overhanging a small lake. (Igoe had no idea Mark was in the truck bed, so when the police came, they never looked for him.)

Mark regained consciousness, only to find himself unable to move (he didn't know it yet, but he was paralyzed from the neck down), hanging upside-down from a branch with his nose just inches from the water... and getting closer by the moment. He hung there for 14 hours, before a workman heard him yelling for help.

And that's just the START of the story!

In the years that followed, he has not only become one of the star players of the sport known as Quad Rugby (a.k.a. Murderball), his attitude about his "situation" (whether he likes it or not!) has helped untold numbers of others* to better cope with their own situations.


* I know of what I speak. My young and lovely wife has been in a wheelchair for several years due to Multiple Sclerosis. After seeing the movie MURDERBALL --and *especially* after meeting Zupan at a tournament, her attitude went from "good" to fantastic. She's no longer "the girl in the wheelchair." She's simply my wife, who's fun to be around, and who's interested in doing the things she CAN do, rather than fretting about the things she can't.

-Jonathan Sabin

A fast paced, gritty look into an Athlete's brush with death and the long road to recovery. If you are looking for the next inspiration for a cheesy After School Special on overcoming adversity...don't read this book. If you are looking for a well written, insightful look into how one guy copes with tragedy and disability, then this is an excellent read. To say Gimp has texture is an understatement thanks to its subject, Mark Zupan, a quadriplegic athlete who was made famous by the documentary Murder Ball. Gimp details how this proud, perhaps arrogant athlete dealt with a tragic accident that cost him the full use of his limbs thanks to drunken night that resulted in a brush with death and a debilitating spinal cord injury.

Gimp does not spare us the details that are often left out of such stories including the uglier side of human emotion. The books subject faces Zupan's denial, doubt, guilt, fear, despair and loss as a result of his tragedy. While he ultimately comes to terms with his injury and recovery, it is not without some serious setbacks, some self inflicted. It is this part of writer Timothy Swanson's writing that really sets Gimp apart. He does not spare Zupan some hard looks into his darker nature to include arrogance, self indulgence and outright self destructiveness at times. If there is a villain in the book, it is Zupan himself and his own feelings of despair and anger. It is Swanson's description of Zupan's struggle with his own dark feelings and fears that give the story its power.

The book is not without its own sense of humor and offers a dark amusement that Zupan has for the hand life has dealt him. Gimp deftly shows Zupan's outlook on life which is headstrong and confident but not without his fair share of hidden frailty in the face of a near death experience. In fact, the description of the actual accident that describes Zupan clinging to life, literally perhaps, is the book's strongest section. I have many friends who suffer from war wounds, especially brain injuries from IED's or "danger close" air strikes and I can say from personal experience that Gimp does an excellent job at looking at how proud warriors (in Gimp's case a world class athlete), deal with injury and recovery. I recommend this book without reservation to certainly anyone who knows someone who suffers from a disability or who has seen the documentary Murder Ball. The book has broader appeal to fans of sports writing as well since the book leaves no doubt that Zupan is an athlete. The fact that it is an easy read and has a brisk pace is no small feat given that other works of this genre tend to drag on, lack direction and are often burdened with sappy and clichéd, touchy-feely housewife book club nonsense. Zupan's force of will as described by Swanson carries the book along as does the suspense of how he will cope with each stage of his recovery and his entrance into the world of quad rugby aka Murder Ball. I thought it was a great read and recommend it without reservation.

Gary Presley got polio at age 17, after receiving a Salk booster vaccine. Since then, he has been confined to a wheelchair, seven different wheelchairs over the course of 50 years.

This book started out as a series of essays answering the questions people often have when they see someone in a wheelchair. He was able to weave these into a seamless narrative, providing vivid images of his treatment, recovery and life as a paraplegic. This book, more than anything else I've read, has helped me to imagine fully the struggles that paralyzed people are faced with. From the scenes of his breathing tube disconnecting while in the iron lung and no one on the hospital staff noticing, to the trials of simply going to the bathroom or breathing or his recognition of to the need to find love, happiness and acceptance, regardless of one's physical capacities, I felt drawn into his life.

This is a raw and honest book that will appeal to those who seek realism and truth. I learned a lot from it.

Stricken by polio in his teens, Gary Presley fought his way from being an angry, embittered young man to a perceptive man with a talent for writing.

His book, 7 Wheelchairs, deals with his life as seen from a wheelchair, "[...] high to the world". He writes with honesty, with understanding and, occasionally, cutting wit. After contracting polio, he spent three months in an iron rung. He describes this lie-saving/torture device letting his readers see and understand his feelings regarding the device.

With the help and support of his parents and later, the love of his wife, Belinda, Gary now refers to himself as "the Gimp" and has reconciled with life as he knows it. He has become an advocate for those with disabilities. He has also become a writer, with essays published in several essays published in several periodicals.

This is a book well worth reading. I recommend it highly.

I've been looking forward to the publication of this book. Gary and I have critiqued each other's writing for a decade as fellow members of the Internet Writing Workshop. I enjoy his wit and wisdom and am in awe of his positive attitude in overcoming obstacles. This is a memoir, not an autobiography, because it doesn't cover his childhood except for brief mentions of his father's military career. The focus is on what happened after polio, not only to him, but also how it changed the lives of his parents and brother. He mentions getting irritated with a priest who says, "It takes courage to spend each day confined to a wheelchair." Even I can realize it doesn't take courage to do something about which you have no choice. The courage comes from how you handle the situation. It took Gary many years of struggle, and he tells the story well.

We learn through his words the devastation of going from a can-do-everything teenager to a totally helpless being who can only talk and think and cannot even breathe without assistance. He takes us through the experience of being in an iron lung, of having a world consist of what can be seen in a small mirror above your face, of the transition to rocking bed and then wheelchair. He tells of living with his parents for thirty years and being cared for by them, the pain of their deaths, and then moving into an independent living apartment. His wheelchairs give him mobility, contrasting with the helplessness of being in bed. That is why he must always have a telephone within reach. He discusses the emasculating feeling of being a man who cannot take care of himself or physically help others.

Gary's story changes to a love story when Belinda comes to his apartment as one of his caregivers. They are now married and he is no longer alone. I wanted the book to end on this happy note, but it wraps up with the bitterness that permeates much of the book. I've read many of Gary's articles, and "7 Wheelchairs" contains only a small piece of the humor and wisdom and acceptance he normally expresses. This book doesn't show the complete Gary. I hope his next one will.

Gary Presley took his last physical steps in 1959 when he was only 17-years- old. He contracted Polio from the Salk vaccine. It's ironic that he got it from the last in the series of immunizations meant to protect him from the very disease he contracted and it happened the very year that the Sabin vaccine, much safer than the Salk, was trial tested. Since then Presley has used a wheelchair to get around. In fact, he's gone through seven of them. Today, he is a writer and mentor, an editor of the Internet Review of Books, and an activist in the disability community.

It's been a long journey.

His memoir Seven Wheelchairs: A Life Beyond Polio, published this year by University of Iowa Press, tells the story of his pilgrimage from innocent victim to angry and defiant adult, and ultimately to an accepting, if somewhat battered, philosopher. In his own words:

"...cynical and unfeeling, a burnt-out case, which I attemptedattemptto explain away by saying I survived then and I survive now by mating an ignorant combination off existentialism and stoicism, by becoming a peculiar bastardized oddity rolling about the world, forever dependent."

I found this book fascinating on many levels. I am Critical Care nurse by training and the book is an in depth look backward at the treatment of Polio. I am old enough to remember Stryker frames, used to rotate paralysis patients in the ICU, but the Iron Lung was obsolete long before my nursing career began. Presley's descriptions of "the can" and the treatment he received in hospital are riveting.

I know from personal experience that many events that happened in his hospital stay would not be tolerated today. Nursing has come a long way since the 1960s. Simple acts such as turning a patient on a regular schedule would be done regardless of how reluctant or combative the patient might be, and Presley, by his own admission, was no easy patient. Anger and helplessness make for combative and frustrated patient. Sudden and irrevocable paralysis, a sentence.

In the years I took care of new paraplegics and quads I always tried to engage them to talk about their frustrations. Perhaps it takes as long as it has taken Presley to get to the root of the issues, to open up and speak the truth about himself as well as the world of "Crips."

Not only does he give us a look at treatments that now seem antiquated, but he uses his memoir to underscore the importance of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. How it changed, not only his world, but the world of thousands upon thousands of disabled people in the United States. Presley uses the words Gimp and Crip to describe himself and his fellow travelers, but don't ever let him hear you use the expression "wheelchair bound." For him and others in the disability world wheelchairs liberate rather than imprison.

But fundamentally this memoir is a universal look into what disables us and what empowers us, regardless of whether we ride a wheelchair or not. As we travel the road with Presley we begin to see ourselves in his agony and frustration. We are all crippled to a degree by whatever limits our lives. What we do with that is how we ultimately live. Simply put, in Presley's words: "Of course, it is madness to regret what cannot be changed, and I now have learned to keep the madman locked away where he cannot hurt anyone."

This is the trap door where we store our anger and blame once we have the maturity to understand that we are responsible for how we choose to live our lives. By the end of the memoir we watch Gary Presley find work, love, parenthood, and a life without rancor. "The paralyzed man miraculously found the ability to turn the other cheek, "'to live each day fully and gracefully.'"

Some people might be afraid to pick this book up. Those same people might also be afraid to look hard into their own lives. Seven Wheelchairs: A Life Beyond Polio is a book that is educational on a political and social level as well as a personal one.

It is well worth a read.

Gary Presley offers readers a unique philosophy about life and from an even more distinctive vantage point -- his nearly fifty years spent "with my ass planted in a wheelchair."

In this no-nonsense recounting of his journey through polio--which he contracted in 1959, at the vulnerable age of seventeen--and its after-affects, Gary invites readers into his struggles with isolation, despair, and guilt; and then, to celebrate with him as he comes to accept his life for what it is. Carefully-crafted sentences reveal how he evolved from seeing himself as an "unwanted rolling responsibility" to one who "rolls through life" and "refuses to be confined." Any sadness readers may feel at the injustice of Gary's plight is overshadowed when reading about the joy he finds in his marriage and the pride he now takes in referring to himself as Crip and Gimp.

The first half of the book details the days, months and early years after polio. Readers unfamiliar with the times will come away with a better understanding of the iron lung, the respiratory chest shell, the rocking bed and frog breathing. Then, Gary's writing segues into thought-provoking essays about living, dying, and society's attitude toward the disabled.

I found myself near tears when I read of society's treatment (and lack thereof) of the disabled before the American Disabilities Act was passed, yet cheering as Gary comes to the understanding that it is not, nor has it ever been, the wheelchair which defines him:

"Sometimes living disabled is about asking someone for help ... Other times it's looking on things with a cold eye and letting patience evolve into stoicism, so that you can tolerate what you can't change ... And occasionally, it's about moving on, no matter what anyone thinks."

Once you start reading, you won't want to put 7 Wheelchairs down, but allow ample time for digestion and reflection. Gary's thoughtful phrases deserve to be savored.

How can I not put in a plug for this book? My 6 year old Kindergarten son has borrowed this book 3 weeks in a row from the school "media center." He has all but memorized it and loves reading it aloud, with or without an audience. It's fun for the adults too, with fun illustrations. It goes without saying that I am planning to buy this for our home library.

I think any Robert Munsch book is a winner! You can't go wrong with Munsch! I recommend all the Munschworks collections (each volume contains 5 stories) and anything else by Robert Munsch; he is so smart, clever, witty, entertaining, funny, creative and just plain amazing! This book is particularly popular in our family because my wife uses a motorized wheelchair. We all like to think that Lauretta (the girl in the story) is "mommy" as a little girl. "Mommy" still likes to go fast and the kids like it too!
Zoom! shows that a kid who uses a wheelchair is just like any kid who wants to have fun! Zoom! also shows that a book with a character using a wheelchair does not need to have a blatant message on disability. A great, fun story!

Recently, I learned that the character Lauretta in the story is based an actual girl named Lauretta Reid from Ontario. Lauretta uses crutches most of the time and a wheelchair for.long distances. Zoom! came from a combination of Lauretta's request for "a story about a little girl who walks with crutches and uses a wheelchair" and a story idea from a student named Grant; he wanted to be in story about a kid who got a new bicycle that was so fast he got a speeding ticket. Grant (now in his 20's) gladly gave up his role in the story and we have Zoom!

Unfortunately, Zoom! is currently out of print and the publisher (Scholastic) has given no information about when the book will be reprinted. There are a few used copies available online but they are pricey! And at this point, I will honestly admit that I am the one who bought all the reasonably priced copies I could find - and in my search for copies I learned the story behind Zoom! You can read the whole story and see pictures of the real Lauretta at www.robertmunsch.com . I hope in the near future new copies of Zoom! will be available. Feel free to visit the Scholastic website and write a comment requesting that Zoom! be reprinted - I did!

As with all the Robert Munsch books we own, my son frequently picks this one for reading. It is silly and always makes him laugh.

You might expect a book about a girl in a wheelchair to have some socially correct message -- something about how the "differently abled" are people, too, so we should all be nice to them. Or maybe how we should try to imagine life from their perpective, so we can count our blessings. Yada yada yada.

So it's refreshing that "Zoom!" doesn't try any of that. Rather, it simply uses a girl's need for a wheelchair as the basis for a fun story. The girl, Lauretta, wants a FAST wheelchair, and when she gets one, a series of fast-paced scenes ensue. More than most kids books, "Zoom!" has ACTION.

My kids, now 4 and 5, never ask, "Why is she in a wheelchair?" or anything like that, they just accept that she is. They love this story for its lively story and colorful, expressive, pictures. It's fun to read out loud, with "sound effects" built into the story like "Blam! Blam! Blam!" and "Zooooooooooooom!"

My daughter adores this book! She checked it out of the school library so many times the librarian asked me if she would consider reading something different. I decided to purchase her own copy to avoid conflicts. She reads it constantly. I adore the fact that Robert Munsch has the foresight to reflect real life children in his books. The star of this story is a little girl in a wheelchair. As soon as I see Robert Munsch as the author of a book, I know that we are in for a great story with good humor and the story will take us on a fun ride. My daughter knows this too. Keep up the great work!

My 8 year old grand-daughter visited recently. She saw the book and said "I only read chapter books now." However, she did pick it up and read it straight through so obviously she enjoyed the rhymes and story. We talked about children in her school who have disabilities and am sure she will see them in a different way. I highly recommend this charming book.

I LOVE this book. Children's books about disability are often too cutesy for me, and unrealistic. Not this one! It addresses that awkwardness someone can feel if they aren't used to seeing someone in a wheelchair and is an overall fun read. The illustrations are great, too.

An excellent book! I like the rhyming words. I like the illustrations. I LOVE the Message! I think Best Friend on Wheels is an informational book in the funnest way imaginable! The author focuses on similarities and differences appropriately. Best Friend on Wheels tells the story of two girls who are friends;one of them (Sarah) uses a wheelchair. This book accurately portrays how some people are uncomfortable when they see a wheelchair but ultimately realize that a person using a wheelchair really isn't all that different. My favorite part is when the girls have a sleepover for the first time and Sarah's friend offers to help put the wheelchair in the bed. I like this book better than Susan Laughs because I like the fact that the disability/ wheelchair is not hidden until the last page. This book shows that Disability is Natural!

There are two reasons why I think readers of any age will enjoy this book and will recommend it to their friends to read: Its irresistible narrator. Its superior writing and illustrations.

What's so irresistible about the narrator? Well, let me tell you. Lots!
* Her helpful innocence when she tells her friend Sarah, "I'd be happy to help get your wheelchair in bed."
* Her candid awareness when she states, "I wanted to get a good look at her chair, but I felt like a jerk, so I tried not to stare."
* Her delight at discovering Sarah, too, loves dancing. "Dancing--yes, dancing! She loves the ballet. She spins on her wheels and twirls every which way."
* Most irresistible of all is her sweet intelligence. "Now Sarah and I, we're twin sisters at heart. Except for one HUGE thing that sets us apart." (It's NOT her wheelchair. Please read the book to find out.)

Author Debra Shirley's prose shines poetic, her writing skill reflected in expertly crafted rhyme that doesn't resort to ho-hum singsongy-ness. And illustrator Judy Stead captures the narrator's youthful exuberance and humor while providing the reader with a clear sense of action and changing moods. I'd like to praise the editors at Albert Whitman & Company for pairing up these two gifted professionals.

"Best Friend on Wheels" is a delightful story that humanizes disability in a simple and fun way. The tale helps any reader, young or old, to think about the similarities that connect us all while still appreciating the differences that make each of us unique. The charming story of two friends provides a bright platform that can enable readers, especially children, to have a comfortable dialogue about disability, and get past any uncertainties or apprehensions they may have about disability. As a wheelchair user, I appreciate the way in which Shirley captures some of the small details of what it's like to use a wheelchair while providing an active and energetic image of a wheelchair user. The vibrant, active images complement the narrative to make the story engaging and enjoyable - every reader will want to have a friend on wheels!

Chip Emmons is a fantastic story teller -- this is a very moving book and I'm so pleased to have discovered a new writer and this lovely story about a father and son.

This is a wonderful story of a father finding courage through his love for his son. Emmons is a talented story teller and his first book demonstrates his remarkable ability.

Chip Emmons is a talented writer and Shirley Anger's illustrations compliment the story perfectly. An interesting and meaningful book for the whole family. My daughter can't wait for the next book. Mr. Emmons please keep them coming!

Sammy Wakes His Dad by Chip Emmons is the story of a young boy who loves going out early to fish more than anything. His dad used to come fishing with him all the time, but ever since an accident left his father in a wheelchair, his seems to do nothing but hang around the house and mope. Longing for the good times they once shared, Sammy finally decides to speak out, and tell his dad how he feels. Filled with hazy yet charming color illustrations by Shirley Venit Anger, Sammy Wakes His Dad is a warm, thoughtful book well-suited for young readers ages 4 to 8.

Chip Emmons is a wonderful storyteller. He knows each word by heart and loves to tell this tale, which is truly touching. I recommend this book highly, it's a wonderful story and gives me a cozy warm feeling when I read it to my son. I gave this book four stars because I'm not crazy about the illustrations, but the author's words more than make up for that. Congratulations, Chip!

The children found this book to be very entertaining. They went through it rather quickly.

The rap on kids sports today seems to be about too much, too soon, too much specificity, too much competitiveness, too much pressure, too much incentive to specialize early and practice one sport.

And then there's Carol Goodrow's vision of Kids' Running, which is the the reverse of every reason parents might be afraid of getting their kids involved in sports. Want to run? Great, here's some ways to have fun doing it. Want to ride your bike today instead? Jump rope, play some kickball, play a game with your teammates? No problem, go ahead, you won't even notice you're still running. Want to do a race or two? Nothing but good news.

This book is a reassuring reference for parents, but it's also an empowering menu of fun stuff for kids, too, enough to make their parents wish they were kids again and could be out running the butterfly loops with their friends, too. For more advanced readers, there are characters who can be followed through the book as they figure out this sport for themselves.

Carol has been able to carry forward the delightful style of the "Kids Running" web-site into this equally delightful book. With so many pictures of kids (and their ever-present pet dogs) enjoying the many running activities, and with so many cute rhymes about running and healthy eating, it's hard to imagine any child NOT getting caught up in the fun and excitement!

As "Professor Shoelace", I was also pleased to see that Carol promotes the virtues of good fitting running shoes or sneakers, securely tied with shoelaces. This comes by way of advice on the very first page of the book, as well as by example in the countless pictures of kids wearing colorful running shoes, all neatly tied with colorful shoelaces.

Carol Goodrow breaks through the finish line with a gold medal finish again!

Recommended for grades 1 to 6, this 82-page gem has content stimulating enough for adult readers, yet colorful, clever and charming enough to read to toddlers.

The information is rock-solid, perfect for a lifelong foundation in health.

This book is a cheerful antedote to wearisome complaints of youth with too much screen time and too little nutritious food. It is not preachy, and has enough informative tidbits and silly riddles to keep readers returning again and again.

Librarians, teachers, parents and grandparents will want to get this mighty treasure.

Award winning author AVI lives in Denver (a fact I didn't realize until reading this little book). In Prairie School, AVI tells a story that takes place as the Colorado Prairie is being settled around 1880. Noah Bidson, a 9 year old, enjoys helping his parents with daily chores around their new home. One day, Noah's mother announces that her sister, Aunt Dora, will be coming to school Noah.

Mother and son are both surprised to discover Aunt Dora uses a wheelchair. "Soon after you went West, a buggy I was driving turned over. I lost the use of my legs."

Over the course of several months, Aunt Dora shows Noah not only what she is still able to do, but also the many things they both can learn about the prairie through books.

"All day Noah wheeled her around. All day Aunt Dora asked questions about what she saw. Noah told her what he knew. Each time, Dora looked into her book and told him more."

As nighttime came they would learn about stars. Toward the end of Aunt Dora's stay, Noah said,

"I found a new constellation."
"What is it?"
"It's called The Wheelchair. And you're sitting in it. See, it's those stars there."

The illustrations are beautifully simple and realistic - a perfect match to the story of Prairie School.

There is something very appealing about this book, and my son loved reading this book quite a few times, before it as time to return to the library. He is not quite fond of reading, but he really liked this book.

My son read this in 2nd grade, and he was beginning to struggle with reading. The story is about a young boy who is "tricked" into learning by his aunt, a teacher. My son loved that the boy in the story was learning and didn't even know it. We both enjoyed this book.

Prairie School is about a nine year old boy named Noah. He and his family have just moved from Maine to Colorado. He loves being there on the open prairie. He feels free. One day his mother tells his they are going to have a visitor. It's his Aunt Dora and she is coming to teach him to read. Naoh doesn't like the idea at all. Once Aunt Dora shows Noah her way of teaching he catches on and enjoys learning new things.

The book is part of the I Can Read series. It's a level 4, for grade 2-4. This is a good introduction to historical fiction.

I would recommed this book. It would make a great read aloud while learning about the 1880's.