Shang, Melissa and Eva Mia Lee is Wheeling Through Middle School, 103 pgs. Woodgate Publishing, 2017. $6.99. Language G (0 swears, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: G; Violence: G.
Mia Lee is starting middle school and Mia is determined to try to make friends and (hopefully) be popular. Mia is in a wheelchair because she has a form of muscular dystrophy - she can’t always hold things steady, and she has an adult aide who helps her get around the school, but otherwise Mia is just like all the other kids. She makes these awesome stop motion videos and has joined the Video Production club, but when she wants to run for club president, her opponent is Angela - a middle school mean girl.
The authors are sisters, Melissa has the same condition as Mia; they are writing from experience. We don’t have enough books with diverse main characters, so this story is a welcome addition. I like that it wasn’t about having a disability; Mia’s mother was a bit overprotective, but Mia seemed to fit in with the rest of the students despite the fact that she is in a wheelchair. There were a lot of characters for such a short book - it was difficult to have any of them well developed, even Mia, and the story lacked depth. I feel like I was missing something from her story. Although Mia is in middle school, this is more appropriate for an elementary audience.
EL - OPTIONAL Lisa Librarian
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