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  Fighting for Dontae

  Mike Castan

  When Mexican American seventh-grader Javier is assigned to work with a special education class and connects with Dontae, who has both physical and mental disabilities, his reputation among gang members and drug abusers no longer seems very important.

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  Forrest Gump

  Winston Groom

  Six foot six, 242 pounds, and possessed of a scant IQ of 70, Forrest Gump is the lovable, surprisingly savvy hero of this classic comic tale. His early life may seem inauspicious, but when the University of Alabama’s football team drafts Forrest and makes him a star, it sets him on an unbelievable path that will transform him from Vietnam hero to world-class Ping-Pong player, from wrestler to entrepreneur. With a voice all his own, Forrest is telling all in a madcap romp through three decades of American history.

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  Girls Like Us

  Gail Giles

  Graduating from their school's special education program, Quincy and Biddy are placed together in their first independent apartment and discover unexpected things they have in common in the face of past challenges and a harrowing trauma.

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  Henry the Boy

  Molly Felder

  This is not a story about a heron or a robot or a chicken but an ordinary boy with daily struggles, triumphs, and an extraordinary imagination.Henry uses forearm crutches decorated with animal stickers. He sometimes feels out of place at school, especially when he gets made fun of, but through his own rich imagination and his friendship with Joel, Henry learns to define himself on his own terms.

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  I Am Nuchu

  Brenda Stanley

  Upon his parents' 1981 divorce, Cal Burton goes from being a popular, comfortable Spokane basketball all-star to a resident of a Ute Indian reservation in Utah, where apathy, poor living conditions, racism, and bitterness over a decades-old family tragedy change his life.

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  Ian's Walk: A Story about Autism

  Laurie Lears

  Julie can't wait to go to the park and feed the ducks with her big sister, Tara. There's only one problem. Her little brother, Ian, who has autism, wants to go, too. Ian doesn't have the same reactions to all the sights and sounds that his sisters have, and Julie thinks he looks silly. But when he wanders off on his own, she must try to see the world through his eyes in order to find him.

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  Imagine Me on a Sit-Ski!

  George Moran

  Billy and his classmates, who are physically challenged, learn that they can go skiing just like other youngsters when they are fitted with special equipment, such as a sit-ski, and feel the freedom and exhilaration of a sport from which they once were excluded.

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  I'm Here

  Peter H. Reynolds

  In a crowded park, a boy makes an airplane out of a piece of paper carried to him by a gentle breeze, sends it on its way, and watches a new friend bring it back to him.

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  Inside Asperger’s Looking Out

  Kathy Hoopmann

  Inside Asperger's Looking Out follows in the best-selling footsteps of Kathy Hoopmann's All Cats Have Asperger Syndrome and All Dogs Have ADHD. Through engaging text and full-color photographs, this book shows neurotypicals how Aspies see and experience the world. Each page brings to light traits that many Aspies have in common, from sensitive hearing and an aversion to bright lights and strong smells, to literal thinking and difficulty understanding social rules and reading body language and facial expressions. At the same time, the book highlights and celebrates the unique characteristics that make those with Asperger's Syndrome special. This is the perfect introduction to the world of Aspies, told from their own perspective, for the people in their lives: including family, friends, and classmates. Those with Asperger's Syndrome will also appreciate this book for the way it shares their own singular perspectives on life.

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  Janine

  Maryann Cocca-Leffler

  Janine is one of a kind. She focuses on the positive while navigating life with disabilities. She makes a difference just by being herself

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  Janine and the Field Day Finish

  Maryann Cocca-Leffler

  Today is field day and even though Janine is not good at sports, she is ready to compete. Her body just doesn't work like the other kids'. But no matter what, Janine cheers for everyone and tries her best. During the big race, her classmate Abby trips and falls. Janine is right there to help. But Abby is crushed that she won't win the race. Can Janine teach Abby and her classmates that being a winner is not always about being number one?

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  Katie Can

  Erin Palmer

  Katie has Down Syndrome, but that's not what makes her so special. Find out what makes Katie unique.

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  Keeping Up with Roo

  Sharlee Mullins Glenn

  Gracie has always had a special bond with her Aunt Roo, who is mentally disabled, but that relationship starts to change when Gracie begins school.

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  Life Happens Next

  Terry Trueman

  Shawn's got a new perspective on life. But no one has a clue. That's because they can see only his wheelchair, his limp body, his drool. What they don't see? His brain, with perfect auditory memory. And his heart, which is in love with a girl. And his fierce belief that someday someone will realize there's way more to him than his appearance.

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  Marcelo In The Real World

  Francisco X. Stork

  The term "cognitive disorder" implies there is something wrong with the way I think or the way I perceive reality. I perceive reality just fine. Sometimes I perceive more of reality than others. Marcelo Sandoval hears music that nobody else can hear ― part of an autism-like condition that no doctor has been able to identify. But his father has never fully believed in the music or Marcelo's differences, and he challenges Marcelo to work in the mailroom of his law firm for the summer . . . to join "the real world."

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  Mighty Jack

  Ben Hatke

  Jack might be the only kid in the world who's dreading summer. But he's got a good reason: summer is when his single mom takes a second job and leaves him at home to watch his autistic kid sister, Maddy. It's a lot of responsibility, and it's boring, too, because Maddy doesn't talk. Ever. But then, one day at the flea market, Maddy does talk―to tell Jack to trade their mom's car for a box of mysterious seeds. It's the best mistake Jack has ever made. In Mighty Jack, what starts as a normal little garden out back behind the house quickly grows up into a wild, magical jungle with tiny onion babies running amok, huge, pink pumpkins that bite, and, on one moonlit night that changes everything…a dragon.

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  Mighty Jack and the Goblin King

  Ben Hatke

  Like a bolt from the blue, Jack's little sister Maddy is gone―carried into another realm by an ogre. When Jack and Lilly follow Maddy’s captor through the portal, they are ready for anything . . . except what they find waiting for them in the floating crossroads between worlds. Even the power of their magic plants may not be enough to get them back to earth alive. Alone and injured, Jack and Lilly must each face their own monsters―as well as giants who grind the bones of human children to feed their “beast” and a fearsome goblin king in the sewers down below. But when Jack finds himself in a tough spot, help comes from the most unlikely person: the goblin king!

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  My Brother, Matthew

  Mary Thompson

  Though David knows frustration and resentment at times, he feels he understands his disabled little brother even better than his parents; and together the two boys experience a great deal of joy.

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  My Friend Has Autism

  Amanda Doering Tourville

  My friend Zack has a disability called autism. But that doesn’t matter to us. We talk about airplanes, build models, and enjoy hanging out at each other’s house. I’m glad Zack is my friend!

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  My Friend Isabelle

  Eliza Woloson

  Isabelle and Charlie are friends. They both like to draw, dance, read, and play at the park. They both like to eat Cheerios. They both cry if their feelings are hurt. And like most friends, they are also different from each other. Isabelle has Down syndrome. Charlie doesn't.

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  My Friend Suhana

  Shaila Abdullah

  While volunteering with her mother at a community center, a seven-year-old girl befriends Suhana, also seven, whose cerebral palsy makes it difficult for her to communicate or control her movements. Includes facts about cerebral palsy.

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  My Sister, Alicia May

  Nancy Tupper Ling

  Older sister Rachel tells the story of her relationship with Alicia, her younger sister who is very different and very special because she has Down syndrome.

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  My Special Needs Family

  Claudia Harrington

  Lenny follows Roxy for a school project and learns about her family life as someone with special needs.

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  Nathan's Wish: A Story About Cerebral Palsy

  Laurie Lears

  A boy with cerebral palsy helps out at a raptor rehabilitation center and is inspired himself when an owl that cannot fly finds another purpose in life.

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  New Hands, New Life: Robots, Prostheses, and Innovation

  Alex Mihailidis and Jan Andrysek

  This book covers how advances in science and technology have made it possible for people with physical disabilities to overcome challenges.