Best Friend on Wheels

Plot Summary

In second grade, Mrs. Poole asks our narrator to show the new girl around school. Imagine the surprise when our narrator first meets Sarah—Sarah uses a wheelchair! For a moment, our narrator feels awkward. Then she sees a button Sarah wears. It says “Rockhound” on it.

“Do you collect rocks?” Sarah says she does! “So do I,” says our narrator. And soon it’s clear that these new friends are more alike than different. They scrapbook, draw cartoons, and even go hot-air ballooning.

Lively verse and bright pictures celebrate this very close friendship.

Reviews

"Shirley celebrates friendship and helps dispel many misconceptions about life in a wheelchair. Best friends like many of the same things and these two girls are no different....As their friendship grows she learns that, though the wheelchair clearly changes her friend’s life, her personality still shines through. They can still stay up late at sleepovers and even dance: “She spins on her wheels and twirls every which way.” She learns that it’s mostly others who feel uncomfortable and have difficulty seeing past the wheelchair to the person. Stead’s energetic illustrations add to the atmosphere of exuberance with bright yellows and pinks and the pure delight shining from the girl’s faces." Kirkus Reviews

Associated Keywords
wheelchair, disability, disabilities, handicap, handicapped, physically, challenged, special, need, needs, friendship, friends, cerebral palsy