TOUGH BEANS

Fourth-grader Nat Berger learns that he has diabetes and that he can lead a pretty normal life, even so. Much here deals with the stages of Nat's reactions to his illness: denial, anger, sugar-binges, and finally gradual acceptance of his condition. Nat also contends with the loss of a close friend (incidentally a Vietnamese refugee) who moves away, and with the bullying of a new boy in his class. The breezy first-person narrative is positive in tone and may be useful in acquainting young readers with juvenile diabetes. There is nothing unusually compelling about it, but it's serviceable.