JENNY'S MAGIC WAND

Jenny, six, describes the daily activities at a school for the blind. She and her class-mates share funny memories, make muffin pizzas, play games, and develop techniques for coping with their disabilities. The depiction of happy, cheerful children engrossed in learning should be useful for sensitizing sighted children; but the whole is marred by a poorly developed secondary theme and a contrived ending. In the last six pages, Jenny is mainstreamed: she enters a school for both blind and sighted children, and too little space is given to exploring her concerns or adjustment. Then, she becomes a hero by finding her teacher's keys, lost on the playground, and thus becomes ""just one of the kids."" Her cane (the ""magic wand"") plays no part in this and cannot even be viewed as a symbol of her increased independence, since she is seldom shown using it unescorted (except on the jacket). Still, a useful title despite its limitations.