PERFECT ENOUGH

A recently diagnosed autistic girl has something to prove during her first time attending summer camp.

Thirteen-year-old Selah had a terrible time before her diagnosis, but now, armed with knowledge and adaptive tools (like earplugs, communication bracelets, and fidgets), she’s determined to succeed at Writer’s Camp. She’s attending with her two dragon-obsessed friends: Reyah, a Black girl who creates manga, and Brooklyn, a Korean American filmmaker. Camp will be great—she’s got her poetry workshop and a class called Magic and Monsters. There’s even Noa, a delightful, nerdy, autistic counselor, who lives with long Covid and uses a walking aid. She explains problems with the label high-functioning and teaches Selah about spoon theory, a concept that helps disabled people talk about ability and energy limitations. Still, succeeding at camp is difficult. Selah, who must “cosplay as a normal person,” disagrees with the well-meaning adult who once told her autism was her superpower. Brown-skinned former bully Ezra is at camp too; her discovery that he has ADHD doesn’t make his chaotic behavior and rejection sensitivity dysphoria easier to cope with. Deceptively simple, evocative free verse vignettes show Selah learning to redefine success, even as she confronts conflicting access needs. Her love of dragons gives her useful metaphors for her strengths and limitations. This follow-up to Good Different (2023), which established Selah as white, works as a stand-alone read.

A kind, believable, and gently edifying portrait of a determined poet.